Leif Vollebekk – Inland (Independent)
A cracked voice lingers over the words. A banjo deepens the melancholy, and the violins add to it when they appear four minutes into the song. It would be natural to think “In The Morning” might provide an interesting pointer for what is to come, but this album is considerably more focused in its approach, as most of these ten songs do evolve into fairly straightforward singer-songwriter territory, with accompaniment to match. The opening track is actually a very pleasant dead end, with nothing else quite like it on this debut.

So, just what is Leif about here? When he set out making Inland did he intend it to be more diverse? After this initial brush with a Tom Waits style (at the lighter end of the Waits spectrum) there comes the bi-lingual “You Couldn’t Lie To Me In Paris”, and it’s gone in less than two minutes, before it has developed any direction at all. The eight tracks that follow have some quite enchanting moments, with an occasional folkier edge emerging. It is all very pleasant without actually making your feet bare. The socks stay on, despite some smart backing, mainly pretty slick harmonica, stylish acoustic guitar, and lovely piano arrangements.

After the thirty-eight minutes are up you start to wonder… is that all? No matter, it is still a promising debut, and offers more with repeated plays. On this evidence, his sophomore album, supposedly due in 2011, should be worth checking out.
www.myspace.com/leifvollebekk
Kev A.

LEIF VOLLEBEKK – CAIRO BLUES

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