So Lykke Li returns with her second album after three years of self-confessed “craziness”. I won’t need to tell anybody that has heard ‘Get Some’ or ‘I Follow Rivers’ that a change of pace is very evident on the mesmerising Wounded Rhymes. The title of opening track, ‘Youth Knows No Pain’, couldn’t make it clearer that this is a departure from Youth Novels, and one that has been based on her experiences since.

 

There was heartbreak on her debut, but it was always tinged with a little catchy pop melody. This time around the feel is very much (I hate this word, but it is the best to describe it) darker. Her voice is as beautiful and distinctive as ever, but the melody this time around is deeper; more haunting. The lyrics follow suit; she is no longer is she an innocent girl singing about dancing and love. This is replaced by sex and sadness.

It really is the perfect second album and almost a continuation of her life story. I remember reading one review of Youth Novels that described it as a diary. Wounded Rhymes is the next instalment of that diary; the instalment that follows a life changing experience.

 

Words  by Tim Brown