Come Along

While Titiyo might never re-create the sheer visceral shock of her debut album, still nobody could ever accuse Sweden's queen of soul of standing still. Following up from the self-produced excursion that was her third album, Titiyo now links with Cardigans/Kent supremos Peter Svensson and Joakim Berg for an album that carves her so-remarkable voice into its rockiest surroundings yet. She credits her recent discovery of Radiohead, Jeff Buckley, and even Soundgarden for pushing her in this new direction, and that may be. The influence that hangs most heavily, however, is another Svensson/Berg project, Paus; indeed, Come Along started life as nothing more than an English-language revision of that entire album. Instead, the pair presented her with an entire new collection of songs and wound up with a set that leaves Paus itself in the dust. The opening title track sets the scene, a sultry post-blues number infused with just enough of Titiyo's trademark dance sensibility to mask (but never bury) the distinctly PJ Harvey-esque feel of the song itself. Later, "My Heart Won" takes a similar brew, but this time has no compunction whatsoever about pushing Titiyo into some defiantly scratchy territory, even as it continues to acknowledge her urban R&B roots and reputation. A few nods in the general direction of trip-hop also offer respite to fans puzzled by the omnipresent guitars, while "Last Time" is a showstopping ballad that would have sounded great on any of her past albums -- a point that is proven by the bonus addition of "Josefin Dean" (from 1998's Extended) to U.S. pressings of Come Along. A major European hit at the time, it's a swirling blues that, at the time, posited one of several future directions suggested by that album. Its seamless inclusion on Come Along suggests Titiyo took the correct one.