Weekly > Reviews
Royksopp - The Understanding
It doesn’t seem like four years since Royksopp burst into my life with Melody AM, but sure enough it is. They say that time flies when you’re having fun and this case they are right, Royksopp’s debut album is probably one of my most played debut albums ever, I’ve certainly played it more times than any other dance album that I can think of and I’ve also tried to force it onto a good number of people as well.
Not sure what it was about it that clicked with me, but from the opening blast of So Easy, to the joyous Eple, the epic sounding Poor Leno and the mesmerising yet underrated Royksopp’s Night Out it was a joy, every single track on the album served a purpose, it didn’t contain filler but more importantly where a lot of dance albums failed this one succeeded, it actually fitted together cohesively as an album.
The album sold well, a slow burner that people gradually got to hear about from friends or catching 30 seconds of it as it was used as backing music in countless TV programmes, the inevitable remix work came their way, yet again they excelled, they’d built a formidable reputation for themselves in all the right circles.
Which does cause a problem doesn’t it? Come on we’ve seen it before, the dreaded second album syndrome. Luckily for you and me, Svein Berge and Torbjorn Brundtland didn’t panic, they hid themselves away and set about writing a worthy follow up to Melody AM, never rushing things, preferring instead to do things in their own time and get it right, instead of cashing in on their unexpected success.
And The Understanding is a worthy follow up, worthy in that it will only further enhance the pairs not inconsiderable reputation, but also worthy in the fact that musically they have moved on and tweaked their sound to a slightly fuller one, yet still retaining that Scandinavian cool that seeps into everything they do.
The album starts off with an almost classical feel to it, a lone piano plays before a slow beat creeps in, suddenly it’s starting to build and a haunting vocal comes into the background, before you know it, it sounds like a full blown soundtrack. A stirring start, which is then taken into more familiar Royksopp territory with the recent single Only This Moment. After this the duo makes the only faux pas on the whole album. 49 Percent has all the charm and sophistication of a casio beat, the vocal from Chelonis Jones is at best ill advised, at worst a potential album spoiler. The track just doesn’t fit with the feel or sound of the rest of the album and should probably be tucked away as b-side.
- Royksopp
- The Understanding (2005)
- Category: Album
- Label: Wall of Sound
- Reviewed by: Kev
- Published on: 15 Jul 2005
- Comments: 0
- Beat Surrender Rating:
Weblinks
Add to favouritesThat though is the only track that comes close to being anything but superb, Follow My Ruin could easily be a single taken from this album, the breezy vocal, cool synths and Royksopp know how combining to make a great track. The best track on the album though for me is What Else Is There? Karin Dreijer from The Knife provides the Bjork like vocals over a sample of Kill Me With Your Love (by Jericho) and Love Me The Life I Lead (The Drifters). The fact that it has already been used as the b-side of the first single suggests it won’t get a full release, that’s a real shame as the soaring vocals and orchestration of the track deserve the widest possible audience.
Two of my other favourites on here are the finger clicking beat of Someone Like Me and the ambitiously epic Alpha Male that would make a fantastic soundtrack piece for the bit in films where the leading male is flying down a highway in a race against time to make the world right. It’s got that drama and warmth to it, don’t ask me how electronic music can often seem cold and mechanical. This though is what sets The Understanding apart from other electronic albums, it has a human side to it. The fact that it translated so well into the live arena at Glastonbury is testament to that, to also be asked to headline the Saturday night at Bestival this year gives you a good idea of how well Royksopp connect with people emotionally.
So in four years time am I likely to be looking back on this album with the fondness I currently do for Melody AM. Yeah I think I will to tell you the truth, putting aside the abomination that is 49 Percent, they’ve come back with as perfect a riposte as you could have dreamt of. It’s going to get better with every listen and if I can make it down to Bestival I think it could well be the soundtrack to the musical highlight of this year.
Have your say...
Comment Guidlines
You must be logged in to post a comment. Go Login or Register first.
We waffle on enough without letting you lot do it too. Comments are limited to 300 characters.
Try and keep on topic if you can and no insulting the contributors. All hate mail can be addressed to Kev.