Malmo – We Come From The Stars (Integrity
Malmo - We Come from the Stars
Records)
Release Date: 4th May 2018
I’ve been hogging this one for a
while due to its utter blissfulness and late winter sparkle but as summer seems
to be creeping over the horizon it seems selfish to keep it to myself any
longer. This debut offering from the Danish quintet opens up with ‘Breaking’
and it is the very sound of ice cracking on a clear morning. The delicate piano
and ethereal vocals of frontwoman Maria Malmo are perfectly pitched and poised
as the icicles melt on the branches and the foraging animals brave the icy
terrain for any treats that nature has thrown their way. ‘You’ is a more
straightforward tune with an acoustic strum and shuffled beat at it’s heart but
again Maria Malmo’s voice makes this stand head and shoulders above their
peers.
Title track and recent single ‘We
Come from the Stars’ is still just as blissfully relaxed and soothing as ever
while ‘Dawn’ nervously emerges from the darkness with the lyric “The Darkest hour
is the one before dawn” sung softly over some distinctly sparse instrumentation.
You can’t help but be massively impressed by the delicate and finely crafted
nature of these songs, as though they are made of the finest cut glass and unique
in every way. ‘Meet me in the Meadow’ steps things up a bit to create a sound
akin to Malka or Sia at her most eccentric with a sense of joy and giddy glee
in its heart. There’s a touch of homesickness behind the piano ballad of ‘Homeland’
while ‘The Way’ could easily feature on the opening scene of the next series of
Game of Thrones such is the tribal beat and spooky, other-worldly atmosphere it
creates before erupting in to a gloriously unexpected but oh-so welcome crescendo.
The surprises and direction
changes continue on ‘Time & Tide Wait for No Man’ as a plucked and witchy
folk tale unfolds like a 6 Day Riot track and it’s all too easy to get lost in
this world of imagined creatures and upside-down pictures. On ‘Wild Horses’,
the gently plucked guitar notes ring out in to the night sky and Maria Malmo’s
almost whispered vocal is borderline uncomfortable in my English ears through
these intimate headphones but it is hypnotically soothing in the best way
possible. As we near the denouement of this sonic journey, we are treated to
more subtle musicianship on ‘Four Lands’ as well as some sumptuous vocal
harmonies. The closing track, ‘River of the Heart’, is a something of a lullaby
as heard through the cracks in time seeping in to your consciousness as you
drift in to the kind of slumber that could last for generations if you give
yourself to it. Malmo won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, they don’t crave your
attention or approval but if you can stop the hurly-burly of the world around
you for long enough to let them in then your world will be infinitely improved
for that moment of patience and peace.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/mariamalmoe/
Live Dates:
12th May – Bora Bora, Aarhus