Customer Reviews

Love in the Time of Science

5 star:		(70)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Most people have heard her unique vocals, singing the hauntingly, sorrowfully creepy "Gollum's Song" during the closing credits of "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers." But very few people know Icelandic singer Emiliana Torrini by name. Which is a shame, because her trip-hop/electronica album, "Love in the Time of Science," is a unforgettable one.

While sitting firmly on a seat of trip-hop and gentle pop, Torrini stretches her wings with a variety of musical types. It's made up of light electronica like the cool, sweet "To Be Free," and murky pop ballads with a slightly morbid edge. "Keep my daughter in a jar/she can't get out/she won't go far," Torrini croons in one song.

She keeps the cool, dark edge with the eerie "Wednesday's Child" and "Telepathy," the offbeat jazz of "Dead Things," and even a few songs that are fun and upbeat pop, singing about friends who hang out and goof around in the summertime. There's even alien avant-pop that defies classification, where Torrini sings creepily about how tuna fish float with "bellies to the moon."

Comparisons to Bjork are inevitable, since they hail from the same country and have similar vocal styles. However, Torrini's music is smoother and less distant, less electronic and more organic. It's also graced with more traditional instrumentation and a warmer sound. Her music is a different shade of electronica-pop.

Her voice has a haunted, slightly eerie quality. Furthermore, it has the flexibility to be warm one moment, chilly and creepy the next, allowing her to gracefully slide from one kind of song to another. Her thick Icelandic accent makes her singing even more enchanting.

The writing of the songs ranges from surreal ("Tuna Fish") to pleasantly ordinary ("Summerbreeze"), using simple and evocative words for jumbled feelings. "But if it's so good being free/Would you mind telling me/Why I don't know what to do with myself?" she asks plaintively at the very start.

Far from a Bjork clone, Emiliana Torrini produces a superb solo album. Combining the best of electronica, pop and jazz, "Love in the Time of Science" is startlingly memorable and well worth it.

What can I say about Emiliana Torrini? She's so dreamy that I need to replace my gus gus 'polydistortion' disc because I don't remember her singing on two of the tracks. Emiliana is an incredible singer albeit slightly commercial in places. Her tracks range from incredible triphop moments to saccharine pop, which isn't a bad thing. overall it pleasantly comes together as a whole creating a lovely collection of what I would call downtempo triphop pop. The only similarities between Emiliana and bjork are they're both from Iceland. There are times when her vocal stylings or pronunciations sound similar to bjork and on 'telepathy' and especially `sea people' it sounds like bjork growling in your ear, but make no mistake it's emiliana you're listening to and that's where the comparisons should end.

my top three favorite tracks are: 'umemployed in the summertime' because it's such a lovely, upbeat optimistic pop song; 'telepathy' because it is one of those beautiful bjork-like moments with slow beats, rising strings and an aggressive bassline and 'tuna fish' because it's just a cool triphop track. I get goosebumps when she sings: "Do you know that tuna fish float up to the surface, bellies to the moonlight just to cool their hearts down." <shiver> She's really amazing.

If you're looking for something refreshing then buy `love in the time of science' but don't buy it if you're expecting a bjork sound-alike.

I had to wait a few months to get this and with no sound clips available I was abit skeptical when I placed my order. I first heard about Emiliana by way of a Tears For Fears page mentioning Roland had contributed 2 songs. Great, I thought! Then I read all the wonderful reviews and the comparisons to Bjork. Double great!! Then one reviewer made the connection between Emiliana and Gus Gus and I loved the female vocals on Polydistortion so I became less skeptical. When I got LITTOS, I couldn't have been happier. Roland's influences are all over it and her voice is beautiful. And yes, she sounds like Bjork, but just a little softer in my opinion. They are both from Iceland where there is heavy culture and small population so the similarity is not a surprise to me. The song Telepathy has such power and force to it. Both about love, Summertime is simple and wonderful and Sea People is cute and short. On the whole, the CD is slow, so to some it is mood music. My only problem with the CD is that on the whole it is too short. It comes in just under 40 minutes. Why is it that some of my favorite artists can't put out anything longer than 50 minutes? Well, even though it is short it is great so go out and get it!

Emiliana Torrini's album, "Love in the Time of Science", essentially gives us what the titles beckons. Ms. Torrini certainly follows in Bjork's footsteps, blending in a haunting voice of echoes and a compilation of electonica beats and orchestral compositions. Though, Torrini does not possess the wide style range of Bjork, her voice seems more trained, focused and confident - proof that Torrini is good at what she does, singing about simple interactions with the world around her.

"Dead Things" is a brilliant song, the one I flaunt everytime I visit friends who have not experienced the album. The song has a smokey jazz club feel, despite the electronic sounds, as Emiliana drones on about a desperate relationship. One seems almost spell bound by the gentle mysterious music until a wild instrumental is unleashed in the middle, then abruptly haulting back into the soothing tones.
The rest of the album keeps a good mixture of both extremes. Emiliana delivers a wonderfully charged serenade in "Unemployed in Summertime" - the sound is upbeat and playful, reminding us all of that last summer between childhood and adulthood.

The album plays itself off quite well - Emiliana loves to bring out music the hippi's can swing and sway to, with a background of chimes and buzzers. If anything, "Love in a Time of Science" is perfect background music for small intimate gatherings or to hold a seance. Which ever you prefer.

A must have album for those who appreciate Bjork or ethereal songstresses.

With the plethora of recording artists, it's no surprise some great and deserving artists fail to find their mark in the U.S. music scene. So when I happen upon a relatively unknown artist of noteworthy talent, I am compelled to share my discovery in whatever avenue I can. Emiliana Torrini is one such artist.

"Love in the Time of Science" treks through introspective ballads to breezy pop electronica, encompassing a wonderful palette of emotions ranging from desperation to carefree youth. The music is gracefully uncluttered - poignant and balanced.

Comparisions to the most recognizable Icelandish musician, Bjork, are inevitable. Torrini's voice shares the same tonality and infliction as Bjorks, if only a little less shrill (I use this word affectionately). And while both musical origins spring from the same ethereal stream, Torrini carves a path that is undeniably unique and special. I say this at the risk of being burned at the stake by the legions of Bjork fans, but Torrini's lyrics and music are more accessible and satisfying then those of her fellow Icelander .... a "Bjork for the masses" if you will. That isn't to say Torrini is more commercialized and manufacturered. Far from! Her music is simply more harmonically and lyrically agreeable.

Too many popular artists today are single-faceted. It's commonplace for an artist to be great at either musical composition/performance or lyrical composition/performance, but rarely do they possess parity of both skills. Torrini balks the convention. Equal parts poet, composer, and performer, her talents combine to create music that is tantalizing to the mind, body, and soul. It's hard to resist the temptation to debate whether her lyrics accentuate her music or vice versa. But when you get down to the heart of the matter, what you'll likely discover is the debate is academic. "Love in the Time of Science" is simply a perfect marraige of poetry and music at its most emotive.

I often hear people describing a good album as one containing (insert your favorite number here) amount of good songs. I believe this is an unfortunate reflection of our times when attention spans are short and commercial marketability assumes top billing. It is utterly refreshing to find albums - complete albums - that is as enjoyable from the first note to the very last. "Love in the Time of Science" is precisely that. In my humble opinion, there are no stand-out tracks because all are equally magnificent. Each time I experience "Love in the Time of Science," I discover something new. I have wade through hundreds of mediocre and downright horrible albums in search of that elusive diamond in the rough. Artists like Torrini's make the effort all worthwhile.

Mark your calenders for January 05, 2005 - the release date for Emiliana Torrini's new album: Fisherman's woman

This album is so original and unique; it is just brilliant. The fact that it may never become successful in the states truly irks me. I discovered it by total chance, and would fully regret it if I had not. I was in Norway to see my sister get married and I was shopping around with my Uncle from Israel (who decided to join us in Norway at the last minute), when we walked into a CD store. I walked around for a bit and then we decided it was time to go. But they were playing some interesting music, which at the time I thought was Bjork. When we were outside of the store, about to make our way back, my uncle asked me the question that I was thinking right at that moment, what CD were they playing in that record store? We decided to go in and ask. The clerk there had said that it wasn't Bjork, but they didn't know who it was. We asked another clerk and they showed us the Emiliana Torrini CD. I was not sure whether or not to buy it, but at the last minute I said yea sure, what the hell, I'll take it. If not for that very coincidental experience, I would have never had the pleasure of listening to the CD, which I listened to every night for the rest of my stay in Norway. When I returned to the States, I proceeded to listen to the album quadruple the amount of time I had in Norway, and even when I was not listening to my CD player, I was still singing the tunes. I am sorry for the boring narrative, but basically what I am trying to convey to you in all of these words is that the CD is not only good music, but it's quite an experience as well, and I would seriously be disappointed if I had given up the opportunity. It is more than worth the money. Thank you. -Ari

This album is so original and unique; it is just brilliant. The fact that it may never become successful in the states truly irks me. I discovered it by total chance, and would fully regret it if I had not. I was in Norway to see my sister get married and I was shopping around with my Uncle from Israel (who decided to join us in Norway at the last minute), when we walked into a CD store. I walked around for a bit and then we decided it was time to go. But they were playing some interesting music, which at the time I thought was Bjork. When we were outside of the store, about to make our way back, my uncle asked me the question that I was thinking right at that moment, what CD were they playing in that record store? We decided to go in and ask. The clerk there had said that it wasn't Bjork, but they didn't know who it was. We asked another clerk and they showed us the Emiliana Torrini CD. I was not sure whether or not to buy it, but at the last minute I said yea sure, what the hell, I'll take it. If not for that very coincidental experience, I would have never had the pleasure of listening to the CD, which I listened to every night for the rest of my stay in Norway. When I returned to the States, I proceeded to listen to the album quadruple the amount of time I had in Norway, and even when I was not listening to my CD player, I was still singing the tunes. I am sorry for the boring narrative, but basically what I am trying to convey to you in all of these words is that the CD is not only good music, but it's quite an experience as well, and I would seriously be disappointed if I had given up the opportunity. It is more than worth the money. Thank you. -Ari

Emiliana Torrini's "Love in the Time of Science" is so beautiful. It's probably the most depressing CD I own, but it has a strange warmth to it. It feels like such an innocent CD, like going through your childhoos again. It's haunting and it will stay in your memory for a long time. She's not a Bjork knock off; she does have a similar voice, but her songs are much more simple, and very different.

Stand out tracks:

1. To Be Free - I heard this from crazy/beautiful and bought this CD. I love the innocence of it.

3. Baby Blue - Possibly the most down tempo track on the CD. So pretty though.

5. Unemployed in Summertime - Fun lyrics.

6. Easy - I love the melody. Sticks in my head.

10. Summerbreeze- So relaxing.

11. Sea People - Short, but an amazing closer.

When listening to it, it sorta takes your breathe away. Give it a listen, I think you'll enjoy it.

I am not into pop. It is rare for me to like an artist that is clearly commercial and tries to be quasi dance/trance/hip hop. Emiliana impresses me. I was forced to judge her strictly on the merits of her only album as I know nothing about her and never heard any madia hype. The first thing you notice is that she has a good voice- smokey, sexy, engaging. Over time, you find that the music goes from just being ok to growing on you. Overall, the album has kind of a slow burn effect- I didn't expect huge things but when I play the album I always come away glad I have it. She is kind of like Dido but slightly more upbeat and a little more sultry. Great album for cruising or relaxing. I would say she is a cross of Madonna and Dido- more animated than Dido but not as extroverted, provocative or controversial as Madonna.

so she's no björk [other than their icelandic origin, the artistic genius cannot be paralleled] but everybody has [including me] so far aproached this album with the wrong preconceptions : female vocalist from iceland equals immediat comparisons with bjork! and 'love in the time of science' isn't a bjork album is it? so so lets get down to it, why the five stars? well its bloody good for what it is! i wouldn't say 'disposable' pop ,'cause it implies mindless radio fodder, but definantly carefree stuff you can do just about anything to! like the cardigans! essentially pop but intelligent musically! all the tracks are presented as easily digestable 3 minute ,no more than 4 & a half minute ,portions : true pop format! its not epic redefining-music-as-we-know-it but then it's not trying to be! its not like this generation's 'dark side of the moon' like 'o.k. computer' or something! but my comments are not in criticism for with in the 3 and a half minute pop structure you have some really beautifully human moments! these incredible one liners like on 'unemployed in summertime' the first single :

'lets get drunk on saturday/walk up primrose hill till we loose our way.../playing silly buggers...'

and on 'fingertips' : 'electrical current/hallow'd be thy name/lift my emotions and banish my shame'

and on 'tuna fish' 'guess its time for a walk just to read some lisence plates/what is autumn doing creeping up on me?'

its just so easy to relate to, nothing thats incredibly erudite that you listen to five times befor you get your head around it! i'm seriously into that kinda stuff of the avante garde jazz and electro persuasion [eric dolphy , autechre, nobukazu takemura] but when you want something easy thats been consructed intelligently, with some musical quality : this is it! it has pop, its some trip hop , i'd say its sort of in between the radio playlist staples of dido [who she was recently the support act for on tour in the states along with travis] and the georgous tones of goldfrapp, with a little bit of that spectacular frozen landscape feel that permeates all the sounds of now from iceland, all so incredible in their own way : bellatrix , gus gus, sigor ròs and björk to for that matter... damn! more björk references! i can't wait for hear more! maybe she will turn out to be iceland's next artistic genius in time! for now this album is really just beautiful for what it is! you will love it! i think its quite impossible not to!