Lisa O Piu’s first album release, When this was the Future, is full of enchantment, beauty and soft melodies. I do however want to clear one thing up before I officially start the review, I originally thought Lisa O Piu was the name of a solo artist, but quickly discovered I was wrong! So for the record, Lisa O Piu roughly translates to ‘Lisa and more’ and the band consists of Lisa Isaksson and a variety of friends. The band are from Sweden, and I feel this becomes apparent when listening to their music, you can just tell that they recorded this in a deserted cabin in the mountains complete with log fires and toasted marshmallows.

The opening song, ‘Cinnamon Sea’ is incredibly dramatic and eerie enough to draw in even the most sceptic of listeners. It demands attention, albeit in a subtle way, and encourages it’s listener to hang around for a few more tunes. Those tunes worth hanging around for in particular are ‘The Party’, ‘Two’, ‘Alvdans vid kolarkojan’ and the finishing track, ‘And so on’. 

The reason I like ‘The Party’ so much has got to be the lyrics. It comes across as a gentle and inconspicuous song, and then the simple but powerful lyrics step in and move it onto a different level…”Your lips, they taste quite OK”… “We’re going to make you dance until you fall apart”. After this ‘Two’ comes along with what begins as a seriously simple idea that slowly builds up to become somewhat of a sweeping epic. ‘Alvdans Vid Kolarkojan’ is an instrumental number only interrupted towards the end by a few “dum dum’s” from Lisa, and the finale of the debut album, ‘And so on’ finishes up nicely with more magical melodies.

The whole thing is a quiet piece with flutes and finger picking teasing the listener through the album. All in all, a lovely winter warmer to listen to in your very own cabin in the woods.

Words: Kat Nicholls