Matti P
SUSANNA ALEKSANDRA (b. 1989) is an Estonian jazz vocalist. Her debut album Miracles (2015) was made with her countrymen, but the later albums are Finnish products; she has studied in the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki. Her third and latest album The Siren is actually an updated, internationally distributed version of Souls of the Night (2020), featuring co-producer Joonas Haavisto on piano and synths, Joonas Tuuri on double bass and Ville Pynssi on drums. Percussionist Abdissa "Mamba" Assefa guests on one track. Apart from the standard 'Blame It on My Youth' and the Finnish folk tune 'Ruusu laaksossa', the songs are originals, with all the lyrics -- and mostly also compositions (1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9) -- by Aleksandra herself. Tracks 2 and 7 are composed by Haavisto, and the final, eleventh song is their mutual composition.
Not downright light, nor melancholic 'The Siren' flows beautifully. Immediately the listener is won over by the excellent, airy arrangement and crystal-clear production where each instrument is a star, and by Aleksandra's sensual, effortless vocals. The moodier but equally elegant 'Your Path' perhaps slightly centres more on the piano. 'Clumsy' is in a faster tempo and features skilful scat vocals. The band is really fantastic in creating a lively groove.
'Blame It...' is interpreted as a sensitive, slow, late night jazz ballad. I'm not fascinated by 'Summer Came Early' where the percussion is very central in the soundscape. 'Love Song' feels charmingly sincere with its Katie Melua -like romantic approach.
'Souls of the Night' is another excellent evidence of Aleksandra's compositional skills as it meanders dynamically. The balance between sensitivity and energy maintains harmonically throughout the album. As a Finn, it's of course interesting to hear how well an Estonian sings the Finnish traditional. You can easily tell it's not her mother tongue but that only makes it more charming, in a way. All in all, an excellent and enjoyable vocal jazz album with a fantastic musicianship and production.
