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"An ADD-addled version of the Rapture or an LCD Soundsystem fronted by David Byrne." - Cornell Daily Sun Elsa and the awesomeAWESOMES are 23 year old Ivy Leaguer and South Dakota/Montana native Samuel Sveen. Whistling since age 3 and beginning piano at 8, Sveen combines a multi-instrumental knack for songwriting with marching snare chops and a Lit. major's wit, creating an entire world of electronic performance and zany Scandinavian aesthetic. Sveen plays a cocktail-esque stand-up drumkit along to his own synthesized tracks created in Ableton, considering the actual 'live-ness' of amplified sounds irrelevant in comparison to the raw sound production and visual energy of the acoustic drumkit. Aspiring to the sound of the ski film soundtrack, Sveen's music spans jazz, dance, and punk, while maintaining a pop sensibility, emphasizing the live, avant-garde performance. In addition to his synthpunk/electropop side - of which exists a 7" vinyl record - Sveen has released a cassette tape of seven ukulele songs, and further proves his renaissance approach with conceptual visual art, unique DIY packaging, and creative guerrilla marketing. Elsa and the awesomeAWESOMES began in 2008, playing sweaty basement parties at Cornell University and venturing abroad to Cape Town, South Africa, now earning a reputation across New York.