Joel Alme - Waiting For The Bells

Der einzige Zeuge, noch (2)

orchestraler Jens Lekman-Verschnitt
(noplace)

Der aus Göteborg stammende Singer/Songwriter Joel Alme veröffentlicht auf Razzia Records nach "A Master Of Ceremonies" (2008) bereits sein zweites Album. Da Popmusik in Schweden durch den Kulturrådet (Staatlicher Kulturrat Schwedens) eine finanzielle Unterstützung durch den Staat erfährt, konnte Joel Alme für "Waiting For The Bells" nach eigener Aussage mit einem echten Streicher-Orchester und einem professionellen Produzenten (Mattias Glavå) zusammenarbeiten und insgesamt mehr Zeit im Studio verbringen. So kann man Steuergelder also auch sinnvoll nutzen.
Neben Jens Lekman muss hier, vor allem wenn Bläser und Soul ins Rennen geschickt werden, Moneybrother als weitere Referenz genannt werden.

"If You Got Somenbody Waiting" Video

Running throughout the album is the theme of a love lost; ostensibly this is a break up album. ‘When Old Love Keeps You Waiting’ finds Alme questioning a loved one’s lingering affection for an old flame, “Hand in hand you’re mine, but you always leave a finger waiting,” ‘You Will Only Get It Once’ pines on losing The One, “I never saw your eyes change, I should have asked,” and ‘You Remeber The Good Times But The Good Times Don’t Remember You’, well, the title speaks for itself really.

With Mattias Glavå behind the desk, Alme has managed to take his perfectly crafted pop nuggest – I say pop as few of the tracks here break the 3 minute mark – and dress them in what can only be described as a Dylan meets Motown clothing. Alme’s cracked, broken and genuinely passionate delivery is backed up by a barrage of gallant strings, backbone bass and dancing brass. Tambourines are high in the mix and drums sound like they’re recorded in a cave. The whole sound brings to mind tracks like Dylan’s ‘Wigwam’ and ‘Man In Me’, or, more specifically, the sort of stuff you’d expect to hear on a Wes Anderson soundtrack. Where producers like Mark Ronson are championing a modern, polished take on 60s soul, Mattias Glavå has managed to give Waiting For The Bells a sheen that makes it sound like it was actually recorded 60 years ago. I can imagine this record may be bet with a few, “This was released this year?” comment.

With Waiting for the Bells Joel Alme has created an album with one foot firmly in the past; a record of warmth, heart and emotion that pays homage to the likes of Dylan and the instrumentation of Motown soul. When it comes to Swedish crooners, Jens Lekman is no longer the only name on the list.
(thelineofbestfit.com)