Red Sleeping Beauty - Krisina

Red Sleeping Beauty’s first album for close to twenty years is a very human affair as it is a tribute to band member, Kristina Borg, who is thankfully battling back from breast cancer. The band originally formed in the Swedish capital of Stockholm back in 1989 with vocalist Borg joined by seasoned indie-types Niklas Angergard (singer/guitarist of Acid House Kings fame), Mikael Matsson (guitarist, who has had stints in the Shermans and the Charade) and bassist Carl-Johan Nasstrom. After a string of singles and albums across a number of noted indie-labels, the band went into hibernation towards the end of the 1990s, before returning a couple of years back. Kristina retains all the gentle warmth of those early musical adventures, but, despite a love for vintage drum machines and synthesisers, the sound is also contemporary if heavily indebted to 80’s electro-pop. Whilst the album lacks the guitar led jangle, that normally floats my boat, in favour of keys, it retains a certain simple charm that is best enjoyed on a summer coastline drive. Songs like 'Tell Me More' and 'Merry Christmas Marie' also have one foot firmly on the dancefloor, while 'If You Want Affection' has a harder Gary Numan like sound. The band played Indietracks recently and I wanted to see how these songs came across live, but it clashed with being on a train listening to an intimate acoustic performance by White Town, so sadly I can only take the word of those I asked that saw them and it appears I missed a treat… Go buy the album and decide for yourself.

Track Listing:-

1 Cheryl, Cheryl, Bye
2 Always
3 Tell Me More
4 Mi Amor
5 In the Darkest Hour
6 Merry Christmas, Marie
7 Breaking Up Is Easy
8 If You Want Affection
9 Don't Give In, Don't Give Up
10 I Am the Artist