By Dennis O’Neil
Release date: In stores now
Swedish rock ensemble, the Concretes, continue their bid for stateside popularity with their latest effort “In Colour,” a follow up to their 2004 self-titled debut. Producer Mike Mogis, who has also worked with Bright Eyes and Rilo Kiley, presents an interesting blend of introspective, lyrical material with grandiose, unconventional pop orchestration.
The album, which consists of as many as 17 players on one song, does an excellent job of sneaking up on the listener and pulling them in without drawing much attention to how they are doing it. Lead vocalist Victoria Bergsman has an enchanting, hypnotic voice, comparisons with Rilo Kiley’s Jenny Lewis are justified, that can make even the most simply-put themes seem profound.
The album’s orchestrations serve her well for the most part, as they work the best when a steady, strong guitar part can serve as the base of the song and strange, interesting instrumentations can happen off of it, on songs such as “Chosen One” or “Fiction.” Some experiments work, such as the countrified uplifter “Change in the Weather,” but the album only gets in trouble when it goes too idiosyncratic, as in songs such as “Your Call” and “As Four,” whose vocal histrionics just register as wierdly hollow.
But with the melodic beauty displayed on songs such as “Tomorrow” and “Grey Days,” a song in which Bergsman sounds like Stevie Nicks in her prime, “In Colour” emerges as a soulful and sometimes touching work on par with the best of what indie rock has to offer.
