The LOOOOVEBOA- what!?

Truth be told, I didn’t really dig Jens Lekman’s previous albums. The out-of-tune strings, the lo-fi sound quality and the bored vocals didn’t do it for me. And truth be told, I must have been wrong! Because Jens’ new album ‘Night Falls over Kortedala’ does impress.

The incredibly pompous (in a good way) opener ‘I remember every kiss’ (only someone from Sweden could reach this level of pompousness) tenses all my muscles. Then ‘Sipping on the sweet nectar’ starts and the first thing that comes to mind is “the LOOOOOVEBOAT! Soon we’ll be making another run” and immediately after that comes the obligatory “what the fuck was that!?”.

The rest of the album is decorated with bits of soul and Motown (Barry Manilow, Diana Ross & The Supremes) layered with Burt Bacharachesque strings, sprinkled with some Copacabana and Lambada with just a pinch of funky doo-wop. And, I’ll remind you again, all this from a Swede.

In his lyrics he shows the wit of Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt and Morrissey’s melodrama. But having said this all I have to add that the album has it’s own sound. And what a sound! In Sweden the record is currently topping the charts.

The love Boat?: Jens Lekman - Sipping on the sweet nectar (mp3)

Majestically pompous: Jens Lekman – The opposite of hallelujah (mp3)