Enemy Within - Frida Hyvönen

"Silence Is Wild" by Frida Hyvönen came out in early November of 2008 and I bought it--rather incidently--shortly thereafter. Maybe a bit of an impulsive purchase in retrospect but it was equal parts inspired by the imprint (Secretly Canadian, infrequently releasing something I don't enjoy at least a little) and Frida's Swedish background. There've been too many incredible singer-songwriters to come out of Sweden in the past five years (Jose Gonzalez, El Perro del Mar, Jens Lekman, Peter Bjorn & John, etc.) that I felt like I ought to be on point this time. I think I've found my favorite of the crop in Ms. Hyvönen.




I wrung my hands over which was the most appropriate track to play off of the record. The first track, "Dirty Dancing," is an epic childhood story about the narrator's first love told with the grandiose diction of Cat Stevens, Gordon Lightfoot and, yeah, probably a little Joni Mitchell and Carole King too. Truly classic popular folk music is direct and dramatic and not fearful of being overly lavish or expressive; this is Frida's department. The emotions are charmingly confused and obtuse while her storytelling remains concise and full of color.

"London!" is another standout and perhaps the most immediate and upbeat on the record. Despite its brightness and pomp, the lyrics are dour and self-deceptive with lines like "The way you hate me is better than love and I'm head over heels...the way you want to get rid of me makes me weak in the knees."

Ultimately, I decided on the second track, "Enemy Within." It's filled with truly revealing and raw emotions delivered so bluntly and gawkily that I think it is the track most definitive of Frida's songwriting strengths. All of that to say, I hope you enjoy it.

Frida Hyvonen_Silence Is Wild_02_Enemy Within.mp3