Post Description

Acelsia - Don't Go Where I Can't Follow  Country of Origin: Norway 
Format: 2LP/CD 
Record Label: Independent 
Catalogue #: QTP2013 
Year of Release: 2013 
Time: 42:23 
Info: Acelsia 
Samples: Click Here 
 
Tracklist: Roads (3:25), Stitches (3:42), Up On The Roof (4:38), The Most Important Fight (2:35), The Mender (4:11), Blue Knell (4:08), Haven (3:38), Hold My Breath (2:26), Before I Fall (3:40), Another Day (5:02), Left Alone (4:13) 

Malene Markussen (piano and vocals) and Odd Henning Skyllingstad (guitars, bass, programming and percussions) have cooked up an absolute storm with Don't Go Where I Can't Follow. In 2011 I reviewed their Quietude EP scoring it an impressive 7 out of 10. I remember giving it a big thumbs up, stating that I was seriously looking forward to hearing their debut album. Well that time has arrived, the day of judgement so to speak. The band, or should that be duo, have really hit the nail firmly on the head delivering a precise, melodic, addictive and infectious album that is full of emotion, an album that is perfect in its presentation. If I was asked to describe the perfect album that was melodic, melancholic, that had slight progressive tendencies and metal leanings that would appeal to a wide audience then, people, this is the album. This album has the potential to have massive commercial success given the right promotion and airing. I'm not too sure what they put in the water in the Nordic regions but whatever it is I would like a pint of it. 

The presentation still calls to mind The Cranberries but with more musical masculinity without losing fragility; Shellyz Raven but with more class and Evanescence but with more style. In fact if you took all the best parts of those said artists and added a hint of Buffy Sainte Marie then you would be somewhere in the ballpark. Acelsia don't emulate those artists or offer homage, they definitely have a style of their own and can also write stunning songs; here they deliver an album that is full of killers and absolutely no fillers, eleven immaculately composed and presented songs that offer diversity, one minute powerful, the next sedate and ethereal, a perfect recipe. 

Again Malene has covered what appears to be personal and intimate explorations and yearnings as she did on the EP, a world she seems very comfortable to inhabit. Her vocal phrasings are passionate, fragile and haunting an approach that is matched by Skyllingstad's musical prowess as his guitar work offers mood and atmospherics, a prime example of this being the opening songs Roads and Stitches. Interestingly, the stunning guitar tones are never too far away, a theme that runs throughout the whole album and something that adds to the whole excitement. Even when the duo moves onto the more sedate album closer Left Alone one can still absorb their creative juices as you are continually entertained to the highest order. This is an album that will have you singing along in no time, repeatedly pressing play and going through the motion again. This is an album that does not lack imagination; in fact this is an album that has style, edge and personality. What more could one ask for? 

As debut albums go, they don't come much better than this. Yet again Acelsia has rewarded their listeners, this time with their fantastic debut album, a presentation that has allowed them to show the world what they are about. Based on what is here, the world really is their oyster. This is an album that can proudly sit with its head held high.