Norwegian songwriter Silje Leirvik's second album, Endless Serenade, is released a year after her debut album. It's packed full of lush atmospherics and a glowing energy. While her first album, The Lights Turned Out So Beautiful, was set in a more traditional singer-songwriter genre, featuring the organic tones of grand piano and string section, this time Leirvik decided to experiment more with textures - feeding pedal steel guitar, electric piano and drum machine through tape delay machines, then blending with drums, mellotron and guitar. This results in the album having a very warm, retro prescence, that swims through its undertones of folk, rock and pop...

The first time I listened to Silje Leirvik's second album, Endless Serenade, I thought I was listening to a Greatest Hits of... compiliation. Each track sounded like it could easily be released as a single in its own right - there's no filler b-side material here.

The album kicks off on the right note with 'Glass Of Water' which instantly allows Leirvik to show off her vocal range. Other highlights include 'Silver & Gold', which almost sounds like a retro James Bond theme; 'Leah's Song' sounds like a winning Eurovision song (which is meant as a compliment not an insult); 'Black Heart' is another beautiful track that is hard not to get swept up in; and 'In the Garden' is another catchy offering.

The album contains 10 tracks, and lasts for 46 mins. Almost all of them you'll instantly like... but for the few tracks you may not be too keen of... give them another couple of listens and they'll grow on you.

9

Nick Smithson