There isn't a more suitable creative thoroughfare with which to deal with the duality of self, of love, pretty much anything you can imagine than the brief time we spend with an artist over the course of their record. The fact that artists can delve into the many aspects of any one particular subject is testament to the all-inclusive nature of music. Whether there is a specific narrative arc or not, an album generally falls into one of a few specific explorations of emotional connectiveness. Even in the unlikeliest of albums, there can be found this discussion of emotional resonance, whether the artist gently contemplates this with an acoustic guitar or screeches about it over the electronic whirr of distortion and noise.
In the case of Lykke Li, the duality of her own personality is at the very heart of our connection with the music. And nowhere is this duality made more manifest than on "Get Some", which is essentially a frank explanation from Li herself that the aim of her affection should have no worries about the state of their physical relationship. With lines like "I'm your prostitute/You gonna get some", she knowingly informs us just what she thinks is expected of her. However, this kind of forthright sexuality is only half of what makes her latest album Wounded Rhymes so intrisically interesting. She manages to bring us into her own insecure and intimidated headspace while also examining the stronger, more masculine role that she thinks she is expected to play. And in this examination of the duality of her own eccentricities and emotional hang-ups, she allows us to witness both the struggles and the conquests of both sides of her psyche. Other songs like the propulsive "I Follow Rivers" and the forlorn "Unrequited Love" deal with the fragility of someone who knows and has experienced the heartbreak which comes from love, both unattainable and untouchable. With Wounded Rhymes, Lykke Li has further developed the musical maturity which she began on her debut album and has created some of the most emotionally expressive songs of the year. She knows that the two sides of herself can only be truly reconciled through music, that the physical is fragile, but music can never be broken.
Tracklisting:
01. Youth Knows No Pain
02. I Follow Rivers (listen to the mp3 below)
03. Love Out Of Lust
04. Unrequited Love
05. Get Some
06. Rich Kid Blues
07. Sadness is a Blessing
08. I Know Places
09. Jerome
10. Silent My Song
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