Remember that one song that came out a couple years ago by Peter Bjorn and John called "Young Folks"? It's that one with all that whistling and that cute girl voice. Well, that girl voice (Victoria Bergsman) traveled to Pakistan and recorded her second album under the name Taken By Tress, called East Of Eden. Bergsman, originally from Sweden, departed to the Middle East and created a wonderful concoction of airy, sweet pop vocals with airy, sweet ancient Eastern instrumentation. This album makes you feel like that "Young Folks" track was released when you were in 3rd grade and you have moved far from naive whistling and now only love listening to people from other countries go to different countries and sing in your own native language. This is not to say that this album is heavy or depressing; I just mean it's really good.
The album starts off with classic Eastern guitar fluctuations and a breathy flute melody (which qualifies it for Morning Wood early on). This song, "To Lose Someone" goes on to feature almost overly Latin sounding guitar syncopation, and Bergsman's tired but meaningful voice comes in by saying "I lost you in the crowd of an unfamiliar town", and it's then that you are transported. Throughout this song and the rest of the album, the ultra-relaxed vocals of Bergman make you feel as if you are sitting in on a casual jam session of an unusual yet beautiful musical experiment.
This experiment continues on to the next track "Anna". This is my favorite song on the record. Maybe it's the familiar rich vocals of Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) in the background that attaches me to the song, but its probably more tied to the building yet reserved combination of Bergsman's hushed lyrics and Lennox's chant-like repetition of the title name. "Watch The Waves" starts off with an authentic feeling flute melody, and is followed by steady fast paced percussion with curious vibraphone licks and fun clapping. Bergsman's simple vocals keeps this song very similar to the others, making this record flowing and complete. She expresses "I didnt know/ how much love you/ until today/ and I'll love you endlessly", and you just wish you had someone to say this to.
"Greyest Love Of All" is a catchy tune which repeats "I hope you find some piece of mind". It also commands, "Beat in/beat out/beat in", keeping you feeling positive and relaxed. The next few tracks keep the album consistently mellow and intriguing - at least until the song "My Boys". This song is a cover/modification of the extremely famous song of this year by Animal Collective titled "My Girls". It starts out awkwardly electronic after the raw field-recoding-esque "Wapas Karna", and quickly you realize you are singing along and clapping your hands. Though I do enjoy the unique toned-down interpretation of this fantastic track, I do not think it fits well in the album. The song is too recognizable and recent to squeeze into a fascinating concept album like this. For many, this will be the highlight track, but for me, I think it is the only real mistake on the album.
"Day By Day", continues the more synthesized pop sound as flutes and tablas flutter around freely with Bergsman's soft-spoken yet confident lyrics begging, "I wish I knew what it takes to make you stay/My feelings for you growing day by day". The drone ridden, ethereal "Bekannelse" finishes the album off softly. You zone out through this song so that you don't even realize when it has completed and you are sitting there with headphones on listening to the blood flow through your tired and happy brain.
There is something meaningful and spiritual that flows throughout this short and simple album. It is a quiet and easy listen, which discretely instills happiness and catchy flute lines into the mind of the listener.
-Kimmy G.
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