IRENE - Long Gone Since Last Summer

Less than a year after their recording debut with the album "Apple Bay", released by Labrador at the tail end of 2006, the Gothenburg indie-pop collective - made up of a variable number of members that, at its most crowded, can reach up to twelve, and firmly led by Tobias Isaksson, aka Bobby - gifts us a new record, cheerful and concise (eleven songs for just over 27 minutes of music).

The coordinates of "Long Gone Since Last Summer" don't stray far from those of the previous effort, though they settle into a less carefree, vaguely more reflective mood.

If, on one hand, this can be seen as a maturing of the band, which abandons the rougher sound openly influenced by Sixties recordings heard on the debut in favour of an elegant, crystalline production, completely out of time and out of fashion, there will certainly be those who find this "slowing down" disappointing and ill-suited to conveying the energy the Swedish band also unleashes in its live shows.

The record, in any case, built on rich, lush arrangements - with horns, strings, guitars and playful keyboards set against the leader and singer Bobby's deep baritone voice - holds no shortage of moments of pure pop pleasure, starting with the opening "By Your Side", thoroughly catchy and, in rhythm and attitude, very close to the sounds of the debut.

Listening to tracks such as "September Skies", "Looking For Love" or "Back To Me", among the most relaxed moments of the record, brings to mind the more melodic and romantic Magnetic Fields, perhaps also due to a similar vocal attitude and rather elaborate arrangements.

Finally, to close things out, two bittersweet and at times moving tracks - the male-female duet "Always On My Mind" and the soothing, romantic "Last Forever" (though watch out for its sharp, disillusioned lyrics) - deliver the last thrills of an album that, even if it will hardly be remembered in the history of pop music, will certainly provide plenty of listening pleasure and the odd little shiver.

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30/12/2007