Record Reviews

FALKEVIK ~ NEW CONSTELLATIONS DRABANT 139 (Barcode: 7072696003477) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz-Pop Fusion Recorded: 2021 Released: 2021 This is the second album by the Norwegian trio FalkevikFind albums by this artist led by pianist / vocalist Julie Falkevik TungevagFind albums by this artist with bassist Ellen BrekkenFind albums by this artist and drummer Marius Troan HansenFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten tracks, all original compositions by the trio, most of which are songs with lyrics in English, except for the last track with lyrics in Norwegian, with all lyrics by Tungevag. The music is pretty original, presenting an amalgam of a classic Jazz piano trio and a Pop / Rock group, resulting in a Jazz-Pop Fusion. The melodies are full of Nordic “darkness”, romanticism and melancholy, which is certainly appealing. The Jazz piano trio aspect is kept somewhat “in the background” musically, and the instrumental parts are characterized by heavy bass riffs and highly dynamic drumming, definitely more appropriate for Rock, but overall very effective. There is limited piano soloing, definitely too little to be characterized as Jazz per se. The limited electronic / synthesizer usage is very tasteful. Although perfectly understandable, singing in English by non-native English speakers is a priori a risky business. Of course I try to be lenient in this matter and see it mostly as rather charming, but it can work against the vocal parts. Stick to your mother tongue when singing is my motto ;) The closing track of this album proves it. Overall this is a very nice, melodic album with interesting songs and unusual instrumental arrangements, with some Jazz undercurrents, but calling it Jazz is simply misleading. Nevertheless, genres aside, it is great fun to listen to from start to finish and there is a lot of music and passion therein. Like most music made in Norway these days, it is absolutely worth being discovered - well done!

Updated: 24/07/2021Posted: 24/07/2021

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