It’s been said that Adeline Hotel’s core band is made of « five loud personalities ». More than nine performers appear on Solid Love in total. Is there still room (or time) for individual suggestion when so many artists are involved?

Dan Knishkowy: Everyone involved is a great songwriter in their own right, and brings a deep commitment to restraint and listening. I like to be surprised by their input and we leave enough space for each other and for continued improvisation. To me, Solid Love is the sound of individuals becoming a collective, musically of course, but thematically as well.

Solid Love is made of songs where chord changes are hardly perceivable by the candid ear. Where you trying to reach a vibe inspired by modal jazz?

I tend to be drawn towards songs that get their emotional resonance primarily from dynamics, and prefer working with ambiguity over sharper angles. I was reaching for a vibe like Astral Weeks, a record that exists in a world all its own, where songs flow into and reference each other, continuing to grow live and over time.

This new album follows your previous away together, which was much more straightforward. Now that time has passed, and considering the slower mood of Solid Love, what is your perception of this previous opus?

There are choices I would make differently now, but it feels like an honest representation of where my head was at. It has a self-conscious eagerness to it (which I love in other’s early albums), trying to make each word fit and every lick stand out – it lacks the patience and confidence of Solid Love, but I think that’s okay.

The tracks comprising Solid Love bloom and evolve slowly, measure after measure and track after track. Considering that most listeners base their opinion on 20-second plays, how did you plan to encourage them to take their time and let the longing grow?

The easy answer would be to say I don’t think about that stuff, but of course that’s not strictly true. There are less quick hooks for sure, but I think that the meditative way these songs unfurl can grab listeners in the same way – once you’re in the current, there’s no natural jumping off point.