Customer Reviews

Djupa Andetag

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Add me to the list of people who love this album, although I didn't think I was going to. This is what I usually refer to as a "producer's album"; the entire thing was written was written and produced by long time ABBA "associate", Anders Glenmark, so I figured it would probably be just an Anders Glenmark album with Frida's vocals plugged into it. It was a nice surprise to find that Frida has taken every song on the album and made it her own. (And to her credit, she did co-write one of the songs.) I agree with the other reviewers who say that it doesn't matter in the least that the entire CD is in Swedish. Everything is so catchy and well-done, I didn't even care that I have no idea what she's singing about. "Alla Mina Basta Ar" is definitely one of the highlights, and yes, you can hear overtones of ABBA in this one, since it's a duet with the lead singer of Roxette, Marie Fredriksson. (almost sounds a little like Agnetha, at times....) And I must be in the minority on this, judging by the other comments on here, but one of my favorite tracks is the final one, "Kvinnor Som Springer", which has a crunchy (crunchy???) guitar riff repeating throughout, and almost feels like a dance track.

In a decade when every tired old has-been has tried their hand at a return to pop stardom, it is refreshing to hear something like Frida's album 'Djupa Andetag' (or 'Deeper Breathing' for you non-Swedes!), her first album since 1984's 'Shine'. Rather than try to conquer the world, Frida (ex-ABBA) has opted to sing in Swedish and the album's release was confined to Scandanavia, where it went to No.1. Strangely, the language barrier is not an issue here: the performances and the tunes engage throughout. Arranged and produced by Anders Glenmark (he also wrote most of the material), this album is a perfect match of voice and song.

In the UK magazine "Q", the reviewer classed the album as high-quality MOR, which, to my mind, is damning the work with faint praise. At 50, Frida could easily have released a granny-ish collection of watery ballads. From the opening notes of the beautiful 'Alska Mig Alltid' (with light shades of Massive Attack) and through the rest of the album's guitar-based arrangements, it's clear that this is was not an option. The influences are current, the sound is of the moment. The interactive elements on the CD underline the modernity.

Even though it's been some time since her last album, Frida's voice is still in great shape. It has a slightly huskier edge to it but you can still hear how she contributed to the mighty ABBA recordings. In fact, 'Alla Mina Basta Ar', a duet with Roxette's Marie Fredricksson, could easily be mistaken for ABBA. Highlights of the album are the single 'Aven En Blomma', the reggae-tinged 'Vem kommer sara vem ikvell', the lush opening track 'Alska Mig Alltid' and the fantastic 'Sista valsa med dig'.

If this album had been recorded in English, it would surely have been an international hit. It says a lot for the dignity of the former ABBA star that she didn't opt to cash in on the current revival of interest in all things ABBA. Something a few other old-timers might like to note...

Fingers crossed for a new English-language album before too long.

If you're one of those people who think of Frida as the second-string voice of Abba, your prejudices are about to be blown apart. This album features Frida at the height of her talent, using her mature, smoky and evocative voice with astonishing versatility. The result of matching this voice with superior songwriting and exquisite production values is a superb album which, although recorded with Swedish vocals, will have you returning to it time and time again. At least four tracks are absolute standouts. The first,"Alska Mig Alltid", opens the album with lush, hypnotically dark harmonics. The second (but third on the track list), "Aven En Blomma", is an infectiously catchy piece and the obvious choice for the first single from the album. Then there's "Vem Kommer Sara Vem Ikvail", a driving, slightly edgy work, and the exquisite "Sista Valsen Mid Dig", one of the most perfectly produced rock ballads that you'll ever hear, and easily the best song on the album. Even though the rest of the tracks (with the possible exception of the last) are also very good, it is well worth your while to purchase "Djupa Andetag" simply for these four songs. It seems a pity that the last track, "Kvinnor Som Springer", seems stylistically out of place, although it is not an especially bad song; it simply suffers from having to follow on from the high standard set by the preceding nine. But overall, this is an album well worth adding to your collection. Forget Abba, forget the Frida albums of the Eighties. This may be turn out to be Frida's swansong, but what a note to go out on. Encore!

I believe Djupa andetag to be Frida's best album. I love this record! It's so much different from all that stuff she did in 80's. Djupa is a real masterpiece! I particularly love Alska mig alltid, Aven en blomma, Ogonen, Sovrum, Sista valsen med dig.. Frida sounds really incredible on this record. Her voice is so smooth and yet so strong, so natural and relaxed.......such enchanting intonations..... Well, it happened so that I like her Swedish albums more than those in English. I think she sounds really somehow «special» singing her own language. Though I don't know Swedish at all I just took a dictionary and translated the lyrics into my home language. So I can say that not only tunes are wonderful and Frida's voice is outstanding, but the lyrics are also very good. Interactive part of CD is a big advantage. Aven en blomma video is absolutely fantastic! And Frida looks marvelous there! Unfortunately the interview with Frida is also in Swedish but you can find English translation in the Internet. But as I've already said, I'm glad that the album is in Swedish. You know, Djupa is a very happy record, you can feel it in each song. Lets all of us pray that one day our beloved Princess will be again as happy as she was while recording Djupa.

PS Oh folks, what's wrong with you? Why do Agnetha's fans write so cruel and silly things? How can they? There's no sense in comparing Frida and Agnetha. Obviously that I'm Frida's fan but I'll never say that Agnetha can't sing at all or something like that! If you don't like Djupa or any other Frida's album you should just tell about it's weak points, or something like that. But you shouldn't tell things that can hurt other people feelings!

In a decade when every clapped out old has-been has tried their hand at a return to pop stardom, it is refreshing to hear something like Frida's album 'Djupa Andetag' (or 'Deeper Breathing' for you non-Swedes!), her first album since 1984's 'Shine'. Rather than try to conquer the world, Frida (ex-ABBA) has opted to sing in Swedish and the album's release was confined to Scandanavia, where it went to No.1. Strangely, the language barrier is not an issue here: the performances and the tunes engage throughout. Arranged and produced by Anders Glenmark (he also wrote most of the material), this album is a perfect match of voice and song.

A review in the UK's Q Magazine described it as high-quality MOR, which, to my mind, is damning the work with faint praise. At 50, Frida could easily have released a soft-boiled collection of granny-esque ballads or, worse, tried to market herself in a mutton-dressed-as-lamb manner. From the opening notes of the beautiful 'Alska Mig Alltid' (with light shades of Massive Attack) and through the rest of the album's guitar-based arrangements, it's clear that this is was not an option. The influences are current, the sound is of the moment. The excellent interactive elements on the CD underline the modernity.

Even though it's been some time since her last album, Frida's voice is still in great shape. It has a slightly huskier edge to it but you can still hear how she contributed to the mighty ABBA recordings. In fact, 'Alla Mina Basta Ar', a duet with Roxette's Marie Fredricksson, could reasonably be mistaken for ABBA. Highlights of this very strong album are 'Alska Mig Alltid', the single 'Aven En Blomma', the reggae-tinged 'Vem kommer sara vem ikvall' and the fantastic 'Sista valsen med dig'.

If this album had been recorded in English, it would surely have been an international hit. It says a lot for the dignity of the former ABBA star that she didn't opt to cash in on the current revival of interest in all things ABBA (they're enormous again here in Europe). Something a few other old-timers might like to note...

(P.S., apologies to Swedish readers for any mis-spellings above - I don't have the CD with me at the time of writing.)

When I bought this album back in early 1997 I really didn't know what to expect, I had absolutely no idea after such a long time that I haven't heard Frida's voice ... but after I listened to the first song "Älska mig alltid" I thought to myself: "Even if the rest of this CD would not be good at all ... this track alone was worth buying this CD". So I listened to the rest of the CD and there was not a single track on it which I didn't like ... I was more than just AMAZED ! The first single from the CD "Även en blomma" reminds me a bit of the good old ABBA days. This song is fantastic. So is the video which can be seen on the interactive part of this terrific CD on a computer (along with a few interviews, rehearsal scenes in the studio, video-making scenes, photo-session scenes, biography about Frida, song lyrics, pictures and so on). "Sista valsen mig dig" is a wonderful Lovesong with a lot of strings on it ... wonderful ... Ögonen, another track from the CD which appeared as a single, is a bit more up tempo ... but very nice. On "Vem kommer Sara vem ikvall" Frida sings more aggressively ... her ability to change her voice from soft and tender to raw and aggressive has not disappeared over the years. "Alla mina bästa är" is a wonderful duet Frida recorded with Roxette's "front woman" Marie Frederiksson. I heard several times that Frida asked her former ABBA colleague Agnetha Fältskog to sing the duet with her, but unfortunately she rejected the offer because she was afraid, that the ABBA "reunion" rumours would start again ! Never the less ... Marie did a great job on "Alla mina bästa är" and the voices of both women fit in together very well. "Sovrum" is a beautiful ballad. "Hon fick som hon ville" again reminded me a bit of an ABBA song. On this song you can hear very clearly how much Frida influenced each ABBA song with her voice. "Lugna Vatten" is also a beautiful song. The refrain is a true ear candy. The only song that I think does not fit in so very well to the other songs (music wise) is "Kvinnor som springer". It contains some hard guitar riffs and sounds very harsh and rough compared to the other songs on the CD. Frida wrote the lyrics to this song herself. It is a very positive song with lyrics that deal with women and their lives, to encourage them to always believe in themselves and to change unpleasant things in their lives that hinder them from development. This too is unusual because "Kvinnor som springer" and "Even en blomma" are the only two tracks (from 10) on this album which don't have the topic love or broken up relationships. On "Vem kommer sara vem ikvall" I have the feeling that Frida is dealing with the split up of her ex-husband and former ABBA band mate Benny Andersson While I think that "Älska mig alltid", "Ögonen", and "Alla mina bästa" är" are surely dedicated to her late beloved husband Ruzzo Reuss von Plauen.

After twelve years Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad came back with an solo album that is OUTSTANDING ! Her beautiful, smooth, strong and unique (! ) voice got a little deeper over the years which I think is fantastic . She has grown as a person through the years and her voice has grown too. This shows through on this fantastic album. I mean, for example if you listen to "Älska mig alltid" (which is my favourite track) she puts so much emotion in each word she sings ... it's incredible and it sends shivers up my spine every time I hear it ! Frida is an outstanding singer with an outstanding voice ... no doubt about that ...

For those people who haven't heard that CD yet there is just one thing I can say: You won't regret it! Even if you do not understand the lyrics ... Frida's voice and the good songs and arrangements are enough to enjoy this album. But if you are interested in the lyrics you can find the translations on several pages on the internet (Swedish to English).

Even if some nasty people here wrote bad thing about that CD and Frida / Frida's voice (SHAME ON YOU ALL) all I can say is PLEASE DON'T BELIEVE THEM ! Please don't give a damn to those incompetent comments. In my opinion they are only silly and stupid "Agnetha-only-fans" who are hurt that Agnetha did not make such an incredible album (in fact she did not record an album since 1987 and her fans are only "feed" with one compilation after the other). Cheap talking is all they can do. And because of their hurt feelings they are not able to confess that Frida (along with Anders Glenmark who wrote and produced most of the songs) did more than just a good job with "Djupa Andetag". In my opinion "Djupa Andetag" is the best album Frida ever recorded.

All I have to say is, WOW! When I first opened it, I looked at all the cover art and the album sleeve, then I looked at the multimedia portion of the CD-ROM. The first thing that came to my mind was the impressive production quality of this album. The photography and the design of the multimedia elements are wonderful. This album has a definite "feel". Appearances alone show an artist who has grown in amazing strides since her last album.

I played the CD from first track to last and I liked all of them. My favorite, however, was "Alla mina basta ar", the Marie Fredrikson duet. If I had to choose a second, it would be "Aven en blomma" not only for the song itself, but for the beautiful video that accompanied it. Frida is a TRUE diva! How amazing does this woman look? She looks fab and sounds even fabber! I don't think her voice has really changed all that much since her last album or ABBA for that matter. Alot of people have said that her voice had a "huskier" quality, but I didn't really hear that. What I did hear was very soothing tones in nearly every song. I was totally relaxed listening to that amazing voice.

Overall, I was impressed by the different styles that I heard. Some of it sounded Scandinavian. I also heard some folk sound and even, what I thought was a Caribbean or Jamaican influence in "Vem kommer sara vem ikvall". I thought the whole album design had somewhat of a Caribbean feel, but the musical styles are very eclectic, in my opinion.

I have a feeling that I'll grow to like this even more as I continue to listen. Definite 5 out of 5! WELL DONE FRIDA! You're an amazing woman. It's been 4 years and if you're going to produce this kind of quality material, then 4 years is way too long!

The only bad thing about this is that I don't understand Swedish,but that's my problem...has NOTHING to do with this wonderful album.

Unlike nearly all of both Agnetha and Frida's post-ABBA work, "Djupa Andetag" is a coherent and consistent album. Produced and written by Anders Glenmark, the album takes much of its inspiration from mid-period Prince (and I'm speaking as a musician here) and is a marked departure from Frida's other work. By any objective musical assessment it's streets ahead of anything she or Agnetha has done. In the 3 years since its release it's the only solo work by a member of ABBA that I frequently revisit. And what with the recent deaths of her daughter and husband, and her subsequent retirement, it's probably the last we'll hear from her; enjoy!

I am so happy that i bought this wonderful and beautiful cd. absolutely every song has a soul of its own and frida sings in the way she has always done: she puts herself inside the lyrics, the notes, the words, the soul of the songs. She is part of every song and the album is part of her personality. That happened too with all the songs she sang in the abba days; who can forget fernando, andante andante, i let the music speak to mention just a few? Her voice sounds as beautiful as ever and there is something that shows that Frida is a mature lady now, and that is what i found more attractive. I dont have the cd with me now so I dont want to mention names of songs and I dont want to mispel the names, I love them all except fr the last one. Anders Glenmark and Frida made a wonderful team as this cd shows from beggining to end. Thanks Frida for being near me with your music during my teen days, and thanks for giving me this impressive cd during my adult days. I admire you, like you and respect you. All the negative reviews from other people here are not objective therefore they are not worth paying attention to them. Frida, if you ever read this: please dont take long to produce another wonderful cd like this. Love to all, Claudio

With anything released by former Abba frontwomen Agnetha Fältskog and Princess Anni-Frid 'Frida' Lyngstad-Fredricksson-Andersson-Reuss von Plauen, there is a certain debate as to who was 'better'. This is an unfair assessment and an insult to them both, as they were very different people as well as singers, and that is why their solo music contrasted. Frida's 1996 comeback album in Sweden, 'Djupa Andetag', was rather like a Meat Loaf/Jim Steinman creation as Frida is the voice for the songs and production of Swedish music maestro Anders Glenmark (formerly half of duo Gemini; his sister Karin Glenmark can be heard in the backgrounds occasionally here as well). Simply put, the CD has a mature sound, showing a graceful growth and acceptance of herself at middle age. The `90s Euro-pop sound is evident with the electric drums coming up on several of the cuts, including the lush "Älska mig alltid". "Även en blomma" is probably the highlight, an introspective look into the life of an aging woman. In the end, Princess Frida manages to demonstrate her continuing vitality even 12 years after her last album 'Shine', keeping much of the character in her warm voice despite the loss of some of its youthful range. I recommend this to many, and it would be interesting if one notes the similarities between this and Madonna's 1998 album 'Ray Of Light' in message and sound.