The Swell Season

When an artist goes eight years between albums, the obvious question is: what did they spend all that time doing aside from making music? For Marketa Irglova, the answer is, well, a little bit of everything. Irglova, whose music with Glen Hansard as The Swell Season powered the 2007 film Once to critical acclaim and an Academy Award for best original song for “Falling Slowly,” returned last week with LILA, her first full-length since 2014’s Muna. Since that project, Irglova moved to Iceland, got married, built a recording studio and started a family. “I have grown deeper roots, which allow me to reach new heights,” she tells SPIN of these experiences and how they influenced LILA. “This benefits my creativity I believe, for I am able to work with ever new energies which I channel into my wo...