Customer Reviews

Undertow

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

 

 

The reviewer below seems to have posted a review for another CD entirely. I own the Japanese version of this CD, Sidsel Endresen's "Undertow" and it is not a jazz CD at all. Instead it reminds me of some of Beth Orton's more ethereal work as her and Sidsel's vocals are quite similar. Perhaps the review below was generated by Amazon's AI software or perhaps just an honest mistake. As for recommending this CD, it's nice if you like somber ambient-like goth-pop, particularly Beth Orton's earlier stuff. I gave it 3 stars because it's not nearly up to Beth's standards and just wasn't so engaging to me over all.

It may be an album on the Jazzland label, some of the musicians involved may be big names in European jazz, but this is definitely a pop record - albeit a gorgeous one at that.
Sidril Endresen has been putting out records for over a decade now, matching her versatile voice to an array of styles, from folk through jazz to the atmospheric, soundscapy, mesmerizing, highly addictive stuff on the three discs she has so far made for Jazzland. Of these three, Undertow stands out as an album you can't afford to miss if you're into acts like The Dead Texan, Brian Eno, Harold Budd, the present-day Scott Walker, Nine Horses (the present-day Japan), David Sylvian as a solo artist, or Arve Henriksen, another pop genius passing as a jazz genius.
Intriguing poem-lyrics; a highly skilled voice, sopranic in its quality but whispery rather than loud, moving effortlessly between melody and the spoken word (Joni Mitchell springs to mind); and minimalistic but always captivating music, with Roger Ludvigsen playing a nicely understated guitar, Bugge Wesseltoft being Bugge Wesseltoft on keyboards and electronics, and trumpeter Nils Petter Molvaer doing for this album what Kenny Wheeler and Mark Isham did for Sylvian's Gone to Earth and Secrets of the Beehive - lifting the music from pretty-pretty late night stuff to... well, maybe it's jazz after all.

Forty three US dollars is a ridiculous price for any cd, but that's why the good Lord gave us those Amazon sellers. Buy this thing, you won't regret it.

This is the most relaxing romantic Jazz you will ever hear. It has an carribean flair with waves and a splash of steel drums done very tasteful and not overbearing. EVERY song on this cd will become your favorite the moment you hear it. If I were forced to choose a favorite selection on the cd it would be "Distances", Track 3.