Teitur - The Singer Review

The Faroe Islands is certainly not known for its music (Eivor and Boys In A Band excepted), but then again neither are The Shetlands. Small remote groups of islands don't appear to be as conducive to the creation of "scenes". Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that Teitur left his isolated homeland for Denmark aged 17.

Though he is an artist who has had critical acclaim elsewhere in the world – 'One And Only' appeared on the soundtrack to My Super Ex-Girlfriend, surprisingly – he is an unknown quantity to British audiences. An industry gig at the Danish Ambassador's residence is one such way to overcome this, or equally effective would be to produce a top draw UK debut. And he has.

Teitur's is a voice which portrays an innocence, but perhaps one which isn't really geniuine. The lyrics on The Singer are not the words of a modest man, but their simplicity and clarity make sure every word is understood and swallowed simply. “I always had the voice, now I am a singer / They wonder what I'm doing up there on the stage / They stare at my posture and say I speak so well” demonstrates this odd set of lyrics. They almost feel out of place, and baffle just as to whether they are sung seriously. Given everything which follows, it's a fair bet to say that we also have an artist who manages to see the amusing side of inherently unfunny things....full text having recorded several albums since 2003 – he spent a few frustratingly unappreciated years with Universal before opting for a more self-determined route – The Singer is, to my knowledge, his first UK release, albeit a year later than most other territories.


Teitur manages the remarkable feat of taking episodes from his own life and dramatising them in songs which manage to reflect the ambivalence, unexpectedness and sometimes downright contradictory nature of reality, in a mischievous character whose black humour can cause the laugh to choke in one's throat, or transform tears of sadness to tears of joy, mid-song. The cheeky self-aggrandisement of the title-track, for instance, disguises a tribute to the way that singing can be simultaneously both individual expression and act of communion between performer and audience; and in "We Still Drink The Same Water", his musings about a reclusive former girlfriend reveal himself as the real estranged victim of the failed relationship....full text For some, the voice of Teitur Lassen is a grandiose pleasure that hypnotises the eardrums. Yet, for others, his lavender scented tones are as grating as a hangnail on a blackboard. And once the Faeroese singer-songwriter opens up his well-oiled throat you’ll know exactly why: there’s truly no middle ground when it comes to this man’s piercing pipes. But his music? Well, that’s an entirely different matter.

Rich with tenderised symphonies and dashing yarns, his fourth studio LP The Singer is an angelic, prose-heavy effort that can catch the breath with whispered brilliance, yet readily strikes out with stolid flutters of languid, directionless toils. It’s not a torturous affair; merely a frustrating one, destined to gnaw away at the frayed strands of the patience. If ever a record was made for casting a browsing thumb over the ‘Next’ button this is it....full text