Memoria – Cravings (Album – Novoton)
Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, wave-pop, minimal-electro.
Format: Digital, vinyl.
Background/Info: We all know Henric de la Cour, but this project is the Swedish artist’s wife Tess de la Cour. “Cravings” is her debut work, which can’t be totally considered as a solo-work as most of the songs have been written together with producer Richard Lindh. Henric de la Cour contributed to the lyrical content of a few songs.
Content: I honestly didn’t know what to expect from this project, which sounds like a sonic offspring between different genres. There however is a solid retro-touch reminding some 80s productions, but especially Tess’ timbre of voice reminds me of the bewitching singing of Siouxsie Sioux. Sound-wise the album reveals a few cool minimal electro cuts while others are more into the darker dark-wave tunes from the 80s. One of the essential cuts is “Lights Out” for featuring Henric de la Cour singing together with Tess.
+ + + : The work is filled with 80s nostalgia with a very personal touch on top. I’m not saying that you can easily recognize the magic touch of Henric de la Cour, but you can feel his presence. The album is a dark, but subtle artistic testimony of Tess’ sonic ideas mixed with the beauty and magic of her vocals. She has a great timbre of voice, which is perfectly matching with the sound. The duo with her husband on “Lights Out” is a great performance and a sublime song.
– – – : I don’t see real minus points; this is a great production.
Conclusion: This is more than simply a great debut work and I can only encourage Memoria to move on! What a good surprise!
Best songs: “Lights Out”, “Bound”, “Forever”, “Maskrosbarn”, “Splinter”.
Rate: (8½).
Artist: www.facebook.com/memoriasthlm
Label: www.novoton.se / www.facebook.com/Novoton
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