Fever Ray : "Radical Romantics"

 

Swedish singer Karin Drejier from the Knife continues her journey into moody electronic music as Fever Ray with third album under this moniker. It opens with familiar brooding atmosphere of "What They Call Us" . The more dancey weirdness of her earlier work is reflected in "Shiver". She sings in a higher voice, and the beats bubble with a tribal undertone. I like this , but it does linger into a drone without a clear direction. If you are waiting for the beat to drop you are missing the point here. The androgynous theatricality of what she does fits in well into today's landscape. "New Utensils" bounces with angular quirk that her voice navigates around without solidifying into a traditional song structure.

This most recent single "Kandy" has a beat that lays a more solid foundation for songwriting. Her voice contracts into a more hushed alto. I can hear the Sinead O'Connor influence here. "Even it Out" leans more in the conventions of pop but with a weird sardonic feel haunting the mood, as the attitude prevailing in artfully non conforming. Her brother Olof from the Knife helps her out in some place, and along with sole producer, this album did not have a team of song writers and producers helping her out like the bulk of pop albums these days. "Looking For a Ghost' flows well, and has a clear lyrical narrative while indulging in divergent ambiance.

 "Carbon Dioxide" was also one of the album's singles.Swedish singer Karin Drejier from the Knife continues her journey into moody electronic music. This causes "North" to sound more like an the intro of a song that never fully forms from it's simmer. "Tapping Fingers" does throb out from the lethargic pulse, as the vocals take the lead. "Bottom of the Ocean" is more minimal and experimental, as she uses her voice as an instrument over a synth backdrop. I think this lines up well with what she has done in the past , it loses a little gas at the end up, overall stacks up I will give it a 9.