Taken by Trees: Open Field
The debut effort from Taken by Trees
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Monday, 18, Jun 2007 05:45
Rough Trade, out June 18th.
In a nutshell.
Bittersweet, whimsical, arboreal
What's it all about?
The ten track debut from Taken by Trees is about as minimal as a record can be; no fancy horn sections or guitar solos here, but rather songs sculpted by Bergman.
Opening track Tell Me sets the mood for the remainder of the album, with Bergman's vocals doubled-up to add to the haunted sound, with the lyrics standing out as bleak but nevertheless hopeful in a naïve-king of way.
It's only with the fourth track, the splendid Lost and Found that the music shifts up a gear, with an understated drum machine added to the stripped-back acoustic guitars and piano, though Bergman's voice remains almost effortless throughout. Indeed, it is the lack of force in her voice where the beauty of the songs lie and this album should be given to today's breed of female singers who think that oscillating loudly and wildly is a decent substitute for quality.
While Bergman's stated intention to make an album to reflect her passion for trees may at first seem, at best fanciful and, at worst pretentiously arty, it is not just the lyrics that help her to succeed in this (though songs such as Hours Pass Like Centuries and Cedar Trees go a long way), with the music knowingly swirling and swaying evocatively.
Who's it by?
Victoria Bergman, no less. OK, so she may not be a household name, even in her native Sweden, but she has gained critical acclaim, if not hefty record sales, as lead singer and songwriter of the Concretes. After breaking away from the Scandinavian pop collective, Bergsman promptly embarked on a solo project under the moniker Taken by Trees, though not before adding her distinctive vocal talents to recent indie disco classic Young Folk' by Peter, Bjorn and John. Bjorn Yittling of that group has duly repaid the favour and steps in as producer on Open Field, while other musicians helping out on the record include Andreas Soderstrom and Verity Susman from Electrelene.
As an example.
"Love will always have its ways/Leave you singing to the trees/Then return so suddenly." -Hours pass like centuries.
"Do you remember Portugal?/I remember seeing Cedars growing tall/As we passed the verdant scenery." - Cedar Trees.
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
It is just as well that Bergman appears to be content with making critically-acclaimed music rather than big money, as proven by sticking with the little-known Concretes for over a decade. After the popular success she experienced lending a hand on the hit single Young Folks, she could have been forgiven for straying from her roots and targeting the popular vote. However, Open Field is undoubtedly one of those records that will fail to trouble the charts or award ceremonies in spite of how good it is.
What the others say
"A bundle of pieces that tremble and swell with both a melancholy at the transience of partnerships and a newborn, naked enchantment at learning how to love again." - Plan B
So is it any good?
To be honest, Victoria Bergsman has the kind of voice that would make an LP of nursery rhymes sound nothing short of gorgeous. That said, the quality of songs on here is nothing short of excellent - both in terms of the bittersweet lyrics and the consistently understated music.
Bergsman has cleverly found the style that lets her voice play to its strengths, with the listener no longer distracted by loud and fuzzy guitars, as was sometimes the case with the Concretes.
If the compliment that every song tells a story is a cliché, then this album is a 30-odd minute long one and all the better for it. It draws you in and deserves to be listened to on its own terms rather than as a piece of background music. It remains to be seen whether a love of trees can spawn more than one album's worth of material, though as debuts go, this is both as thoughtful and assured as they get.
9/10
David Hewitt