Susanna - Go Dig My Grave
"Wonderful, haunting bunch of covers from Norwegian singer”
Uncut Magazine (8/10)
Susanna Wallumrød has – under the artist name Susanna and with Susanna and the Magical Orchestra – made deep imprints in many listeners and on the Norwegian music scene since her debuted made a place for herself in our musical canon.
Wallumrød has placed herself somewhere between folk music, pop, jazz and art-music and has collaborated with Jenny Hval, Stian Westerhus and Ensemble neoN, as well as Led Zeppelins bass player, John Paul Jones. She's made an impressive 12 albums and won three Spellemannsprisen (Norwegian Grammy Awards) this far. These days she is releasing her 13th album.
As an artist, she's appeared to be fearless in all her choices. She's induced goosebumps in her original interpretations of everything from Dolly Parton to ACDC – songs few others have dared to tackle. Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos from 2008 was the first album containing only Wallumrød's own songs. Curiously enough, one of her most sworn fans, American singer, songwriter and actor, Will Oldham aka Bonnie Prince Billy, released his own new re-recorded version of the album last year.
Wallumrød and baroque harpist, Giovanna Pessi, released If Grief Could Wait with ECM in 2011. On the album, the two interpret Henry Purcell and Leonard Cohen, alongside Susanna's own music. This remarkable album mixed music from the baroque, singer/songwriters from the 70s and newer music. The project also did the atmospheric final concerts in Molde Cathedral at Moldejazz back in 2012 – a concert people still talk about.
This year, Wallumrød and her musicians are closing the festival at the same venue. Pessi and Wallumrød resumed their collaboration with the album Go Dig My Grave in 2018. Together with the young accordion-player, Ida Løvli Hidle, and fiddle player and folk-singer, Tuva Livsdatter Syvertsen (known from Norwegian band Valkyrien Allstars), they interpret old and new songs – gloomy blues from old 78-records, baroque music and no less beautiful-solemn new songs. Always at the centre is Wallumrød's very communicative voice and expression, sometimes giving associations to female artists like Joni Mitchell and Judy Collins and other times to the experimental operatic Klaus Nomi.
The album Go Dig My Grave was by many described as a new pinnacle in Wallumrød's career and we can guarantee an evocative and moving experience in Molde cathedral.