Jens Lekman - Life Will See You Now (Album Review)
Tuesday, 21 February 2017
Written by Jacob Brookman
To describe ‘Life Will See You Now’ as an acquired taste is a bit like describing Brexit as a conscious uncoupling. It’s an understatement, which is a narrative tool that Jens Lekman apparently views with a degree of contempt.
That said, the sound the Gothenburg-based musician employs on his fourth album should appeal to a particular middle class clique. It’s halfway between Belle & Sebastian and a Neil Diamond tribute act: camp, quirky, tongue-in-cheek and shot through with a particularly Nordic brand of gallows humour.
The opener, To Know Your Mission, is a nostalgic, Christmassy toe-tapper that name checks Puff Daddy and Chumbawumba before the album is a minute old. If an appreciation of high tat is your bag, then strap in because you've hit paydirt.
Lyrics often take the form of rhyme-free couplets weaving idiosyncratic tales from Lekman’s life experiences, from whimsical romantic abandon of Hotwire The Ferris Wheel to the tender confessionals of Postcard #17.
The quirky camp is most resonant on How Can I Tell Him and the remarkable Evening Prayer. In this song, a breezy blue-eyed soul groove accompanies the tale of a man having a tumour removed from his back only to carry it around in his pocket.
The album picks up on the steel drum-led dance track What’s That Perfume That You Wear?, which employs terse, adept arrangement, dipping into selected African music influences. However, Lekman seems to have been informed more by Toto than Ali Farka Touré. It's music without much credibility and - speaking plainly - much respect.
‘Life Will See You Now’ is a tricky album to appreciate because its tone is so singular and unchecked - so in love with itself - that the music seems somewhat irrelevant. But there are plenty of good ideas here, from nimble time signature switches on Our First Fight, to the elegant layered vocals on Wedding in Finistère. And yet, much of it remains instantly hateable.
Jens Lekman Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Tue March 28 2017 - DUBLIN Whelan's
Wed March 29 2017 - LONDON Oval Space
Thu March 30 2017 - LEEDS Brudenell Social Club
Fri March 31 2017 - MANCHESTER Band on the Wall
Sat April 01 2017 - GLASGOW Saint Luke's
Click here to compare & buy Jens Lekman Tickets at Stereoboard.com.
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