Customer Reviews
No no no - By: Bonobobananas, 06 Nov 2008 
Emiliana hang your headin shame. I loved 'Lovein the time..' for it's lovely ambient beats together with that beautiful voice. Wasn't expecting the folky turn of 'Fisherman's' but still great (especially live).
This latest offering is an example of someone with absolutely no idea as to what direction to take musically. I have no problem with taking different directions, but probably best not to take them all at the same time. This is a complete mess & a waste of - did I say already? a beautiful voice.
D- must try much much harder.
Simply splendid! - By: G. Whyman, 28 Oct 2008 
This is a top quality pop album - far superior to the bland homogenised pop mush that usually gets into the charts. Quirky, fun, memorable with good tunes & well written lyrics. I loved her last cd which was more folky than this but I like this more somehow - it's far more upbeat. A recommended purchase.
Like nothing you've heard before - By: Phil Robertshaw, 11 Oct 2008 What a little gem this is. One wonders if anyone who isn't already a fan of Emiliana Torrini will even look at this album, but if they do, they'll bein for a new experience.
It's not too short. It's not too long. In 12 songs, Emiliana goes from catchy pop (Big Jumps) to outrageously fun rock (Jungle Drum), with dips into dark, moody moments (Gun) & several delightful ballads. There's a little bit of everything here. Even existing fans will be surprised, because it's not really like either of her previous (internationally released) albums. Love In The Time of Science was her trip hop album, while Fisherman's Woman was so laid back, it was horizontal.
Me & Armini is another fabulous release from a sadly underrated & little heard-of songstress, who has lived too longin the shadow of Bjork. Her day deserves to come.
Without you I would never rise - By: E. A Solinas, 10 Oct 2008 Emiliana Torrini's last album was all wistful folk. Before that, it was all equally wistful electronic pop & the creepily pretty closing song to "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers."
But before all that, she dabbled happilyin everything from jazz to J-pop, raw-throated indie-rock to the blues -- & she did a pretty good job at all of them. And while her fifth album "Me & Armini" doesn't quite explore EVERYTHING she's done before, Torrini slips back comfortably into some of the musical niches she has already carved. Her delicate pop is flavoured by tinges of other styles & genres, & sometimes those other sounds (asin "Gun") overwhelm it completely.
"Somebody's got a long way to go/You're not sitting by the phone no more... Mmm, are we going crazy?/It's not fair to say we wasted time/In my view we just used it all up..." Torrini sings wistfully over a mellow folk-guitar. But she tries a totally different approach to a no-letting-go-lovein the titular track -- it's an upbeat jazzy song with a vaguely stalkerish sound ("Some people think that/I'm heading for a meltdown... This I know/she doesn't love you like I do/yes it's clear/she'll never love you like me...").
A number of these songs stem musically from the bittersweet folk of her last album "Fisherman's Woman" -- the haunting seaside sound of "Birds," the prettily malicious "Ha Ha," & a string of low-key, folky melodies that rely mostly on Torrini's vocals & a guitar. But she mixes up the sound a little -- some of these melodies end with a thin mat of woobly synth, & the acoustic pop number "Big Jumps" is anything but wistful & low-key. It's all sunny joyousness & fun ("Go on, make some BIG JUMPS, BIG JUMPS/you afraid to break some bones?").
And then there are some songs that, stylistically speaking, belong to "Me & Armini" alone. These tend to be a bit darker -- there's the rhythmic organ-keyboard of "Heard It All Before," & the squiggling, fast-paced rocker "Jungle Drum" ("Hey, read my lips/cause all they say is kiss kiss kiss kiss!/No one ever stops/my hands arein the air/yes I'min love!"). And "Gun" is a masterpiece of quietly distorted guitar, with Torrini murmuring a tale of despair, infidelity & gleeful murder of a wife's lover.
Musically, Emiliana Torrini doesn't really try anything newin "Me & Armini," because she's dabbledin almost every kind of pop except symphonic metal (and for all I know she's tried that too). But she does polish up the whole electro/jazz/pop sound to near-perfection while still blending it with folky acoustics, & takes a few musical risks as well. Not that I'm complaining, because pretty much all of those risks pay off & leave you awaiting more.
Acoustic guitar takes center stagein this album, strumming gently like a forest creek under Torrini's vocals, with a few exceptions like the electric riffsin "Jungle Drum" & "Gun." And Torrini drapes those deceptively simple-sounding guitar melodiesin expansive extras -- jazzy drums, patches of heavy distortion, swathes of shimmering synth, piano & soundclips of tinkly windchimes. One of the most memorable: "Heard It All Before's" thumping organ-keyboard melody getting swallowed by clashing drums & ghostly riffs.
Torrini's girlish, chilly elfin vocals are often compared to Bjork, but she frankly sounds a lot more innocent & emotional. And her songs are nice as well, tending to focus on the mysteries & pain of romantic love, & even when she sings "ha... ha... ha.... hear me laughin'" at a former lover's trouble, she sounds mournful. But she can turn on the joy just as quickly with happy bouncy calls of, "Hey there sunshine lift my heart/I know life is long but it goes so fast/I love you never feeling old/You never bought the rubbish that they sold!"
With, I might add, the occasional foray into creepyville -- that gleeful front-row seat to manslaughter & the weird obsession with Armini are chilling at times, no matter how pretty her voice is ("Stop your shaking, sweating, whining & regretting/You're making a scene that is going to get you caught...").
"Me & Armini" allows Emiliana Torrini to expand her folk sound & polish it to a jewel-like hue, with some darker facets & delightfully sweet love songs. Definitely a good listen.
Excellent Genre Striding Album - By: S. Smith, 18 Sep 2008 This is Emiliana Torrini's 6th album although only two were released outside Iceland. Me & Armini really bridges the gap between them with some great pop numbers & some low key acoustic tracks too. Newer to the mix is the more rockier edgein places though & it suits her voice & style.
"Big Jumps" was a great choice as a single & reminds me of summer time fun (it also reminds me of "Unemployedin Summertime" however there's absolutely geniusin "Jungle Drum" which sounds like a 1960's rock anthem & will be the next single. Its very catchy.
Acoustic lovers will enjoy "Bleeder", "Hold Heart" & personal favourite "Beggar's Prayer" which has a beautiful vocal sectionin the middle with just humming which effects youin a brilliant way.
"Gun" shows off a more edgy side to Emiliana we've not seen for a long time as its full of atmosphere & "Ha Ha" is a darker shade of Torrini too. "Dead Duck" is a fantastic piece of studio trickery as it basically goes through all the album soundsin one song.
I would recommend this to any Torrini fan no matter which album of hers you preferred & also to anyone who likes their pop a little more involved than the usual chart toppers.
