Christoffer Lundquist’s debut solo album, Through the Window, was released today in Sweden, just two days after Christoffer was awarded the first ever Sir George Martin Music Award at a gala event in Malmö.

Christoffer told The Daily Roxette that from start to finish, it took him about 12 years to complete this album because so many other projects got in the way. But now, he’s so excited about how well this album has been received (it was released by Warner, a major label), that he’s already begun work on another one.

Those readers who only know Christoffer from his appearances on stage with Roxette, will be surprised that the wailing electric guitar is gone, as this is an album where every track – from the opening “Green” to the closing “Angel Blue” – has an intimate, almost “unplugged” quality to it.

Another such surprise for some will be just how well Christoffer can sing. His friend Michael Saxell, a successful Swedish singer-songwriter who lived in Canada for many years, wrote the lyrics… and Christoffer’s sings those words with a voice that has incredible range, timber and tone. On some songs, for example “A Clearing in the Forest” and “Cloudberry Way,” this reviewer can’t help but be reminded of Paul Simon during his Simon & Garfunkel days. Yet on other tracks, for example “Everybody (Prop. 8 Breakdown)” – which references a 2008 ballot proposal in California that limited the definition of “marriage” to a man and woman – his voice takes on a completely different character.

It’s a beautiful album (as one might expect for something that took so long to create).

See Christoffer perform “Tiny Penelope” earlier today on TV4’s morning show.