Lykke Li - Youth Novels Review

Since its '70s and '80s heyday, pop music has been tragically devalued. Choreographed to within an inch of its life, mutating into "The X-Factor" (TV's equivalent of a knobbly knees contest) and regurgitating a succession of homogenous boy bands and girl bands, its current health is on a par with Britney Spears' mental state. Check out "The Blackout"'s moronic and robotic siren call - art, individuality and excitement barely register....full text Advance hype fueled by the Little Bit EP had Lykke Li pegged as the next in a growing string of cool-kid-approved perfect-pop fixes to leak out from Sweden's endless supply, but Youth Novels doesn't entirely play out as expected, with neither Robyn's electronic dance-pop precision nor the affable strumming of Jens Lekman or Peter Björn and John (whose Björn Yttling handles production duties here and co-wrote every track). Although it does bear some traces of these approaches, as well as El Perro Del Mar's earnest melancholia, it's decidedly odder and harder to pin down, proffering an idiosyncratic, stripped-down vision of pop that foregrounds repetition and simplicity over familiarity or even melody (though rest assured, there is ample catchiness to be had here)....full text With a tiny voice, minimalist arrangements and simple lyrics, this Swedish songwriter has crafted what seems like a magical album, where all its small elements coalesce into something quite big. Li is 22 but sounds half that, although her lyrics are quite wise beyond her years. The drone of opener "Melodies & Desires" is like a moaning trumpet introduction to the quaintly celebratory "Dance Dance Dance," but the real dance comes with a string of more beat-laden tracks like "I'm Good, I'm Gone," "Complaint Department" and "Little Bit." The poppy vocal rhythms of "Let It Fall" make the track a real standout, while such songs as "My Love" are like lullabies, recalling '60s pop icons like the Beach Boys....full text