Sondre Lerche: Sondre Lerche

    The sixth studio album by Norwegian pop/indie rock songwriter, Sondre Lerche, Sondre Lerche is another solid release. Nearly given away for only $3.99 on Amazon the day of its American release (June 7, 2011), there is a bonus track "Guilty" through Amazon as well. A different bonus track is through his website here, "Wither Street". One of  the best songwriters of our day, in my opinion, Sondre Lerche is talented, original and writes classics that have depth peering back to the beginning of rock and roll to the modern more technological era. I guess I'm trying to say that he has the potential to keep writing the rest of his life, unlike so many musicians, because you can tell that he just loves creating music and is so good at it. People should remember him.
    Clearly someone that knows music theory, the collusion of jazz and rock, not fusion mind you, but the jazzy chords and style is definitely unique to any pop artist I know of today. Norah Jones would be the female equivalent, I guess, but she has more mainstream success (maybe because she has the hookups and a great voice and lives in America). I'm sure Sondre Lerche is just as popular in Norway as Norah Jones is in America (even though her time might be a little past). Or he should be.
    The ends of songs is what struck me immediately with this album. Certain songs right at the end, not to cacophony, reach a climactic breaking point where they sort of pound in your head and end leaving you with thoughts of the song just ingrained in you. "Private Caller" is the best example, with the loud crescendo right at the end which stops abruptly. "Go Right Ahead" is a semi-example, because the moment of intensity is near the end, but not right at the end, with loud repeated chords. "Nevermind the Typos" is another example, because the last few rhythmic figures keep repeating and make you wonder if the track is skipping or something. It then fades into delirium. Continuing on to other notably good songs, "Coliseum Town" is a lovely wilting tune with violin swirls and trills that add a touch of ease and grace to the melody. The pizzicati are a nice touch too. "Domino" has a really nice half-distorted guitar solo at the end and is as close to cacophony as any song gets. "Tied Up to the Tide" would be tied in a close second, along with the opener "Richochet" and the screeching violins, with an accordion adding nicely to the mix.
    Other news of note, Sondre Lerche was part of a cover album called Muppets: The Green Album (August 23, 2011), in which he rendered "Mr. Bassman". Anyway, listen to "Domino" over under the 'Monthly Sample Tracks'. A free stream of the entire album is available through Grooveshark, here (just make sure you get the correct track listing from wikipedia or something; enjoy!