Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Modern pop for the soul, March 27, 2007
From the snow capped vistas of Norway comes Kate Havnevik, a modern day Nordic siren ready to enchant us with her imaginative debut and to make her mark in modern pop music.
Melankton, the album's title, comes from a book Kate read and it means dark rose -quite fitting for a darkly poetic piece of music that is often dramatic, very alluring and should appeal to a broad range of music listeners. As much as I hate comparisons I think if you are fans already of Bjork, Dido, Royksopp, Hooverphonic or Imogen Heap, I am pretty sure you will find lots of things to enjoy on Melankton.
Some listeners might be familiar with her background vocals. Kate sang on Royksopp's techno hits "Only This Moment" and "Circuit Breaker" from their last album The Understanding, she also worked on a couple of songs on Carmen Rizzo's electronic record called Lost Art Of The Idle Moment, one of them makes it here on the US version of the CD called "Travel in time" which was one of my favorite from Carmen's album. But fans might have even heard of her on television.
Beautifully mirroring life's tender and powerful moments some of the album tracks were featured on the hit TV drama Grey's Anatomy, generating a buzz & prompting lots of viewers to seek her out.
Creating the album Kate recorded the core string arrangements first. The vocals were recorded in her bedroom studio where she could capture the right feel and sound for each song. Voice (often supple and hushed), lyrics (intimate and warm) and melodies (leisurely drawn out) are the main elements with no strict formula writing for the album and no focus on having one or two big singles. Kate's goal was to have the album be a piece of music as a whole and it's evident when one listens how nicely bound the tracks are for the entirety of the record.
Several very talented collaborators from quite different backgrounds were enlisted to make Melankton. Guy Sigsworth (of Frou Frou fame) co-wrote 4 tracks in the album and helped Kate with his masterful electronic beats, Carmen Rizzo did some additional programming, Maria Huld Markan provided string arrangements (she has worked with Sigur Ros and Amina), Froydis Re Werke, an exceptional horn player lended her talents (she is the main teacher in horn at the Royal College of Music in Oslo), the talented contemporary jazz player Arve Henriksen provided some dazzling and very emotional trumpet sounds for a couple of the albums highlights and lastly there is the magnificent 16 piece string orchestra from Bratislava Slovakia adorning the dramatic background of most of these tracks. With all this marriage of lush sounds mixed together, one would think this is a schizophrenic piece of work, but the neat techno arrangements blend effortlessly with the organic orchestral sounds.
Kate's songs have various themes. Enjoying life's precious moments I think is the most resounding one. On "I don't know you" she knows the stars, the wind the sky and waves yet she would like to know her partner better so she pleads for him to show who he is to her. Isn't that always such a vulnerable state? To really get to know someone and to really show ourselves as we are to someone we love with all our little flaws? Equally emotional and romantic is "Kaleidoscope", where she abandons her worries and sees the world through a kaleidoscope of colors mesmerized by sincere love that is by far my favorite song on this album (my other favorite was found in the Norwegian import of this CD and it was a magnificent song called "Se Meg" which didn't make it on the US version but i highly recommend seeking it out since it had made me cry). On "Unlike Me" she sings about time not existing, living in the moment, with no guarantees in life we should live our lives intensely and love every minute of it, "every minute alive" as she insists. On "New Day" she is admiring a beautiful day starting up with her lover awaking with "morning stars" in his eyes, ready for what this new day will have to bring, it is one of the more upbeat tracks in the album, due to the energized electronic beats kicking in mid way through, the other songs are more moody, romantic, serene. Overall i think it's a solid effort and a great debut album by someone who is very talented and creative and someone who evokes so many beautiful images by her songs and music. She's also excellent Live, so if she tours around your town promoting this album do not miss her performance. You'll be enchanted.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mysterious and Exquisite, September 26, 2007
"There are no guarantees in life
Not for the present,
Nor for the future.
All I know is
That I'm here"
~Unlike Me
Norwegian singer and songwriter Kate Havnevik creates euphoric melodies within an exquisite world of electronica with classical appeal. "Not Fair" has darkly poetic lyrics where she shows the full range of her vocal expression. "Travel in Time" contains magical whispery sweet lyrics with hints of longing and ecstasy.
"Serpentine" has a classictronica appeal but what makes Kate Havnevik's songs ornate is the way she uses her voice. She makes the world seem more sensuous and like Björk, her voice becomes part of the musical landscape in a unique creative soul expression. Within the lyrics there seems to be a death and a rebirth, as if the petals of a black rose have been tossed across a sea of change.
"I go nowhere high
Go nowhere warm
Until you're by my side
Your hand in mine
And I've always known
You're like a feather
You go where wind and fire melt together"
~Nowhere Warm
"Kaleidoscope" has a similar appeal, but dives even deeper into delicate melancholy that suddenly awakens into more vivid revelation. From here, the album mellows sweetly into a deep relaxing contemplation. "New Day" is an awakening from the sleepy classical mood as electronica again takes the stage. Since Kate Havnevik is working on two more albums I can only imagine the directions she will take within possibility.
If you enjoy Zero 7, Balligomingo, Hooverphonic, Magnet and Imogen Heap, you will want this for your collection.
~The Rebecca Review
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Astounding, March 28, 2007
Originally my best friend found Kate Havnevik on iTunes long before the album was released in the states. I took one listen and wrote her off because of how *astonishingly* similar she sounded to Imogen Heap. To me, it was some corporate big wig trying to cash in on a good thing. I picked two songs ("Unlike Me" and another one I will go into later) to purchase and called it a day. Enter Grey's Anatomy, showcasing the acapella of "Unlike Me" and the 7 minute extravaganza (extremely reminiscent of Bjork) "New Day", and I realized her voice was really remarkable. I still can't stand buying albums off iTunes so I scoured ebay, searching for a used import copy I could get for cheap. That...didn't happen. Many others had the same idea and I ended up losing every auction. Then I learned that Kate is good friends with Imogen Heap, and that sealed it. She's not a corporate knock off. She's friends with the originator.
March 27th hits and the album drops. The following day I pick it up, practically already bosom buddies with the album having constantly listened to the samples on iTunes (and subsequently shaking my head, trying to wrestle with my normal nature of loving all melodic music and my loyalty to Imogen) and also having Carmen Rizzo's album. Taking a listen through, I was quite pleased with waiting for the album as long as I did. I believe that I am in the proper place, musically, to appreciate this album for the true masterpiece that it is. Calm and almost mournful at times, then plucky and upbeat at others, it's almost the perfect soundtrack to "A week in the life of..." of practically anyone you know.
Except for one thing. "Someday", a massively brilliant orchestral piece where her voice soars over with sympathetic lyrical advice, "You will find someone, someday", was curiously missing. Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate her newest song, "So Lo", but a radio pop piece overtop one of the most beautifully emotional songs I've heard in a long time? It definitely was not one of the wisest choices I've seen. Perhaps it messed with continuity? Ah well. At least I bought it off iTunes.
I can't say that Kate is particularly original but she has loads of talent, and her album is a welcome addition to my collection. I wrestled with myself for a while on this one, and I can say that this is one of the few times I'm glad I lost. You cannot go wrong with Melankton.
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