Rami and the Whale “Rami and the Whale” (Wooded Shrine Recordings, 2016)

This is a solo album from Swedish singer songwriter Rasmus Blomqvist. It is a mainly acoustic offering which is dark, introspective, melancholy and brooding perhaps reflecting those dark Swedish winter nights. The songs were written over a period of ten years and recorded in what is referred to as a “poor people’s home”. There are twelve tracks all written by the artist who does not appear to have a website although an internet search suggests that “the album is an expression of one man’s search for the mystery, the sublime, the miraculous in life for which we have no name – the Whale may be a symbol for these things”. That may be the case but in truth this is a hard album to love. There are no stand out tracks to mention particularly although “I Am Rami” is presumably an autobiographical song where the artist lets us know that he likes trees, starry skies, the sun, the rain and many other things.

If introspection is for you then rarely will you find an album that offers so much opportunity to gaze at one’s navel.