Rasmus Seebach – Lovesong

“So, best things first: that chorus melody is absolutely lovely.”

Tim: Rasmus has been off for quite a while…

Tom: Has he been in the shadows? Sorry, wrong Rasmus. Carry on.

Tim: — as he’s had a baby to look after.

Tom: Oh. Well now I sound like a dick.

Tim: I won’t disagree. Anyway, now he’s got his priorities sorted and is back bringing us music. This song, well, I’m in two minds about. Have a listen.

Tim: So, best things first: that chorus melody is absolutely lovely. The opening line in English, the rest of it moving on, and also the various oh-oh-oh-ohs in the post-chorus (and intro), it’s just divine.

Tom: Yep, I was surprised by both the melody and the switch into English. And you’re right: “lovely” is the correct description for it.

Tim: The rest: hmm. It’s nice, it’s fine, and…okay, here’s the problem, and it is absolutely not Rasmus’s fault. The lyrics, you see, are entirely lovely – we’ve lines that translate to things like “I know we’re created for each other” and “You’re the only one in the world”, and Rasmus has said about this that “Without love, life is not worth much”. BUT, with them being in Danish – i.e. with me not being able to understand them – they wash over me, and I’m left thinking that part’s a bit dull. It isn’t, it should be lovely, it should be inspiring tears of delight in me when I’ve had one too many rum & cokes, and it’s entirely on me that it isn’t.

Tom: I’m not quite as convinced — well, I’m convinced that it’d inspire tipsy tears of delight in you, of course, I’m just not convinced about the verses themselves. They are very stripped-down and basic, perhaps a bit too much.

Tim: Perhaps, though sadly we never know, as you can properly do one if you think I’m going to learn a whole language just for one song. Unless – well, Rasmus did an English version of another song of his, Natteravn, so if you’re reading this Rasmus, could you do that here please? THANKS.

Rasmus Seebach – Sirenerne

Moving around, never really settling down.

Tim: Similar in style to the first single of his we covered (recently translated into English, actually, which we should perhaps have mentioned), and I like it just as much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1LtI0IkmsU

Tim: So similar, in fact, that the opening seems almost identical.

Tom: I quite enjoyed suddenly picking up “split-second” in the lyrics.

Tim: I have no problem with that opening, though, as the whole thing is pretty good. It’s the whole moving around, never really settling down into one type of tune or another style that’s going on that really seems to work.

Tom: That’s worked before for me – and when it finally kicked in with the big synth parts, sirens and drum beats I was really rather getting into it. But then it went all downbeat again and I just couldn’t muster the energy to keep enjoying it.

Tim: There’s a few weird things which kind of get in the way – yes, I know it’s called ‘Sirens’ so there’s a sort of sense to them, but it seems a bit unnecessary – although it’s not enough to put me off it by any means, because I’m happy with this.

Tom: I’d be happy with a calm version and a remix. The switching – this time – just doesn’t seem to suit it.

Rasmus Seebach – I mine øjne

It’s a slow builder, but build it does

Tim: Number 1 in Denmark, this is. Let’s see if we agree with them.

Tom: That starts slowly, doesn’t it? I don’t have high hopes.

Tim: Well, yes, the first verse – a little uninspiring. First chorus – kicks it up a bit, starts to work for me. Second verse – better than the verse with the drumbeat. Second chorus – again works for me.

Tom: You’re right; it’s a slow builder, but build it does; by that second chorus I was rather looking forward into it.

Tim: Interesting pause in the middle eight, giving a sense of anticipation. Closing part—

Tom: Come on, big triumphant final chorus…

Tim: …what the hell was that? Nothing. It’s a massive disappointment.

Tom: I wasn’t expecting a ridiculous key change or anything – it’s far too classy a song for that – but it does seem like a bit of a poor effort. No gospel choir?

Tim: Alas, no. Overall, it’s okay – it’s just very much let down by the ending.

Rasmus Seebach – Natteravn

Manages to cram in three genres in the first minute.

Tim: This, by a Danish bloke, has been running around the top of the Swedish charts for the past few months – only been out of the top 10 three times since its physical release in the middle of May – and for good reason. (Oddly, it never even got to Denmark’s top 30, even though his three previous singles all made top 3.) Anyway, have a listen.

Tim: I think it’s the first song I’ve ever heard that manages to cram in three genres in the first minute, and it flits around a bit before eventually deciding to be a cracking good dance tune. I have absolutely no idea what the lyrics mean, and to be honest I couldn’t care less, because it’s great. Unlike Bromance, I don’t think that it would quite work without any, but he could be singing about taking out the empty beer cans for all I care.

Tom: In my head it’d be better either as an instrumental – I think it would work – or at least with slightly less repetitive lyrics. That may be my English-speaking brain refusing to accept “Jeg kalder på dig” as a common sentence though; if he was singing “I call on you” then I suspect the words would have faded into the background rather than sticking out like a sore thumb. It’s a great track though.

Tim: The problem I’d have without lyrics is that the non-dancy bits would be too quiet (although not in a Robert MIles sense, just in a dull sense); the chorus I agree would work. However, one think I do like about the chorus lyrics is that they sound a bit like the name of that volcano that blew up in Iceland a few months back. No idea why I think that’s a good thing, though.

The three genres thing is a bit weird, but I think it works. It did mean that when I first heard it I started out thinking, oh, it’s another generic R&B tune, it’ll be just as rubbish as Flo Rida and stuff, but then it got good and clicked together nicely. Full marks, Herr Seebach.

Tom: Apparently they couldn’t pay the video’s actress enough to actually let him kiss her at the end, though.