Västerbottens Folkblad 2021-11-20
By: HENRIK LÅNG
HELEN SJÖHOLM
Idun, Umeå
++++
Audience: Almost crowded.
Duration: 105 minutes.
Best: Vilar glad i din famn (Rest Happy In Your Arms) and Samma här (Same here).
(…)
The ongoing tour, titled after last year’s album En ny tid (A New Time), has been described as a refreshing fresh start. It’s easy to understand why. With several fresh songs and a new, excellent band in the back, Helen Sjöholm can let her patented sense of style and tone of voice stabilize the motley genre mix that is presented.
Already in the finely tuned opening Jag har bara ögonblick (I Have Only Moments), a gentle presence is marked, and what follows is a demonstration of the noble art of alternating hilarity with quiet ballads and thoughtful interludes.
She tells, personally and humorously, about the small moments of happiness, about the relentless traces of aging and the power of music. Without the resonant inserts ever feeling glued.
(…) Astonishing to note how well the sharp shifts in mood and style work. Indestructible, familiar gems like Du måste finnas (You Have To Be There), Du är min man (You Are My Man) and Gabriella’s song mingle with dignified restrained versions of Loreen’s Euphoria and Markus Krunegård’s Korallreven & Vintergata (Coral Reef & Milky Way) as well as a cabaret take on Han har ett sätt (He Has A Way) and a noisy intense Barpianisten (a Swedishization of Billy Joels Piano Man).
These winding shifts give the accompanying quintet the chance to take the turns. And floor-driven instrumentalists such as guitarist Ola Gustafsson, drummer Andreas Dahlbäck and bassist Martin Höper make the best of the situation: the former in particular spices up the sound with tonal colors and short solos. Still, despite all the energy, it´s actually in the calmer parts that Helen Sjöholm shines the strongest. Andreas Mattsson’s heartbreaking Samma här (Same here) touches deeply, which can also be said about Vilar glad i din famn (Rest Happy In Your Arms) with music by Benny Andersson and lyrics by Kristina Lugn. And it’s hard to imagine a more appropriate farewell number than Vår sista dans (Our Last Dance). The standing ovations are fully justified.
(The full review is not reproduced for copyright reasons)