Fredrick | Flora

The Kora Records (2011)

By MIRIAM LAMEY | April 13, 2011

3.0 Stars

Dreamy Swedish electropop outfit Fredrik bring a mellow collection of tunes stateside with their third album. The music is much easier to understand than furniture-assembly directions from another popular Swedish export, and like that furniture, Flora isn't particularly flashy, but it's so outrageously lovely, it seems to fit any time, mood, or place. The catchy "Chrome Cavities" is as gentle as rain, perking up with pattering percussion under an eerie, whining synth, a creepy, childlike xylophone cutting in and out under the electronics. "Rites of Spring" kicks up the pace through electronic beats and clattering synth rhythms that drive the music under velvety vocals from singer Fredrik Hultin and harmonies from Anna Moberg. Uninitiated Fredrik listeners might get hooked on "Vattenfront," a track full of warm twinkling beats featuring woodsy percussion similar to that heard last year on Go, the solo record from Sigur Rós's Jónsi. For the downright weird, "The Shape and Color of Things Gone Blind" is eerily beautiful, thanks to insistent xylophone-like percussion, spacy synths, and breathy melodies. It can be tough to create mood-driven music without becoming overdramatic; Flora showcases Fredrik's sonic intuition and passion for the obscure.

Topics: CD Reviews , Music, New Music, Swedish, More

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