On what I thought would be a painstakingly 1hr, I was surprised to see what Laufey cooked up and will forever be a casual fan of Laufey. Bewitched, is the 2024 album presented by Laufey, and what an honest vibe it is. From its title track, Dreamer, to its outro track, Goddess, I was delighted to hop on a boat and flow down a world of magic and wonder.
Dreamer
Dreamer is such a delicious into track. The opening vocals were a little unexpected as I did not think Laufey’s voice would be THAT low. Not to say it’s a problem, as it set a very nice calm mood for the rest of the track. The drumkit is superb, replicating the typical jazz pattern found in ballads and many other smoother jazz blends perfectly matches Laufey’s soothing vocal deliveries. Its brush sweep articulations made the song warm and fuzzy. The constant pauses in-between the instrumentals helped contain Laufey’s energy as well as providing groove to the track. Every once in a while ad-libs are added to the track, emphasizing catchy parts and bringing out Laufey’s ideas in a very whimsical way. The ending is also very nice and ends the song on a very soothing tone. Laufey’s voice fits perfectly in this genre of music and I cant wait to listen to the rest of the tracks. Dreamer is a moderate 9.
Second Best
Holy fuck. Taylor Swift take fucking notes on how to write lyrics. The story woven deep into the lyrics are emphasized incredibly with Laufey’s voice and what gets created is a beautiful web of sadness. The guitar opening at the start of the track opens the song in a very somber tone, and it only further gets accentuated when the violins come in. YES THERES VIOLINS. The drum kit is pulled back in this song and its honestly for the best. The long pauses Laufey does with her voice held tension exceptionally well but also lost tension efficiently, allowing the listener to have a very calm experience to a much sadder song. Its melancholic attitude is done extremely well and I couldn’t have asked for more. Just kidding, I can, and I did. This song was so entertaining I thought the runtime was short but I guess I was way into it because it goes for a solid runtime of 3:24. Second Best is a strong 8.
Haunted
Hm. I guess the best way to put it is that it made me sleepy. Not in a bad way, but it just felt simplistic. The lyrics and vocal performance are top notch it’s just the structure of vocal deliveries felt a little simplistic and dived into a lot of the negative tropes of jazz. Its opening is very nice and it’s a very strong song, theres not much that just stands out to me. Haunted is a strong 8.
Must Be Love
What sees to be my favourite track, Must Be Love is a strong 10. I fucking love guitars, man. Literally all I need for a Laufey song is a guitar and her singing. Her vocal deliveries are tasteful, the guitars are impressive, and the occasional orchestral pulls and echoes all contribute to this perfect song. The story it tells is just so nice. Her music is so bittersweet which is such a good idea to pair this up with jazz or elements from a jazz ballad. It reminds me a lot about Marceline’s songs from Adventure Time, which automatically makes me happy. Theres really no errors in this song and it kinda pisses me off? I normally take a piss at song reviews and deliberately pick the weaknesses and berate them, but Laufey’s music just makes me rethink what I’m doing. Im getting lost and immersed in her music and I love it. Her vocal deliveries when singing “I’m falling” is just so mesmerizing. This song puts me in a daze, a hypnotic trance of emptiness. You truly feel surrounded by nothing when listening to this song and I love it.
At this point in the review I have a tiny little nitpick. Her music is kind of all the same, especially with this album at least. Its not really a problem because its really nice and she keeps it fresh, I guess its just causing ptsd from Taylor Swift’s generic bitching and moaning. While You Were sleeping is a very nice song that contributes to the more depressing undertones while immersing the listener in a state of bliss. The constant questioning of love, the things you would do for love, and the way you think when youre in love is a continuous that that’s spread throughout the albums, it was just heavily focused in this track and I really like it. While You Were Sleeping is a nice 8.
Lovesick
Lovesick. I think you all know what I’m gonna give it. Everything is just perfect. It’s a 10.
California And Me
Orchestral music will forever be peak. Laufey manages to somehow go band for band with a fucking orchestra so it just raises questions on what cant she do. The instrumentals are focused incredibly well with this track, creating a beautiful atmosphere for Laufey’s vocals to fill. I was so scared this song was going to be shit or did not know how to keep the momentum and energy built up from lovesick, but California and Me manages to keep me engaged. It’s a solid 8.
Now I don’t really take interludes or skits into account for an album review unless they really stand out to me. Now heres gonna be the crazy part where definitely nobody saw coming, I really liked Nocturne. A small piano solo has grown into one of my favourite tracks of the album. Its jagged chord stabs contribute to the world building of this album, holding and releasing tension at will. Its sudden shifts are perfect, representing the tone of the album and just displaying the time and effort that went into this perfectly crafted album. Nocturne is a strong 9.
Promise
Promise is another incredibly well crafted song. I don’t believe its as good as Lovesick due to personal bias to the tone of Lovesick but Promise still leaves my mind as a moderate 9.
From The Start
What seems to be a blend between elevator music and jazz, From The Start is a very good song. I’m actually getting kind of tired complimenting her music so I’m just going to fire through a few songs. From the Start is a solid 9.
Misty is a 9. Serendipity is a solid 8. Bored is a solid 8. Trouble is a solid 8.
Bewitched
Now moving on to another, Bewitched. What feels like something out of a Disney movie,
Bewitched is a nice blend of something magical and whimsical. The lyrics as usual are solid. Bewitched is a nice song, I fuck with the song but I don’t fuck with the song as much as others. Bewitched is a solid 8.
Goddess
When writing the review for Goddess I wrote a massive paragraph on why the song was such a massive dropoff from the other songs due to the lack of attention and volume. I proceeded to delete the entire paragraph when I heard the last part. FUCKING HELL, let me find something to dislike. Goddess is literally the song you ask for to end on a good note. The ending is both haunting and thematic. It brings tear into my eyes. Goddess is a 10.
The last time I listened to Laufey was 3 years ago, and what a mistake that was. Im so happy to come back to this genre of music and be able to review it so positively. Laufey has risen to one of my favourite female artists, and she has managed to persuade me into becoming an avid fan. I don’t give many tens to albums because the quality, storytelling, lyrics, and instrumentals has to be perfect. And yet Laufey seems to tick all these boxes.
Bewitched: The Goddess Edition is a 10.
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