New Found Land
We all die
Fixe Records
It's not the modest aesthetic of "We all die" that bothers me -- in fact, at times it's starkly beautiful -- it's more the anonymous approach that New Found Land employs to achieve it. First, Anna Roxenholt's vocals -- the obvious centerpiece of the album -- are hampered by an Aryan lilt that too closely matches her female superiors. Normally, that would be a compliment, but despite her best imitations, her wintry tones cannot carry the hackneyed minimalia of Karl Krook's guitar. Absent here are the petulant flourishes that buttress Lykke Li's sparser arrangements, or the intimate effervescence of Hello Saferide's empty-room canvas. Second, though "We all die" is focused in its attempt to create a certain atmosphere, I remain unconvinced by their tired glockenspiel-and-acoustics palette, a palette that's beginning to plague the whole of Nordic lo-fi. In fact, "We all die"'s the best moments are the subtle departures from these lo-fi doldrums, like the rollicking "Come to me" and the upbeat end of "All the nights". Ultimately, I could decry the unremarkable filler of Krook's backup vocals, or irrationally complain that a young songstress with the sultry voice of winter has yet to approximate the hallowed of Sweden's indie scene. But after repeated listens, I've found a certain solace in "We all die", an unmistakable beauty that seems to well up from its very core, spilling out onto the austere repetition of "I would, I would, I would" on "In colour", and tempering the melismatic "My love, my love" on "Come to me". Despite the shortcomings, it's these fleeting moments of sublime beauty that assure me: New Found Land has the perfection of their bedroom aesthetic in their sights. I'll ignore the impurities and wait for the follow-up.
- Nathan Keegan
