When I first got a hold of Swedish songstress, Anna Ternheim‘s new album “Leaving On A Mayday,” I though she had an exquisite, delicate voice that flowed so smoothly with the soothing aural landscapes of “Leaving On A Mayday.” Last Thursday, Oct. 1st she played a show at the Troubadour with Asobi Seksu and Swedish friends, Loney, Dear.
In a way, Ternheim reminds me of Dido, where her soft voice can ride on delicate orchestrations of sound or more energized dance induced beats. It was quite the treat to have Loney, Dear sit in on her set and lend us their awesome instrumentals. In the same turn, Ternheim is more than apt to carry on a stellar show on her own. With a voice like an angel, clear as crystal, I loved that you could still hear her accent through her singing. Many singers with accents tend to cover it up when singing English lyrics. I think its soft presence made her performance all the more alluring.
In celebration of her new album “Leaving On A Mayday,” Ternheim performed a variety of songs from this must-buy album. Some singers sound like vocal perfection on audio, what truly lies beneath is revealed when you see them performing live (assuming there’s no Brittany Spears-like lip-synching). Ternheim blew me away! She appeared to sound identical, if not better than her studio albums.
Although I enjoyed her entire performance, a couple songs that stood out for me were “What Have I Done,” “Summer Rain,” and oldie-but-a-goodie, “My Secret.” With a sexy little dance beat, “What Have I Done,” had the audience engaged in a hypnotic-groove. “Summer Rain” was quite the charming duet with its country undertones as Loney, Dear’s, Malin Ståhlberg, joined Ternheim in an uplifting duet that was all smiles for the two songstresses. To close up her set, a fan amongst the crowd had requested she play “My Secret,” Ternheim was impressed that he was familiar with the single that came out in 2005 and proceeded to make her exit with this heartfelt song.
