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Rita Lovise: Craving Coffee
ByNorwegian singer/songwriter Rita Lovise's album Craving Coffee has the same qualities as Tranströmer's poem. Her music is a brew that is both smooth and strong and filled with flavor. In the notes to the album, Lovise tells how "It took me 17 years of experience to develop the lyrics, a good balance between intricate chord progressions, relatively simple melody lines and to mix it all together and find my own 'signature.'"
The final result is impressive and is enhanced by the stellar sound from the famous Norwegian engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug, who recorded, mixed and mastered the record in his Rainbow Studio in Oslo.
At heart, Rita Lovise is a singer/songwriter, but she has the vocal talents of a jazz singer and a way with words like a poet. She changes effortlessly between a naked recitation like "Solitude," carried only by her smoky voice and guitar, and a full-blown band number like "Pale Indulgence," where saxophonist Henning Gravrok's passionate tone provides a refreshing contrast to the creamy sound that is often found on pop-oriented records.
While Craving Coffee can be used as lovely background music on a Sunday morning, it is also a record that rewards deeper listening. It has layers of complexity and notes that reveal a pleasant aftertaste that isn't sweet or bitter, but a place in between.
Track Listing
Glasshouse; Pale Indulgence; Årer av kull; Silke; Craving Coffee; I'm Not Your Baby; Solitude; Interlude; Settled for Less.
Personnel
Rita Lovise Haugseggen: vocal, guitar; Finn Sletten: drums; Bjørn Alterhaug: double bass; Bjørn Andor Drage: piano; Henning Gravrok: tenor saxophone; Gaute Vikdal: buck horn, lure.
Album information
Title: Craving Coffee | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: Losen Records