Album Review: Osmo – Heaven Or Hell Is Just A State Of Mind
3 min read
Finnish hottie Osmo Ikonen, already a respected and highly sought after performer in his native homeland, has been steadily making a name for himself over her in the UK for the best part of the year so far, quickly solidifying his position as one of the biggest exports to be offered by the Finnish music scene.
With his catchy debut single Heaven or Hell helping propel the singer from obscurity to a life within the commercial pop arena the singer impresses with his snappy brand of big band tinted pop.
With Heaven or Hell generating quite a buzz for the multi-talented musician the time seems ideal for Osmo to unleash his debut record and that album, Heaven Or Hell Is Just A State Of Mind, is a punchy collection of versatile pop tracks that superbly represent the singers signature sound that is well worthy of infiltrating the UK charts.
On its first listen to the album it was quite difficult to pinpoint a pinnacle moment or standout track. Though each song on the collection Osmo offers us here is different and carries a life of its own, each song is also rather special in not only instrumentation but also vocal approach.
Whether it be Osmo’s ability to deliver a genuinely superb and sentimental piano ballad like Change, to offer us a syrupy slice of melancholic Jazz scented pop with Don’t Let It Show, which contains a gorgeous yet subtle string arrangement and could fit quite comfortably within the acoustic friendly walls of the Royal Albert Hall, or turn the heat up with uptempo, raunchy, big band numbers like Toy Soldier and the infectious Running Till The Rainbow Ends, Osmo knocks it out of the park. This is a singer that seems to have been soaked in talent at birth and has followed a calling to showcase the artistic performer that we are treated to on Heaven Or Hell Is Just A State Of Mind.
Throughout the record Osmo dabbles in a number of styles and genres. You Just Wanna Talk wades heavily in Soul and contains a backing from some female vocalists that allow the song to take off and create a perfect central filling to the album. House Of Cards is pure unadulterated pop, while the albums lead single enlists an orchestral backdrop as he thumps flawlessly through four minutes of catchy, optimistic power-pop.
Nearing the end of the record, Better Than Reality sits faultless as Osmo offers a track that musically could slot quite easily into a Ricky Martin album with the singers vocals sounding very similar to those of the Latin superstar.
As well as providing vocals to the album, his primary role, Osmo also puts his further musical skills to the test as he provides the bulk of the instrumentation to the record. Just take a look at the video for the singers debut single Heaven Or Hell to see what this guy is capable of.
Heaven Or Hell Is Just A State Of Mind is as good as debuts get and you can hear that a lot of work has gone into its creation. From its first beat to its final fade out its a record that truly delivers and one that will leave your toes tapping for hours afterwards.
::: RenownedForSound.com’s Editor and Founder –
Interviewing and reviewing the best in new music and globally recognized artists is his passion.
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