Avicii’s Sound Of Now marks 18 years since the 19-year-old producer was still developing the early sound that came before his global breakthrough

Before Avicii became one of the biggest names in the world of electronic dance music, Tim Bergling was still a 19-year-old producer at the beginning of his career. Released on November 6, 2008, Sound Of Now belongs to the period only months after Ash Pournouri began managing him and before the international success that followed. His music was still closely connected to late-2000s European house, while the melodic songwriting later associated with Avicii was still developing. Eighteen years later, the track remains an important early release from the years before his worldwide breakthrough.

Avicii’s Early Deal With Vicious

Only a few months after Ash Pournouri began working with Tim Bergling, a Vandalism show in Stockholm connected them with Vicious co-founder Andy Van. After hearing some of Tim Bergling’s demos, Andy Van shared the music with fellow co-founder John Course in Australia, and Vicious signed the young producer in June 2008.

That deal led to Sound Of Now being released through Vicious Grooves that November as Tim Bergling’s first release with the label. He had already put out music earlier in 2008, including Manman, but the Vicious deal placed his productions with an established house label at an important point in his career. John Course later recalled that the melodic ideas in those early demos were already noticeable, years before that side of Avicii’s music became known worldwide.

Production Came Before DJing

When Ash Pournouri first discovered Tim Bergling’s music online and met him in May 2008, producing was still his main focus. Professional DJing was new to him, and Ash Pournouri later recalled that Tim Bergling had never used professional CD decks before they began working together.

Over the next two years, the gap between bedroom production and an international career narrowed quickly. Avicii’s remix of Bob Sinclar’s New New New in 2009 became one of the first releases that made Tim Bergling feel a wider audience was paying attention to his work, while My Feelings For You with Sebastien Drums later became his first Beatport No. 1.

Three Years Before Levels

By 2010, Seek Bromance had brought Avicii’s music to a much larger international audience, with Levels following in 2011. Only three years separated Sound Of Now from the record that would become one of the most important releases of his career.

That short period says a lot about how quickly Tim Bergling’s career developed. In 2008, he was still learning the professional side of DJing while releasing house music through Vicious; by 2011, Avicii was already reaching listeners far beyond the dance music scene that first discovered him.