Fever Ray Issue #39

s/t

By Aiden Landman
Published: March 1st, 2009 | 2:41pm

Fever Ray, the self-titled solo debut of the Knife’s Karin Dreijer Andersson, is a sprawling ambient pop record that borrows from the past without stealing too much or staying too long.

Andersson relies heavily on vocal modulation to create a wealth of inflections and harmonies — ranging from the downtrodden and somber sounds of “If I Had a Heart” to the higher ranged nouveau-disco stylings of “Seven.” It is hard to fall in love with all of the tracks, but it is easy to be compelled by them.

Overall, Fever Ray is a record dealing with the effects of exhaustion. Andersson, who wrote the album during the Knife’s last hiatus and after the birth of her second child, sounds like a woman weary and tired. These aren’t sad tunes, however their optimism is cautious, their focus subconscious, and their value understandable to anyone who has ever spent their time walking in the shoes of waking lassitude.