Little Dragon

Sweden, home of many-a-new musical talents directing their energies south to crash onto our British shores, now brings us the fresh 4-piece talent of 'Little Dragon'. Led by the dazzling vocalist Yukimi Nagano and her soulsters: Eric Bodin (drums), Fredrick Källgren (bass) and Håkan Wirenstrand (keyboards). These old high school pals from Gothenburg have created a neo-soul album, whisking us back 10 years with the background beats (among other things) of the trip-hop era. Nagano and her band of merry men claim to be giving us 'a shot in the arm to leave us with something fresh and positive' with this debut album which is a mix of mesmerising, soulful vocals over minimal, jerky beats.

The album boasts a few strong tracks, beginning with the enthralling 'Twice'. It is easy to become propelled into a dreamlike state with the hypnotic piano melodies, mellow vocals and the enchanting background effects this contains - it is no surprise that it managed to bag 'rough trade single of the week'. Tracks of a similar genre include: 'Stormy Weather' and 'Scribble Paper'. 'After the Rain' is a strong contender for the 'top tracks', with a much more upbeat tempo, Nagano sings with a jazzed up, Erykah Badu-finesse. This track has a raw edge to what would be a smooth jazz tone elsewhere, or with different production – thus making it a little more edgy and adding to what the band seem to be trying to accomplish. 'Place to Begin', again has a different take on things, with a more psychedelic feel, the range of background sounds masters the 'taking you away with the fairies' effect – a definite post-mash-up tune to add to one's collection! The remaining tracks, however, all seem to merge into one, some would label it as just 'all a bit samey, samey'.

The gentle melodies of this album won't stick in the memory bank for years but are enjoyable while you listen. Certain tracks appear to fail where electronic sounds mix with authentic instruments – the result is a disjointed sound which feels almost unnatural in comparison with other tracks that had worked well. An attempt at contemporary, the final product seems to lack courage. A definite selection for 'background music', with only a few tracks gaining that 'foreground' limelight. Thus we are presented with another 'chill out' album, which doesn't quite seem to make the category 'little dragon' were aiming for.

Maybe not causing as much destruction as the 'dragon' labelled four-piece had hoped for. The question that one must ask themselves when deliberating on the purchase of this album is simply whether it bodes well when one falls asleep - without intent - mid-listening. Good or bad thing. You decide.