release date: Nov. 13, 2015
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,48]
producer: Filip Leyman
label: City Slang - nationality: Sweden
Track highlights: 1. "Discovery" - 3. "Pomperipossa" - 4. "Come Wander With Me / Deliverance" (live) - 6. "An Oath" - 7. "Evocation" (live) - 9. "Stranger"
3rd studio album by Anna von Hausswolff is like the predecessor Ceremony from 2013 produced by Filip Leyman and released on the small independent German label, City Slang.
The Miraculous introduces Anna von Hausswolff more boldly as an experimental darkwave artist than her two previous releases did. At first, she came out as an alternative art pop and chamber pop artist, and then released the darker and more secluded Ceremony, which in a way was a bit of an almost religious hymn-based work with heavy use of the pipe organ, but it didn't contain the multi-faceted shape of art pop, experimental rock and neoclassical darkwave as common denominator. Here, she combines all styles into one melting pot, which both makes it a strong and original orchestrated work and at the same time launches her music through the classical barrier. Most boldly, it sounds inspired by the Dead Can Dance album Spleen and Ideal (1985) but it also makes me think of Mike Oldfield - the progressive patterns of elements taken from progressive rock and classical' music, and Jocelyn Pook - the classical experimental approach, as well as Greek-American neoclassical darkwave icon, Diamanda Galás. There's always the presence of an underlying sinister tone and a sensation of the unpleasant and unexpected next.
A first listen may not reveal obvious hits, and the album may not contain any traditional such, but it may grab you as an emotional journey through hidden layers of both mysterious darkness and utter beauty.
From my perspective, and without being truly great, this is clearly the so far best release by Anna von Hausswolff.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]
