Sleepdancer

Album review

On his second outing as Augenwasser, Swedish artist Elias Raschle doubles down on his mix of lamentatious baritone and luscious arrangements. Trippy and hypnotic throughout, the beauty of the backing tracks creates a false sense of security for his soul-searching lyrics, which express a feeling of loss and detachment from the world. That loss and detachment are explored in the opening number "Paid the Rent/Going Out," and over the rest of the album, often in ethereal ways, with the woozy musings of Raschle at once comforting and despairing. The record is at its lightest on the two centerpieces -- "Four in the Morning" and "Back to Daylight" -- which both channel trip-hop in a relatively breezy fashion; the latter has a more synthetic feel to it, an almost chemically induced melancholy that underpins the resignation in Raschle's voice. As dreamlike and cinematic as the album gets, it is hard not to draw comparisons to Nick Cave, whose shadow looms large over the baritone vocalist, and even though there are more electronic elements here, Raschle's half-spoken, semi-poetic ramblings echo Cave's more reflective moments. Save for the groovier basslines, Sleepdancer is content to dwell in introspection, but any sense of urgency dissipates as the record winds down. Perhaps that's the point.
© Liam Martin /TiVo