Lykke Li's sparkling sophomore album, Wounded Rhymes, has been made available for streaming in full over on Hype Machine.The album's first single, Get Some, came as something of a surprise. With its pounding tribal beats and sexually-charged lyrics, it marked a clear shift from the lovelorn balladry of her debut. The tribal drums and harder sound are found throughout Wounded Rhymes, but lyrically, many tracks find Lykke in a more despondent mindset.
As their titles suggest tracks like Unrequited Love, Rich Kid Blues and Sadness Is A Blessing aren't exactly happy clappy affairs. I Know Places, meanwhile, is a downbeat highlight, with Lykke trilling earnestly over gentle strumming.
It's not all doom and gloom, however, and scattered among the ballads are more defiant tracks like call-to-arms Youth Knows No Pain and current single I Follow Rivers. Jerome, meanwhile, is a menacing lovesong with lyrics like “I'm screaming at nothing, Jerome. You've got me or nothing, Jerome.”
Wounded Rhymes is an accomplished album that should assert Lykke Li's place in indie-pop royalty and a welcome alternative to the identikit over-produced output of many of her contemporaries.
Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes (Hype Machine Album Exclusive) by LykkeLi
2 comments:
ooh I'm excited to hear this all the way through. Going to one of her dates in London in April... yay !
Just listened all the way through. Such a departure! I think it's sort of seductive?
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