Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Get my things together, gotta lose myself to you
The third album from Swedish Idol runner-up Sebastian, who lost to Agnes back in 2005, didn't make much of an impact this year. It yielded a few songs I liked, but nothing approached 2006's "Words And Violence," the lead single for his second album. Ultimately, it was "When The Night Comes Falling," his 2007 Melodifestival entry, that got the most attention from that album (though not that much, compared to his Idol friend Måns Zelmerlöw, who was the breakout act from that year's competition), but "Words And Violence" picked up where "Indifferent," his second single from his debut album (his first is better off forgotten), left off: kind of like a mini-the Ark a la "Calleth You, Cometh I" or "It Takes A Fool To Remain Sane." The simple, low budget video doesn't really do any justice to a song that strives towards grandeur; there's no sense of the drama, the outpouring of emotion that Sebastian is supposed to be conveying in the chorus, no sense of the way the shiny pop-rock song both pushes forward and soars. That's OK, though; in the end, it's enough that the song, based on nothing but a live performance, was able to hold me transfixed for months--enough to guarantee that, come what may, I'll probably always have at least some interest in Sebastian.
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4 comments:
I'm really glad you wrote this about Sebastian. He's probably one of my favourite artists, period. I wish he got more recognition. "The Most Beautiful Lie" was one of my favourite albums that came out this year. It's a shame it didn't do so well. I think "Serial Lovers" could've been an international vehicle for him.
Did you know now he'll be doing a Swedish version of Grease? With Marie Serneholt?
Resa, it's great to hear from you! I had heard that about him and Marie...curse that Atlantic Ocean, or else I'd probably be trying to go, Swedish language songs or not. The title concept of "Serial Lovers" is one of my favorites for a song this year.
PG, I've missed your daily updates! Haha, ditto on me too if I were in the geographic area!
I was almost on my way to Lund University in January, but opted to graduate on time (exactly four years!) and maybe do grad school over in Sweden.
Funny story, last year, during my travels, I just barely missed Måns Z in Footloose! His last show was the day I got to Stockholm, but I had a connecting train to Gävle, so (un?)fortunately no hunting or musical for me that night. Heaven knows I would have gone too, even if I couldn't understand a lick of Swedish. (I have gotten better. Just nu, jag har en svensk pojkvän :D)
For me, Sebastian remains hugely underrated and "Serial Lovers" was probably the most poppiest thing he's ever done. I would love it if he went over to the UK or came over to the US to try to get some recognition. I think Darin's just released "Breathing Your Love" in the UK too..
Forgive the long rambly comment. It's about 1:15 AM finals week! So glad you're posting regularly again! Following you on twitter (am @resa) as well!
Grad school in Sweden would give you the advantage of being there for several years, or at least a little while longer than you otherwise might, so I can definitely see the appeal. Also, I am VERY jealous! Ha ha. Sebastian does have a more "credible" sound, so if he was presented in the right way...well, dare to dream, anyway. Long rambly comments--especially about what you've been up to--are totally welcome.
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