udgivet: Nov. 12, 2008
format: digital (US)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,12]
producer: Björn Yttling
label: Verve Forecast - nationality: Sweden
Track highlights: 1. "What Have I Done" (live) - 3. "Terrified" - 4. "Let It Rain" - 5. "My Heart Still Beats for You" - 6. "No I Don't Remember"
3rd studio album by Anna Ternheim released two years after the slightly disappointing Separation Road (Sep. 2006) is originally released on Universal Music - the release here on Verve is a US edition with a single bonus track (track #7) and a total running time at 44 minutes.
Stylistically, Ternheim's releases are found in the softer end of the art pop register, but on this she has moved further into a territory where she distances herself from what could rightly be labeled singer / songwriter. By doing so, she is now closer to artists such as Lykke Li, Emilíana Torrini, Anna Persson, and Danish Oh Land without artistically showcasing something entirely original. However, it's her music in particular that has improved significantly since Separation Road. The musical arrangements and Ytling's production add a grandiose quality and ethereal sensation to her songs and clearly elevates the album above the ordinary. Ternheim's vocal, on the other hand, is not a sparkling instrument that presents us with great qualities, and she still has a distinct Swedish-English intonation, which doesn't exactly improve things, and then the lyrics are occasionally characterised by bilingual banalities like "I'm losing you - what can I do?" ["Losing You"]. One may only wonder why Ternheim, as so many other Scandinavian artists, insists on singing in English when the language doesn't flow naturally? Overall, progress can be traced on an album that simply lacks catchy ear hooks. Without signs of remorse, Ternheim continues to release music and she also has stable support in the Scandinavian market, but it seems a bit like she's come to an artistic dead end, where many other talents shine brighter in the genre - Ternheim has, however, proven that she possesses a talent and has the skills in place, so perhaps she will hit it better next time.
Above average but no favourite.
