Within the melodramatic and rather iterate tendencies of pop culture, Icelandic-Chinese singer and songwriter Laufey Lin Jónsdóttir, more commonly known as Laufey, adds an anachronistic touch to the industry with her traditional jazz compositions. The artist had started to become more recognized after the release of her latest album, “Bewitched: The Goddess Edition,” containing 18 tracks that embody romance and tension within a neoclassical frame. Though the album is in no particular order, each song describes a different situation as she reminisces about her experiences. Laufey’s “Bewitched” is a personal memoir of her past lives, as well as her musical and cultural exploration that led to her unique music style.
“Letter To My 13 Year Old Self”
“I’m so sorry that they pick you last
Try to say your foreign name and laugh
I know that you feel loud, so different from the crowd
Of big blue eyes, and long blonde hair, and boys that stare
But, baby, know that
You’ll grow up
And grow so tough and charm them
Write your story, fall in love a little too”
This is by far one of Laufey’s most heartfelt songs within the album as she addresses the worries and struggles of growing up. She acknowledges her own faults for feeling insecure about her appearance and mixed-race, but she also acknowledges the positive moments in finding love and becoming a successful artist. Many listeners, myself included, embrace the bittersweet nature of the lyrics with the message that, “everything will be okay.”
“Bored”
“Bet you didn’t know you make me cry
Cause you’re so self-possessed
Charming at first but you’ve made me depressed
So I’m leaving in the morning
Cause I’m bored
Bored of this love
Oh, I’m bored
Bored of this talk
And maybe you’re just way too plain to be interesting
Baby, keep talking’ but nobody’s listening
Don’t mean to walk out the door
But baby, I’m bored”
“Bored” is a new addition to her original “Bewitched” album that was released in 2023, describing the feeling of being in a relationship with someone who doesn’t talk about anyone but themselves. It alludes to the exciting feeling of meeting someone new, but the eventual dissatisfaction when you realize that you created a false ideology of them in your head. She perfectly captures the desire to seek fulfillment elsewhere while not being able to admit the truth to your partner.
“It Could Happen To You”
“Keep an eye on spring
Run when church bells ring
It could happen to you
All I did was wonder
How your arms would be
And it happened
And it happened
And then it happened to me”
This song is one of the many covers that Laufey has recorded by Chet Baker, an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist who was popular in the 1950s. Though she is known for her classical take on music and references to Baker, she pays homage to traditional jazz through this song, as the two artists are some of the several jazz singers that have covered this song. The song describes how love is unpredictable, and that one should stay open to all the opportunities that they might encounter
“California and Me”
“Left me and the ocean for your old flame
Holding back my tears, I couldn’t make you stay
Can’t quit this, so damn wicked to leave
California and me”
This was one of the first tracks that Laufey teased on an Instagram live before the album was released, which gained a lot of popularity due to the song’s dramatic bridge and it being her second collaboration with the Philiharmonia Orchestra. It embodies the heartbreak of a failed relationship, and the emotions that often accompany it. Laufey explores the complexities of love and writes about the struggle to move on after a separation, despite the great emotional toll that it had on her heart.
“While You Were Sleeping”
“I don’t recognize myself
I’m writing a love song
Who’ve I become?
There must be something wrong
I trace it all back, three-thirty AM
That night, something turned in my heart
While you were sleeping, I fell in love”
This dreamy track describes an almost “love at first sight” moment, where Laufey realizes out of the blue that she is truly in love. The song is light and easy to listen to, perfectly describing the weightlessness of falling for someone. It describes the effects that love can have on a person, subtly altering their every-day actions and behaviors.
“Goddess”
“Were you surprised by me
When you took me home?
When the glamor wore off
Reduced to skin and bone
I can’t even tell
Who you want to know
I’m a goddess on stage
Human when we’re alone”
This song is one of the most personal and honest on the album, as Laufey describes the idolization of her image as an artist that often overshadows herself as a person. The sudden switch of tone during the bridge demonstrates her anger and desire to be seen, as well as the heartbreak that is felt when she realizes the other person does not truly love her for who she is. Laufey described how she wrote this song alone at her piano after realizing the consequences of fame on her overall image.
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Though the main notes of Laufey’s albums are jazzy, upbeat, and romantic, this album follows this pattern while exploring the depths of her feelings through her differing melodies and lyricism that cannot be disregarded. Her music appeals to all generations that desire to hear nostalgic tunes with meaningful lyrics that depict familiar situations. This album recognizes her heartbreaks, sufferings, blissfulness, and all of the emotions that make her human.
