Representative Albums: "And She Closed Her Eyes," "The World Is Saved," "People Are Strange"
Representative Songs: "Little Star" "And She Closed Her Eyes"
Biography
Like Lori Carson, Stina Nordenstam has spent a fair amount of her career shedding comparisons to Rickie Lee Jones. Though a little similar, the majority of Nordenstam's work is more fragile -- delicate enough to be knocked over by the slightest of breezes. Since the early '90s, Nordenstam has developed a highly intimate, childlike sound that has either lured or repelled listeners. Though her debut, Memories of a Color, was quite formative and was held back by bland jazz leanings, it nonetheless earned the admiration of British label 4AD, who were interested in signing her. It didn't work out, but the encounter put Nordenstam under the spell of the label's Red House Painters and This Mortal Coil. The recording of her debut left her emotionally drained; three years passed before the release of And She Closed Her Eyes, a wider-ranging and more brooding record that critics viewed as a major step forward. Darker still was 1996's Dynamite, which all but abandoned any of the soft ambience of prior LPs in favor of industrial-informed beats and guitar scrapings. The covers album People Are Strange surfaced in 1998, featuring renditions of songs by the likes of Prince, Tim Hardin, and Leonard Cohen. This Is Stina Nordenstam was issued in 2001, which featured a pair of duets with Suede's Brett Anderson. Three years later, she released The World Is Saved. Also in demand as a session vocalist, Nordenstam has worked with Vangelis, Bill Laswell, and the Flesh Quartet. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
Nordenstam's voice led to early comparisons with artists such as Rickie Lee Jones and Björk. Her early albums, Memories Of A Colour and And She Closed Her Eyes were jazz-influenced with elements of alternative rock. 1997's Dynamite began a more experimental path - most of the album was filled with distorted guitars and unusual beats. A cover album, People Are Strange, followed before Nordenstam returned in 2001 with This Is Stina Nordenstam. In 2000, Nordenstam featured on a track from Danish prog-rockers Mew's second album Half The World Is Watching Me. The track was later re-recorded for the band's international debut Frengers. Nordenstam's 2004 album The World Is Saved continued the path set on This Is..., but presents a more realized sound and acknowledges her earlier jazz influences. Her guest appearances include collaboration with David Sylvian's band "Nine Horses", including tracks from the album Snow Borne Sorrow and the Money for AllEP. She also sang on Vangelis' Song "Ask the mountains", she did "To The Sea" with Yello and a collaboration with Brett Anderson. Nordenstam is also accomplished in fields such as photography and music video directing. She is known to be reclusive: she gives very few interviews and she hasn't performed live since the Memories Of A Colour tour. She even alters her appearance using wigs and make-up for album covers and magazines. During the promotion for The World Is Saved, however, she gave more interviews than usual.
"Little Star" (help·info)
