Mondays. ViVii

Mondays for people who have a regular 9 to 5 job usually is the least favourite day. Everything starts again after a weekend filled with all the other stuff that either needs to get done or leisure. When getting older there's also the recognition that Monday is a return to routine which is often less hectic. And those who truly like their job return there with pleasure.

All these contemplations on the basis of ViVii's album title. After four of five singles released over the last months made it to the blog, it's only natural the album receives some attention. How does it fare?

Has a band ever managed to incorporate Abba with Joy Division in the intro of a song? That question crossed my mind when I listened to the opening song of Monday and former single 'One Day'. The guitar line is classic 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', the synths bring ABBA to mind. So ViVii qualifies establishing this feat. 'One Day' is an opener that sets the mood for Mondays, a mood that is not wavered from too far. ViVii presents oh so pleasant pop with a little dark streak here and there. Like many Scandinavian crime series are set in the dark, rain and snow, the music of ViVii is not overly jubilant. The trio sets a mood it is comfortable with and good at.

ViVii is a Swedish trio consisting of three multi instrumentals. Producer Anders Eckeborn and co-singers Emil en Caroline Jonsson. Together they started making this album on Mondays in their studio, making the Monday a special day, underscoring my intro to this review. The music is a mix of electronics and organic instruments that together present the light and dark so present during Scandinavian summers and winters. Take the tremendously melancholic 'Rendezvous'. The song is as tragic as it is beautiful. Several synths, electronic drums and keyboards are matched by a sad voice of Caroline Jonsson. The effect the song creates is ear-catchingly good. The kind it's hard to lay away.

On the whole Mondays remains a darkish album. 'Fool Alone' may start in a way implying ABBA, BZN or George Baker Selection, in short the great pop bands of the 70s, it doesn't come near as the mood goes down immediately, just leaving that keyboard riff, betraying influences from the 70s. It becomes something else totally. What remains is sheer beauty, touching me on a few levels.

I will concede that on a superficial level Mondays does not satisfy. It may appear that the mood is too one dimensional, too identical. But my conceding stops there. When I emerge myself into the music, a rich musical world opens where many things happen on several levels. Perfect, alternative pop is presented by ViVii. Most songs have such a nice dreamy quality that I can get carried away quite easily. Simply so pleasant to emerge in.

Wout de Natris

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g