Doesn’t it just, Johanne, we managed four seasons in a day here, including a violent storm which is probably heading your way I’m sorry to say.
Johanne(Jepsen) was in NMC in July with a poignant song, ‘Alt for dig’ (‘Everything for you’) which focused on the unusual topic of involuntary infertility and it was a launch pad for a campaign to create greater awareness of involuntary infertility and, most importantly, the physical and emotional toll it takes, through a series of releases and concerts.
Now she returns with a further song on the same subject, ‘Vejret Skifter’, one that is evidently very close to her heart. As she points out, it is the most widespread disease among women and couples between 25 and 45 in Denmark.
Johanne sings about how the change of weather and the change of seasons can affect our mind and inner mood. How the darkest time of the year can be experienced as one that pulls us down into melancholy and thoughtfulness.
The lyrics are very suggestive. At one moment she sings,
“I see them coming/ Thoughts I have long since driven away/They close around my body/Now I see quilts that won’t let go”, which reads like something out of The Exorcist. (That’s a Google translation by the way; I can’t vouch for its accuracy.
She explains the sensation as,
‘When I was undergoing fertility treatment, I experienced the dark time of the year, as a period when the sadness of not being fertile could overwhelm me. Like a storm, like black clouds that overshadowed the light in me and blew me away.”
The song is released on streaming services and as a video on 2nd November, and features the a cappella Momentum Choir in what looks like a genuine one-take enterprise.
This song isn’t as upbeat as the previous one but is equally as vigorous and it is delivered powerfully by both Johanne and the choir to the point where it takes on a gospel feel.
There was a moment on the video when I thought the choir was about to shift into Riverdance but fortunately that didn’t happen!
And the more I watch it, the more it looks more than a little Madonna-like.
This is a long-term project so expect more singles on the subject at the beginning of 2024, along with an EP and additional videos.
I’m a little wary of ‘overkill’ in this or any other project. How many variations is it possible to create on the theme? I recall the extremely talented Alex Nielsen (aka Alex Rex) who churned out two albums mainly on the subject of the sudden and tragic demise of his younger brother, to the point where compassion fatigue set in.
I hope that doesn’t happen with Johanne, because she has taken up the cudgels on behalf of many women and couples who don’t have a public voice in the matter and she deserves to be heard.
Find her on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092618155648
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johanne_musik/?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D
