We caught up with emerging indie-folk sensation and Swiss Olympic snowboarder Pat Burgener who released his new single ‘Free’ on 30 August via Oversey Records. The single is a collaboration between Pat and his brother Max Burgener, a producer living in London who goes by Oddbox. The track is a beautiful balance of lighthearted whimsy and earnest depth, as Pat sings about freedom being a universal right for all, and not just a few. ‘Free’ premiered on tastemaker publication EARMILK, and landed a feature on the Spotify editorial playlist New Music Friday Switzerland.
In the interview Pat divulges about his creative process, how long he’s been making music and what’s next for the Olympic athlete and musician. Pat will also be performing in East London at the Two Palms on November 7th, so make sure to book your tickets while they’re still available.
Stream ‘Free’ while reading our interview below:
Tell us about you, how long have you been making music? What inspired you to start?
I started at five years old. Our parents told the three of us brothers to play an instrument. A couple of years later after my snowboarding injuries, I used the time off to play live shows and write music! I got addicted to it.
The music industry is super competitive these days, was there a moment in your life that you wanted to give up on music? How did you manage to stay focused and achieve what you want?
Maybe it’s because of my sports career but giving up was never an option, I always see challenges as an opportunity to overcome myself. Sure some projects had a bigger impact on my career like an Olympic 5th place or a good song, but every project is a step closer to your goal and as long as you remember that you’re moving forward. You never think of giving up.
How would you describe your creative processes? Who writes the lyrics to the songs? Are the music and lyrics written in conjunction, or separately?
I usually try to put myself in a good environment. For this specific song, we went to Portugal with my brother (Oddbox) and wrote the song together, throwing ideas on what freedom means to us.
Where did the inspiration come from?
I’ve been chasing freedom since I was five years old in a school when people tried to make me fit into a box. Telling me that if I didn’t study, I wouldn’t achieve anything in my life. This was the beginning of my chase and with my brother, we wrote a song about this feeling of searching for freedom. During a shoot in Portugal, I show the song to the marketing team at VW. They loved it and decided to use it for the next VW California ad campaign.
What’s next for you?
I have built up a lot of momentum in my career now, a string of successful releases, the VW campaign and my first headline European tour, including a show in London at the Two Palms in Hackney on the 7th of November. I’m also preparing for the next Winter Olympics in 2026. So I am very excited for the coming years!
