Dylan Mondegreen – S/T
Folkwit/Division Records
This is the third album from Norwegian singer-songwriter Børge Sildnes, but the first under his new and altogether more worldly moniker, Dylan Mondegreen.
It’s also the first to be released in the UK and features former St Etienne producer Ian Catt behind the desk. Indeed, the production is almost the first thing you notice here. The sound is sumptuous, warm and well-crafted. All the qualities you would hope for in a high-end duvet, not a slice of indie pop. Which is a shame. Sildnes’ measured, relaxed, often breathy vocals are enveloped by a comfortable, sometimes gorgeous, sound-wash created faultlessly by a fine array of musicians. The collection features strings, steel drums, wurlitzers, congas, saxophone, flute…it’s all here. And that big production feel is what dominates, rather than the songs or the singer.
The soundscape, polished though it is, only rarely benefits from the impetus of a tune that feels like it is going somewhere. Think Prefab Sprout without the quirkiness and invention; The Dream Academy with out the grittiness and, er, chanting. The opener, “Castaway”, is a perfectly titled example: a pretty sound drifting into obscurity and out of attention. “Come Tomorrow” suffers a similar fate despite a nice shared vocal from Maria Due. Conversely, the prominent steel drums – an effort to change pace – on the single “It Takes Two”, sound too harsh and out of place.
But there’s a flip side. Where the song-writing is more organic, for instance, “The Heart Is a Muscle” there’s something tangible to engage with. “Yesterday When I was Young” and “Tears All Over Town”, finally deliver a touch of drama and hint at some real depth. The trouble is those tracks come at the end of the album and there’s a slight risk you may have nodded off before then…
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David Atkinson
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