Whereas her debut album,
All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend
, was an introspective work, and follow-ups
Step 1: Infections of a Different Kind
and
Step 2: A Different Kind of Human
concerned broader humanity, Norwegian pop star
Aurora Aksnes
examines behavior through the lens of mythology on her fourth album,
The Gods We Can Touch
. She came up with the unifying idea after writing the electro-pop ditty "Cure for Me," a song about divesting herself of shame ("I don't need a cure for me"); it made her think of Panacea, the Greek goddess of remedy.
AURORA
's next step was to rent a castle in the mountains to record the rest of the album (with longtime producer/co-writer
Magnus Skylstad
and others). Unexpectedly immediate and often warm and restrained despite its elaborate approach,
mixes natural, live-sounding vocals and acoustic instrumental performances with ethereal processed harmonies, drum machines, synthesizers, and various programming. Committing to a more spontaneous sound, songs including "Artemis" and "Exist for Love" were reportedly first takes. The sparse "Artemis" tells its seductive narrative with a Mediterranean flair that includes fingerstyle guitar and bandoneon as well as some of those otherworldly layered vocal harmonies (and Theremin). An album highlight, "Exist for Love," is a more tender, likewise mostly acoustic, track that begins with the line "They say there is a war between the man and the woman." It soon eases into a soaring, strings-swept melody as the singer professes her love. "Exist for Love" isn't the only song here with a dreamy, almost '40s Disney-like musical romanticism that contrasts with club-ier synth-bass tracks to epic effect. Members of the latter category include "Temporary High," a dark, post-punk-shaded outing that warns of fleeting affection, and the forbidden-love anthem "Blood in the Wine," which channels a defiant electro-pop softened with piano and acoustic guitar. The album's varied textures and elevated subject matter culminates in the four-minute outro "A Little Place Called the Moon," which returns to a vintage, theatrical orchestral pop and leaves listeners on a magical note. While
is ultimately a pop record, it only expands upon
's already mystical bearing. ~ Marcy Donelson