Djonne & Borsheim
Album: Toras Dans
Label: Fivreld
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.annlaugborsheim.no

A couple of years back I reviewed "November" from Norwegian fiddlesinger Annlaug Borsheim , on which she'd collaborated with a number of Scots and English musicians and showed her to be a true mistress of the legendary Hardanger fiddle. That album was predominantly recorded in her native language and I raved about it at the time.

"Toras Dans" is her long awaited follow up, this time recorded in collaboration with accordionist, Rannveig Djonne and it's an album that captures a real sense of intensity regardless of songs being sung or simply instrumentals, though to use the word simply around the instrumentals sells them short.

In a nice touch that seems to connect the album to its predecessor, the second song in is called "Desember" and whilst I can't claim to understand the words the timbre of the song seems to speak about someone coming in from isolation.

Djonne's button accordion work form the warp, to the weft of Borshieim's fiddle, guitar and vocal as they weave an album that is rich in texture, colour and vibrancy. If that all sounds a bit muso, I'm not going to make an apology for that there are some albums where you feel like interpreting every note and every structure upon which they hang.

"Toras Dans" is one of those albums that sits inside your head conjouring visions that are, to use the word again, intense. You're absorbed by the images, lifted and dropped as appropriate. Annlaug has been described as Norway's best kept secret, well this album shows that they are prepared to share and share not only Annlaug, but also Rannveig and if they're willing to share, then it's our job to open our hearts to this album.

Neil King