I think I have to say that Norwegian singer/songwriter Ane Brun is the best music discovery I have made this year. It started with seeing the video for “My Lover will Go”, first single off second album A Temporary Dive, late one night on a music channel, and I was hooked at once. I got the album a few days later, and it has been on my playlist constantly for more than six months now, and has been joined by first album Spending Time with Morgan.

Putting a label on the music is something that feels really tricky to me. I really recommend getting a first-hand impression at her website’s audio section. I guess a description could start with “singer/songwriter girl with acoustic guitar”, and then add “flavoured with dashes of blues, country and soul” – and it’s still far from a good description, it feels like music written more with the heart than the mind, not caring about genres. There’s a somewhat melancholic feel to it – the tender, comfortable kind of melancholy you may feel while taking a walk on a fresh autumn afternoon.

The overall sound has a less-is-more feel – the songs are clean and soulful, and the production is mostly focused on the guitar (which supposedly is the Morgan referred to in the title of the first album) and the vocals. I have always had an impression that producers have a fear that acoustic music will sound hollow and overdo the production to “fill the blanks”, but here the subtle strings, keys, light percussion and everything else works wonderfully to emphazise the guitar and Ane’s voice. Oh, and that voice, I havn’t mentioned it before, becuase that marks the point where all objectivity goes out the window. I think I’m in almost love with that voice. It’s a voice that reaches out and grips me, sending comfort-shivers down my spine. I think it’s so full of character, sweet and bit coarse at the same time – maybe, if you allow me an attempt at a poetic description, like honey mixed with crispy cereal.

The lyrics are mostly reflections about life and love, but they are cleverly written and feel personal enough to not fall into the swamp of cliché life-and-love songs.

The announced tourdated takes Ane to New York City for four shows next week, then a number of appearances in Norway followed by three dates in the Netherlands at the end of November. The next release is “Duets”, a compilation of ten duets recorded during the last year – something I’m really looking forward to.

International distribution still seems to be a bit scarce, but albums can be ordered in the shop at the homepage, and here’s what Amazon has listed:
amazon.com: A Temporary Dive [Import] | Spending Time with Morgan | Duets
amazon.co.uk: A Temporary Dive