Album Review: AK-Momo

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7 / 10 Facts about this album:
* AK-Momo are Anna Karin ('AK') von Malmborg (vocals, Optigan and whistling) and Mattias Olsson (Optigan, Mellotron and Orchestron)..
* Most of 'Return To NY' was recorded over the course of six afternoons

Album review:
The wonky Mellotron that dominates Swedish duo AK-Momo’s debut was the instrument that provided the sweetness to The Beatles’ ‘Strawberry Fields’. However, it’s Anna Karin Von Malmborg’s vocal, reminiscent of Kate Bush, dripping with saccharine, that stands out here. This could become far too twee were it not for the jealous-hearted beats, crackles, tremulous synths and creepily sexual lyrics: “I fucked you and you fucked me so tenderly”, Malmborg sings with insouçiance on ‘Only The Stars’, a tale of nocturnal coitus in Greenwich Park. ‘Hollywood’ and the sinister ‘Human Clones’, on the other hand, are akin to Grimm’s Fairy Tales reinterpreted by Portishead. This record is like a limited-edition run of sweetened Marmite, and all the more brilliant for it.

Luke Turner

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