Vestkyst Records (label)
06 November 2015 (released)
15 November 2015
What do you get if you cross Oslo’s music scene with Liverpool’s? Well not death metal with a smile and a shake of a mop-topped head. Tina Refsnes took her four years in Liverpool back to Oslo and has produced an album that in the main sits in the west coast of the USA. Curious.
The overwhelming theme here is space and freedom. The songs from opener I Don’t Know through to Song About Trust are airy meditations conjuring up images of landscapes and the valleys of California. This has elements of that State's acoustic tradition. This is not scratch and sniff, blue collar Americana/folk. The pristine production has done for the edges and there’s a lack of warmth and inclusivity about it.
On a technical level there’s nothing to fault. Ms Refsnes voice is rich and resonant, and the performances are excellent. And there are good songs here. A Million Things is a wonderfully evocative song, which leads to closer Song About Trust which while a touch on the mournful side, perks up towards the end.
It’s a consistent album and there aren’t any tracks that’ll have you leaping over the furniture to fast forward and avoid. With time it could grow on the listener.
