Review: “Robyn” by Robyn (CD, 2007)

Today’s Pop Rescue from a fate uncertain, is the 2007 fourth eponymous album Robyn by the Swedish singer and songwriter, Robyn. Will this album get better with Every Heartbeat, or will you want to Kleerup and chuck it in the bin? Read on…

Robyn - Robyn (2007) album — Robyn – Robyn (2007) album.

This 18 track CD (which has just 15 tracks on the artwork), opens with a scene setting intro of champagne corks popping and a phone call at the record company HQ. It’s Curriculum Vitae – a perfect place to start for what was us new UK listeners, giving us some wonderfully deep and rich spoken lyrics from Swingfly. The track’s heavy bass and vocals, set alongside thunder and church bells, it certainly gives us a build up to the next song…

….which is lead UK single Konichiwa Bitches. A simple drum machine and bleeping synth gives us a nice undercurrent to the song, as Robyn’s fiercely attitude-laden lyrics and vocal style sits on top. It’s a nice contrast between hard words, stabbing synths and bass drum, and light and cheery bleeps. It’s minimal simplicity and sexualised lyrics didn’t help it though, with the UK audience not really giving it a welcome with a #98 UK chart peak.

Then it’s Cobrastyle which stood as the b-side to Konichiwa Bitches in the UK. The thick and heavy bass and layered synths leave no space for anything other than the wave of sound to hit you. Robyn’s fast lyrical delivery keeps this track galloping along. The chorus is pretty catchy to be fair.

That’s followed by Handle Me, and this sets Robyn’s vocals alongside more heavy beats and against cellos and acoustic guitars. The contrast sounds great, and momentarily there’s echoes of All Saints and Alanis Morissette in here with the strings and vocal harmonies, but the beats are again quite dominating. This softer set of instruments and more tuneful melody saw the track get a #17 peak in the UK singles chart.

Bum Like You is next, and this returns a bit more to the Konichiwa Bitches sound – with soft little bleeping synths set against hard beats, but we’re joined here by a nice hi-hat that tickets along, and some tiny almost childlike vocals from Robyn. Again, the contrast works pretty well really, and as the track builds it becomes quite catchy – and although the title might have been a challenge for some TV and radio stations at the time, the track might have been a good single.

Then it’s Be Mine!, which brings hurried strings, that are met by dramatic orchestra stabs and racing beats. At times here, I can hear echoes of Cyndi Lauper, and in this track’s chorus I feel like I want to sing the latter’s hit Time After Time as some kind of mash-up. It’s definitely a foot tapper. The track was released as a UK single, giving Robyn a deserved #10 hit.

Hit With Every Heartbeat, her collaboration with the song’s producer and co-writer Kleerup follows after that. The whole mood and sound here is different to the previous songs, and takes a much catchier dance approach. Vocally, I’m reminded momentarily of Kate Bush, and I remember hearing this when it was new and wondering if it was a Bush cover – it’s not. Instead, we have a UK #1 epic anthem which reached Gold certification status in its own right with the BPI. The track is just marvellous.

That leads on to Who’s That Girl (no, not the Madonna song). Here we continue with another dance beat and wonderfully bouncy synth lead. Robyn is once again giving us some wonderful 80’s pop Lauper vibes here, and thankfully this track saw release as a single. Sadly though, the track was robbed, languishing at #26 in the singles chart.

We’re on a crash landing during the brief Bionic Woman track – all 17 seconds of it, and it sets the scene perfectly for the next track, into which it seamlessly moves.

Crash And Burn Girl is a banger. It’s bass drum, thick bass, and vocal samples give it a nice dance feeling. The vocals sound playful – almost Britney ‘Toxic’-esque, with ‘stop listen what’s that sound‘ and vocal samples. Again, I think that this could have been a great single (and accompanying video).

Then we’re on to a whoosing intro of Robotboy. Here we meet Robyn looking for a broken robot, armed with vocal samples, wind, and a piano. I like it’s simple sound, as Robyn takes pitty on the robot, with the track building nicely until she seemingly forgets the words with a load of ‘nah nah‘s.

Eclipse is next, which reunites us Robyn with a tinkling piano, and she’s joined by an upright bass. Here, Robyn gets to show off her soft, warm, and childlike vocals again, making it a beautifully simple song that swells with the piano and emotive vocals. Wonderful.

That leads to Should Have Known, which picks up the tempo with a simple yet heavy beat. Robyn’s vocals sound rich and confident here with some nice big notes, and nice and clear in the harmonies, and even the expletive in the chorus feels perfectly placed. It’s a nice catchy tune, and at times its melody feels like a sibling to With Every Heartbeat.

Then it’s Any Time You Like, which brings the tempo down again. The soft percussive beat reminds me of Everything But The Girls’ Walking Wounded album. Robyn’s vocals are timid here, almost sung only to you. She’s flanked by some nice soft harmonies and slightly space-y synth notes. It’s a nice little song.

Then the first of the artwork’s three hidden tracks Dream On, and this is a track that Robyn released with Christian Falk. It took the duo to #29 in the UK chart. This sounds like Owl City on speed, with an orchestra, and Robyn (sounding a bit like an All Saint) going like the clappers to deliver the vocals. It works a treat and meanders along in an aptly dreamy way.

The next hidden song is 2002 single Keep This Fire Burning, and this gives us some lovely fat synth notes set alongside some orchestra string bursts. It’s a downbeat track, and that works well with Robyn’s vocals cutting over the top. The handclaps and bass drum keep us a steady momentum, and the track works really well. Sadly the original didn’t touch the UK charts.

Show Me Love, an earlier single from 1998 (reaching #8 in the UK) is next, and the delicate little synths usher the song in nicely. Robyn’s vocals sound great hear, as they have space to shine alongside the little simple sounds of the intro.

Returning us to the artwork’s listing, ‘UK Bonus Track’, and final track Jack U Off, which is of course a Prince song. It’s performed in an amusing sort of 1920’s Betty Boop-stylised voice alongside a stabby piano, which is a wonderful contrast considering the song is undoubtedly and purely about masturbating someone.

Robyn’s lead UK single ‘Konichiwa Bitches’ (2007).

Verdict

Over all, this album feels like two albums glued together – one hard and angry, the other softer and warm.

There’s some great tracks here but they tend to be lurking in the latter half of this album – meaning you’ve got to get through some tougher listens, and that the better songs include some of the previous tracks from her career. Highlights on this album certainly include hit With Every Heartbeat, but also Who’s That Girl, Crash And Burn Girl, Keep This Fire Burning, and Dream On. These really show off Robyn’s vocals and melody more than her attitude.

The former half of the album has heavy beats and bass here, and at times Robyn’s vocals and lyrics get lost amongst the sound. These tracks could sound better, but the most uncomfortable of them are at the start of the album, with Cobrastyle and Konichiwa Bitches probably being the hardest to bond with once you’ve made it beyond the ego-inflated intro of Curriculum Vitae.

Give it a listen – there’s some great tracks but you might want to skip a few.