Artist......: Astrid Swan
Album.......: Poverina
Source......: CD
Label.......: Minty Fresh
Genre.......: Rock
Tracks......: 11
Bitrate.....: 910 kbps avg
Playtime....: 00:37:37 (257.MB)
Rls date....: 2021-03-08
Store date..: 2007-05-22
Encoder.....: FLAC 1.3.1
Url.........: http://www.astridswan.bandcamp.com/
01 They Need You If They Think You Love Them 3:12
02 Poverina 3:15
03 Rock 'N' Roll Blonde 3:26
04 Ten Degrees / To The North 2:56
05 Good Girl 3:38
06 Life In A Container 2:00
07 Old-Fashioned Couple 4:00
08 War 3:14
09 Dad Said 3:21
10 The Kinda Tea You Like To Cry In 4:06
11 Second Chance 4:29
Astrid Swan hails from Finland, a country perhaps best known for its epic,
costume-clad metal bands, but she certainly doesn't sound like it. Her
English language debut, Poverina, croons like Rufus Wainwright, shimmers
like Kate Bush, and glimmers with hints of Laurel Canyon artists like Joni
Mitchell and Judee Sill; it's the kind of album, in other words, that will
expand her reach beyond Finnish shores if only because it sounds familiar.
Of course, one might wonder whether the world needs another Wainwright,
Antony, or Regina Spektor, but Swan manages to carve out a niche for
herself, perhaps in virtue of the fact that she draws from a host of
interesting role models. Her fascination with Sill is loud and clear on the
title track; like many of Sill's compositions ("Lamb Ran 'Way with the
Crown" comes to mind), "Poverina" is lush with loping pianos, jaunty
flutes, and airy background vocals. "Rock 'N' Roll Blonde" is a lovely
mash-up of Tori Amos and Mitchell; it's all dark piano chords and thick
orchestration, recalling From the Choirgirl Hotel and Court and Spark in
the same instant. Lyrically, Swan is probably more akin to Wainwright than
the Laurel Canyon set; the words themselves play second fiddle to Swan's
flexible, clear, emotive alto. Like Wainwright, Swan is a charismatic
performer; one is compelled to follow her, and she makes it easy to do so.
And it's ultimately this charisma that makes Poverina a compelling debut.
These are conscientiously made songs; they're intelligent, whimsical, and
entertaining to boot. But they wouldn't be anything without Swan's skill as
an actor and interpreter.