News
12 November 2026 – Shida Shahabi Teams Up With PJ Harvey on Wreath and Announces First Light at Hand
By Editorial Team - November 12, 2026
Summary
Stockholm composer Shida Shahabi announces third LP First Light at Hand on Still Light, sharing collaborative single Wreath featuring PJ Harvey.
Key Facts
- Shida Shahabi announces third studio album 'First Light at Hand' arriving March 5, 2027 on Still Light.
- Features lead single 'Wreath', a haunting collaboration with PJ Harvey originating from a 2024 London meeting.
- The 8-track LP follows 2023's 'Living Circle' and Shahabi's acclaimed soundtrack work on 'Falcon Lake'.
- Entities: Shida Shahabi, PJ Harvey, First Light at Hand, Wreath, Still Light, Living Circle, Falcon Lake, Stockholm, London
- Tags: shida-shahabi, pj-harvey, modern-classical, ambient, still-light, first-light-at-hand, piano-composition, swedish-music
Stockholm-based pianist and composer Shida Shahabi has announced her third studio album, First Light at Hand, scheduled for release on March 5, 2027 through Still Light. The announcement arrives alongside an extraordinary collaborative single titled Wreath, featuring legendary British songwriter and musician PJ Harvey.
The recording brings together two singular artists whose respective musical vocabularies share a profound appreciation for spatial atmosphere, emotional restraint, and the haunting beauty found within uneasy emotional terrain. Shahabi has built an acclaimed reputation through her solo piano works and evocative film scores, including acclaimed soundtrack contributions to Falcon Lake, Lovely, Dark and Deep, and Else. Her upcoming collection follows 2023's critically lauded Living Circle, continuing her deep exploration of natural environments, diurnal light shifts, and the biological rhythms of living organisms.
The creative partnership with Harvey emerged organically after the two musicians crossed paths at an intimate London cultural event curated by Harvey in 2024. What began as mutual artistic admiration soon blossomed into a dedicated studio collaboration. Shahabi had already sketched out the instrumental foundations of Wreath when Harvey joined the project, adapting words supplied by the composer into a lyrical and melodic framework that sidesteps standard verse-chorus formats.
Rather than constructing a conventional vocal duet, the pair crafted a slow-burning, meditative composition wherein Harvey's hushed, deliberate vocal delivery functions almost as another acoustic element in the instrumental weave. First Light at Hand features eight compositions: Phantasm, Infinite Fifth, Handspun, Iridescent, Alba, Sun-Filled Swarm, Bright Ruin, and the featured collaboration Wreath.
For listeners drawn to experimental composition, modern classical textures, and avant-garde songwriting, the project promises an unforgettable encounter between two visionary talents. Apparently the most effective way to make a quiet composition impossible to ignore is to invite PJ Harvey into the studio and allow the atmosphere to do the shouting. Discover more ambient and neoclassical gems in our ambient music section or explore our experimental music hub.