There have been two people overshadowing my week. One has been a long term crush who I am fearful to talk to (but that’s not for here) and the other has been a certain Jens Lekman.
A year or so ago a very nice, but supremely cool, friend of mine mentioned that she thought I would like this chap. She was right. With his happy pop songs filled with pretty intense romance and images of his native Sweden there was no way I could fail to be hooked. Unfortunately, I did not heed this advice straight away. In fact I thought no more about it until two of his tracks (one from a free CD in the wonderful Plan B magazine, the other on a mix from a friend) made their way into my life almost a year later and reminded me what I’d been missing. And so, flash forward to a couple of weeks ago, on a whim I bought “Oh You’re So Silent Jens”, a collection of previously released singles, EPs, and compilation appearances recorded between 2003-2004.
The main dominator of my brain was “I Saw Her In The Anti-War Demonstration”. I’ve been getting obsessed. Opening with a sprawling violin/viola/cello trio it changes direction into something altogether more marchy. With that, in come the vocals, filled with romance and rhyme. The story of Jens’ love for an ex-punk he met on an anti-war demonstration leading to the epic rhyme of six: “And the skies/were clear blue skies/And her eyes/were clear blue eyes/And her thighs/were about the same size as mine/And we were walking in the anti-war demonstration”. Pretty glorious stuff.
Another highlight of the album is the fabulous Maple Leaves (there are two versions on this album, EP or 7”), the story of the best type of miscommunication: “But she said the dreamers just make believe/and I thought she said maple leaves” and “And when she talked about the fall/I thought she meant Mark E Smith/I never understood at all”.
On another album Maple Leaves or ISHITAWD could (possibly) take the cake for most romantic (in my skewed way of seeing the world), unfortunately, everything is thrown off by the Someone To Share My Life With. Unlike most other tracks, the only accompaniment Jens’ voice gets is some low-down guitar and subtle glockenspiel, making the lyrics stand out even more. “I don’t want a girl who hangs on every word I say”, right here Jens, “who shows me off to her parents over roast beef on Sundays”, you have my word, “I don’t want a girl who thinks she has to fake”, seriously Jens, I think we could be good together, “I don’t want a girl who laughs at every little joke I make”, no fear of that, “I just want someone to share my life with/and that someone could be you”. Then it’s settled/Download link http://www.sendspace.com/file/sie81j
