Labels: Megaphone
Review by: Alex Deller
Angil (aka Mikäel Mottet) plays subdued, folksy music that relies primarily on an unassuming voice and plaintive strums on a trusty guitar, lent an occasional helping hand by his buddies tinkering away with jazzy sax licks, understated strings and the occasional programmed beat. It’s light, airy music that flutters by unobtrusively and lingers in the air like a faint trace of perfume in an empty room, providing the kind of calming backdrop you might need while solving a slightly vexing crossword puzzle. Whilst by no means unpleasant, this drifting quality lends Angil’s music a degree of anonymity that leaves the listener struggling to remember just how they’ve spent the last hour or so. Fans of Elliott Smith, Hood or the One AM Radio may well enjoy Angil’s subdued melancholy, but chances are there won’t be quite enough here to really sink your teeth into, suggesting you may want to wait a record or two down the line until Angil has fleshed out his repertoire and written some songs that really make us prick up our ears.