Agnes Obel - The Meaning of Flowers

Singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Agnes Obel’s album The Meaning of Flowers is woven together from different strands of thought and inspiration. The project explores the heightened sense of interconnection with all living things she experienced during pregnancy.

A follow-up to the widely acclaimed Myopia (2020), the album reflects on birth, growth and metamorphosis in the natural world, drawing inspiration from sources ranging from the poetry of Enheduanna and the ideas of philosophers Hannah Arendt and Emanuele Coccia to Danish pop of the 80s and 90s.

Written, recorded, arranged and produced by Obel in her own studio in Berlin, the album features Obel herself on vocals, piano, keys, synths and samples, joined by guest musicians on strings, bass, lap steel, harmonium, flute, sax, percussion and backing vocals. Across its 12 tracks, the album reflects both the emotional impact of motherhood and the fresh directions in thought and composition that followed the birth of her first child. Dedicated to her daughter, the project explores what Obel describes as “the feeling of a new beginning” and a new, expansive sense of love and interconnectedness.