Lightened melancholy

Even the trip-hop of Ann Kathrin Lüthi's former band Swandive literally called for orchestral accompaniment in places. So it comes as no surprise that she will be performing the live premiere of her new solo album Stand Your Ground with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra (ZKO). The music on her fourth studio album under the name Annakin is also ideally suited to this, although she has increasingly developed her own idea of melancholic electropop.

The 38-year-old musician has further refined her songs, which are as delicate as they are mysterious, and this is particularly evident in the refinement of her sound. Conventional and electronic instruments merge to create an enchanting sound that sounds more organic, brighter and lighter than before. As a result, the world of thoughts that Annakin leads us through with her ethereal, dreamy vocals no longer seems so heavy and threatening, although the darkness is still evoked.

The appeal of the songs wears off, however, because the structure, the arrangements and also the singing style are often very similar. This piece shows where the potential for further development lies In Between. Ann Kathrin Lüthi sings much more freely and elicits more nuances from her voice. The reason for this is obviously that she is not singing to the usual accompaniment, but solely to Manu Delago's subtle playing of the hang, an instrument with a sound reminiscent of gongs and steel drums, which was developed in Bern a good decade ago. Delago also accompanied Annakin at the aforementioned concert with the ZKO as a percussionist and otherwise works for greats such as Anoushka Shankar and Björk. The arrangements for the ZKO were specially written by the British violinist Fiona Brice, who was recently seen accompanying the rock band Placebo in the Hallenstadion.

Annakin: Stand Your Ground. Akin Records, Distribution: Phonag. www.annakin.net