Hanne Kolsto

It seems strange that a decade so pilloried by the critics, should get plundered so often by today's pop stars. But while the Eighties did indeed produce some terrible music (Stock Aitken & Waterman anyone?) there was also some quality. While Norway's Hanne Kolsto borrows heavily from some of the early eighties' synth heavy artists, Forever Maybe has a fresh feel and probably owes more to the last ten years if truth be told.

Continuing her extraordinary work rate, Kolsto takes her pop sound and adds some industrial noises (What Is Meant To Be), and some heavy guitar (Nothing To Talk About) with refreshing results. The latter has a feel of The Killers about it, just with a liberal sprinkling of euro-pop, while there's also a screeching guitar on the hook-laden The Urge To Repeat. While there is plenty going on under the vocal, Kolsto's voice is perhaps the weaker link. It lacks a distinctive flavour to stand her apart from a dozen other singers battling the same ground.

Lyrically the album is dominated by reflections of the heart, even on the pompously titled Synnecrosis, which means the living together of two organisms in a mutually destructive relationship. There is a lot of being alone or leaving going on here, and perhaps that explains the feeling of unease. Unlike many 'pop' albums in this genre there is some depth to explore and despite the Rihanna-style production line of releases, the quality is sustained.