Once again, I credit last.fm for introducing me to Hanne Hukkelberg's music. The first thing I heard was her debut album, by way of a little ditty called 'Ease' which, like the album it came from, was a mostly light, whimsical affair.
However, the album to really catch my attention was this one, which I discovered a couple of years later. Three albums in, the fluffy Jazz-lite of 'Little Things' is replaced with a darker more experimental sound that incorporates elements of electronica, post-punk, indie rock and percussive found sound, resulting in a sonic brew that is deliciously unclassifiable. Imagine the ephemera of CocoRosie combined with the dissonance of Sonic Youth, the rawness of PJ Harvey's grittier moments and the idiosyncratic flair of Kate Bush, and you'll probably get the idea.
Either way, 'Blood...' managed to tick all the right boxes for me and became an album I played to death, and the songs 'Salt of the Earth', 'Crack' and closer 'Bygd Tyl By' (sung in Hukkelberg's native Norwegian) still give me goosebumps.
The follow up record 'Featherbrain', skirts the same territory in a more stripped down manner) and is also a good album, but for me, this is the preferred album, and one that's made a lasting impact.
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