The Swedes have given us many things, and the latest attraction to hit American shores from the people who brought us dynamite, the propeller and the Wahlbergs is Fever Ray, whose self-titled debut album landed in stores yesterday.
Fever Ray is the side project of Karin Dreijer Andersson, who also makes music with her brother Olof as the duo The Knife. Their last album, “Silent Shout,” was widely lauded and won six Swedish Grammys.
Fans of The Knife will recognize many of the electronic sounding beats in “Fever Ray,” although Andersson has added more of a dark, almost gothic tone to many of her songs.
The opening song “If I Had a Heart,” which is also the first single off the album, exemplifies this and is one of the high points. A synthetic hum pulses in the background while Andersson sings “If I had a heart I could love you / If I had a voice I could sing.” Her voice is altered throughout the song, at times not sounding feminine or even human.
The diversity in Andersson’s vocals is one of the more interesting parts of the album. While she sounds forceful and passionate on “When I Grow Up,” her heavily filtered voice is gentle and even ghostly on the next track, “Dry and Dusty.”
But while her vocals are notable, it was really the synth-pop beats that characterized The Knife, and the same holds true for Fever Ray. While a variety of instruments are included — from guitar to congas to a range of other percussion tools — the foundation of nearly every song is a moody, electronic melody.
There are a couple more upbeat, quick songs such as “Seven” and “Triangle Walks,” but for the most part “Fever Ray” is a collection of eerie, cold tracks. If the feel of the album was a color, it would be gray, not in the sense that it is bland but rather because it is distant and a little spooky.
“Fever Ray” is not at all like other electronic music, which features pulsating techno beats, but is much more slow and methodical. It has a definite, consistent sound even though each song is distinct and interesting lyrically.
Andersson has put together an evocative, emotional set of tracks which has a unique sound. But this sound probably isn’t for everyone, as the album can be foreign in every sense of the word.
However, though a niche album, “Fever Ray” will at least intrigue new listeners with the themes Andersson brings both in her verses and melodies.
With its haunting tunes and tight production, “Fever Ray” never pretends to be something it’s not and sticks to what it does best, making it worth a listen for fans of the genre and listeners looking for something new and different.
Reach your reporter at matthew.leung@asu.edu.
