Södermanlands Nyheter 140224
By: KATTIS STREBERG
Helen Sjöholm
Musicians: Jojje Wadenius, Martin Östergren, Ulric Johanson and Tomas Bergquist
Culturum, Nyköping
Helen Sjöholm will never be able to escape Duvemåla, but after she as a 25-year-old made a huge success as Kristina she has really done her best to expand the boundaries. It has indeed been a substantial bunch of musical roles, but on CD she has interpreted everything from classic ballads to the American singer Billy Joel and she has collaborated closely with several composers.
That versatility and unwillingness to limit herself to a single genre is evident when Helen Sjöholm on Sunday appears in a Culturum that is sold out to the last seat. The evening starts with Joni Mitchell’s nice “Both sides now”, continues with a rock version of Eva Dahlgren’s “Glad och lycklig” and through Cat Stevens and a little bit of Björn & Benny she soon arrives at Staffan Hellstrand’s grudging tribute “Fanfar”. It’s an exciting selection of songs and I would have liked to hear a little more about why Helen Sjöholm chosed precisely these, but we never get any such clues.
Instead the music speaks, which it does flawlessly with four musicians that skilled on stage. Guitarist Jojje Wadenius, pianist Martin Östergren, bassist Ulric Johanson and percussionist Tomas Bergquist are given plenty of space on stage and in the song potpourri a bit into the concert they really get moving. For those who wondered it’s obvious after this demonstration that the classic Swedish ballad fits in most companies: with a single raw bass, surrounded by spawning light jazz loops or together with heavy rock comp.
But even if Helen Sjöholm has a voice that can handle most styles with bravado, I think it’s in the more sensitive songs that she really does herself justice. And that she’s succeeded so well as a musical artist and singer isn’t difficult to understand. She has an outstanding ability to really highlight the lyrics she sings, and fill it with emotion and content.
Though we aren’t offered very much musical this Sunday evening. Yes, we do of course get to hear “Du måste finnas” from “Kristina från Duvemåla” and a taste of upcoming “Livet är en schlager”, but otherwise Helen Sjöholm prefers to move beyond the obvious and well-known. There is a little Billy Joel and Tomas Andersson Wij and an Elvis Costello after that. It’s versatile and well mixed and truly something for everyone.
But the very best actually comes in the most sensitive songs, when Helen Sjöholm’s great voice stretches even a little bit further and gets extra many shades. Like in Laleh’s “Vårens första dag” or “Gabriellas sång”. Then there are probably others besides me who get goose bumps.