The vibrant front cover of Ane Brun’s sixth studio album shows her gazing wistfully into the middle distance. Whether she’s about to leave, or has just arrived, is unclear from Swedish artist Aida Chehrehgosha’s portrait, just as the title is open to interpretation: does this freedom exist already, or is it something longed for but still unattained? Such ambiguity lies at the heart of When I’m Free, arguably the Norwegian born, Swedish-based singer and songwriter’s most ambitious album to date. It’s a lyrically and musically bold record that addresses change in many forms, a snapshot of a life in flux that even the typically humble Brun concedes is “probably more extrovert and dynamic than any of my previous work.”

The title comes from ‘Still Waters’, which, like so much of Brun’s work, runs deep. The song is dedicated to her own, intimate belief that issues and hang-ups that once besieged her have been left behind. As an album title, however, When I’m Free also articulates the sense that autonomy is something to strive for and not, necessarily, enjoyed automatically. These are themes reiterated in other songs: in the sumptuous ‘Hanging’, where she identifies “the moment when you know a relationship is going to end but it just feels impossible to accept it”; in ‘Black Notebook’’s haunting realisation that our emotions are constantly developing and mutating; in ‘Directions’’ trip hop influenced celebration of (self-)determination; in ‘You Lit My Fire’’s impassioned hymn to those still engaged in the ongoing struggle for equal rights; in ‘Better Than This’’ composed condemnation of destructive stasis and ‘Signing Off’’s vulnerably shimmering but resolute proclamation of independence.

It’s tempting to suggest that the record’s genesis lies in Brun’s enforced cancellation in late 2012 of a North American tour with Peter Gabriel. Whereas she had previously struggled occasionally with her health concerns, letting them weigh her down, this time she had an epiphany. “One night,” she recalls, “I woke up and thought, ‘Why are you so afraid? It doesn’t help you in any way. Let your mind and body rest so it can heal.’ When I recovered, I experienced an almost bliss-like feeling. I’d replaced all the worrying and fear with gratitude, and the feeling lingered. So somehow, since 2012, I’ve been able to approach life very differently than before.”

Despite this, When I’m Free picks up, in a sense, from where her last lavish collection, 2012’s It All Starts With One – a platinum seller in her Norwegian homeland – left off. Born of confusion and yet revelling in clear-headedness, it represents further musical progression from her early, acoustic songwriting, with Brun sounding more spontaneous and full of life than ever, her growing confidence in her pure-as-a-bell voice and her ever-ripening songwriting taking her to places that will astonish those who still think of her as a delicate troubadour. It looks back joyfully to some of the sounds that shaped Brun’s youth – DJ Shadow, Charles Mingus and Lauryn Hill, indications of the versatile musical taste she’s displayed since she was a child – and finds her employing new techniques to forge songs largely written in her Stockholm studio space that she resolved would feature more rhythm and bass within the same, intimate, warm sound she’s always constructed.

For the recording sessions, Brun again worked with Tobias Fröberg – who handled production duties for It All Starts With One – but this time took on the role of co-producer as they refined the record’s defining aesthetic over an almost eight month period in Stockholm’s legendary Atlantis Studios, her last album’s GIG Studios home and her own studio space. The unusually sophisticated, elegant results – which explore disparate musical arenas, from the beat-heavy ‘Directions’ to the magically fragile ‘All We Want Is Love’, from the Eastern-tinged ‘Shape Of A Heart’ to the confessional ‘Black Notebook’ – speak for themselves. This, no doubt, stems from the fact they were performed by the musicians with whom Brun spent much of 2013 touring the world: bassist Dan Berglund (previously part of the Esbjörn Svensson Trio), pianist Martin Hederos (Soundtrack Of Our Lives), drummer Andreas Werliin (Wildbirds & Peacedrums) and guitarist Johan Lindström, who also work together as instrumental group Tonbruket. Also guesting are Lars Skoglund (Lykke Li) and Ola Hultgren on drums; Tobias Gabrielsson (electric bass); Linnea Olsson, Nina K and Sabina Ddumba (additional vocals); and John Eriksson (of Peter, Bjorn & John), on timpani for ‘Directions’ and percussion and mallets for ‘Black Notebook’.

Lyrically, When I’m Free is undoubtedly Brun’s most mature record, full of finely tuned details such as ‘Black Notebook’’s perceptive articulation of our capacity for self-deception – “I could no longer separate what was real/ From my own strong will to feel/ That everything was fine” and ‘Shape Of A Heart’’s shrewd observation that “Though the shape of a heart is always the same/ You can never be sure it fits your frame”. And, though she continues to address romantic themes, Brun is increasingly fearless of tackling grander topics, including the environmental concerns of ‘Better Than This’ and the sexual politics of ‘You Lit My Fire’.

When I’m Free comes at a busy time for Brun. As well as constant touring – in a variety of formations, from full band to solo – she released a Best Of, Songs 2003–2013, and a Rarities album, in 2013, as well as a live album in late 2014. She also co-wrote and scored a UK Top 5 hit (and Dance Chart No. 1) in 2015 with Dr. Kucho! & Gregor Salto featuring Ane Brun’s ‘Can’t Stop Playing (Makes Me High)’. “Sometimes,” she concludes, “when I´m heading down to my studio to make new music, or record something, I have butterflies in my stomach, kind of like when I´m meeting someone I´m in love with or have a crush on. It´s like we’re in a relationship, my music and I!” It’s one of which we should all be jealous, and we’re spoilt by Brun’s desire to share its benefits. This is the sound of freedom.