release date: Jul. 20, 2018
format: vinyl (gatefold) / digital (14 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,67]
producer: Rasmus Bille Bähncke, Jannik Brandt Thomsen
label: Genlyd / Sony Music - nationality: Denmark
Track highlights: 2. "Bruge dig" - 3. "Det vi sagde" - 5. "Regn" - 6. "Stjernerne falder (feat. Medina)" - 7. "Giganter" - 9. "Korn" - 10. "Spot (feat. Benal)" - 14. "Frie"
4th studio album by Marie Key following nearly 3½ years after Tænker du vi danser (Feb. 2015) marks a change in more than one way. Previously, she has teamed up with producer Andreas 'Maskinen' Sommer, who also arranged the music, but he is not credited on this new album. Instead, the majority of the songs are composed by Rasmus Bille Bähncke (producer of primarily dance-pop), and three songs co-composed by Jannik Thomsen (aka Jay - part of the Danish pop-duo Nik & Jay), who also features as vocalist on track #9, and the other half of the duo, Niclas Genkel Petersen (aka Nik) is co-writer and co-vocalist on track #14. And then also both the two Danish artists Medina and Benal feature on one song each (tracks #6 and #10 respectively).
With pop, hip hop-duo Nik & Jay, dance-pop vocalist Medina, and hip hop artist Benal as featuring artists, the album is a bolder pop and hip hop outing than her previous albums, which is also stressed by the choice of producer (Bähncke) and mixer Alex Epton (aka XXXchange).
Key's two previous albums both topped the Danish albums chart but Giganter 'only' peaked as number #9, briefly, and on the year-end list, the album wasn't included in top-100 - and no singles have registrered entries, although both "Det vi sagde", "Regn", "Stjernerne falder", and the title track were on heavy rotation on DR P3.
Imo, I think Giganter is Marie Key's perhaps second best. But despite an attempt to showcase a new sound formula, my only little grain of critique is that some songs here tend to follow melodic paths, where she has taken us before and the pop scene is not where she rightfully belongs. That said, this new collection of songs only serves to prove her status as one of the most vital contemporary Danish artist.
Recommended.
