The Tallest Man On Earth

Under the name The Tallest Man On Earth, Swedish musician Kristian Matsson has developed since the mid-2000s an acoustic folk centered on voice and guitar, marked by nervous picking and stripped-down songs. Originally from Leksand in Dalarna, he began working solo after a stint with the band Montezumas and released a self-titled EP in 2006, followed by the album Shallow Grave in 2008, which placed him within an intimate folk current. Signed to the American label Dead Oceans, he followed with The Wild Hunt in 2010 and There’s No Leaving Now in 2012, where his songwriting broadened while remaining firmly focused on guitar and voice. With Dark Bird Is Home (2015) and I Love You. It’s a Fever Dream. (2019) he explored wider arrangements and darker atmospheres without abandoning the framework of melodic folk song. A collection of covers, Too Late for Edelweiss, appeared in 2022, followed by Henry St. in 2023, produced with Nick Sanborn. On stage, The Tallest Man On Earth mostly performs solo, alternating tours in Europe and North America, and grounds his writing in a folk tradition where lyrics occupy a central place.