Malena Laszlo - The Good Life — Scandinavian soul Album Review

An album with easy listening, jazzy cover versions isn’t where this website usually finds itself. However, there are times a release calls, and we have to answer. In this case, the question was Malena Laszlo‘s new album soulful enough for our ears? And the answer was a resounding yes.

The Swedish songstress is perhaps best known for recent Nobel Prize event performances impressing Swedish TV audiences no less than six times with her sophisticated poise and vocal strength.

You may have seen a diamond a thousand times, but the glistening ones still leave you in awe.

Malena’s classy style is therefore tailor-made for her album The Good Life. The 11-track collection features her interpretations of quintessential jazz classics and timeless soul gems. While her vocals may resemble similar high-calibre songstresses, her delivery is nonetheless vintage class – elegant, theatrical and ultimately superb. You may have seen a diamond a thousand times, but the glistening ones still leave you in awe.

The album contains huge songs such as Why Don’t you Do Right, Walk on By, and Mad About the Boy. Malena delivers all with the room-filling magnetism and aura of a Broadway star.

My personal favourite is her smooth and spiced up version of Michael Jackson‘s hit – I Can’t Help It. The arrangement on this Latin-jazz version is exemplary from the gentle beginning to the fluttering flute end.

Setting the ideal cocktail mood are the dreamy strings, horns and keys in Royal Blue. This instrumental track is strictly for heels and suits darling.

While Al Jarreau’s Mornin’ is caressed by her warm tones and a swinging beat. And listen out for her wonderfully sassy version of Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy.

You won’t need to skip a track here. The Good Life is an album as classy as the cover.
Just dress appropriately.