Somerset

Ilya's 2004 debut They Died For Beauty was overlooked. In fact, it was passed over so criminally that they were released from their Virgin contract soon after its release. Yet they were liberally showered with critical acclaim - you'll remember their Bellissimo from those Revlon ads - hailed as the best thing from Bristol for donkey's years. After two long years in the wilderness, are they jaded?

Brilliantly, they are not. Quite the opposite, actually: Somerset is the glorious delivery of all those wonderfully exciting promises they made the first time around. It swims in a thick fog of classic sensuality, the songwriting having eventually caught up with Joanna Swan's vintage, ethereal tones. They Died For Beauty's inconsistencies have been ironed out to phenomenal ends.

Ilya, it would seem, have no contemporary rivals: with the exception of certain instrumental outfits (GoTan Project, Stephane Pompougnac), nobody and nothing can touch their sparse-yet-rich arrangements; their delicately realised resolve; their antediluvian solutions to prevailing musical posers. It's almost as if they've been brought to us from the 1950's Parisian lounge scene, a crash course in all the essential transitionals thrown in along the way for good measure (Falling Everywhere's vaguely glam stomp; Wonderful's Clapton-esque guitar sob).

Somerset's opener September Rendezvous picks up where their Virgin efforts left off, replete with tantalisingly delivered continental lyrics, prudent verse and an opulent chorus that burrows gently into your subconscious, snuggling warmly next to memories of Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone and hair-raisingly beautiful artists of yesteryear. In The Valley joins all the same dots in a different order before Falling Everywhere wanders confidently into the fray, wielding - of all things - what appears to be an electric guitar and an effects pedal. It's an unorthodox move on Ilya's part, but it works. Oh boy, does it ever work.

The freshly-nurtured songwriting strength reaches an epiphanic zenith on Wonderful, a profoundly realised, softly touching piano-led love song the likes of which have not been heard for a long time. "If I fall lightly to the ground," asks Swan in her dulcet timbre; "Will you lie down and stay there with me?... Will you always be wonderful?" It's a question all too easily asked of a band given a new lease of life.

Whereas the mid-section marked the point at which They Died For Beauty fell away ever so slightly, Somerset's midriff is as toned as they come: Airborne's smokey café bass is the perfect foil for Swan's vocal flightpath; We Shone carefully ups the tempo with palm mutes, hi-hat riding and some over-dubbed harmonies that have to be heard to be believed; Winter In Vienna digs out the accordian and horns, lifting the band from the streets of Bristol to the cabanas of Havana.

And it doesn't end there: Somerset soars from ear-pricklingly good to unstoppably great; from four stars to five. Glory takes on the aforementioned GoTan Project at their own game and comes off favourably, while Juanita's skewed, insane trumpet solos lounge suggestively beside a seductive, Jessica Rabbit-like vocal track. Sealing the deal with an aural kiss, Sleepwalking propels Ilya's anything-to-hand attitude to new heights with a breathtaking mélange of double bass, capricious flute licks and some deeply inflected, throaty lines.

With their debut LP they made promises they couldn't quite keep. With Somerset, however, Bristol's Ilya have fulfilled their own prophecies and then some, meeting their most far-fetched expectations and, thrillingly, going even further. Without the slightest exaggeration, this is one of the decade's most devastatingly beautiful albums. Il y a un Dieu. Vraiment.

Review by Jack Foley / Indie London

ILYA are comprised of Joanna Swan and Nick Pullin and they specialise in deeply laidback music that recalls the vocal brilliance of Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald and Dusty Springfield.

The main reason for seeking it out - given its Internet-only release - is the astonishing beauty of Swan's classic vocals, which really take on a melt in the mouth quality, whether set against the jazz style of old New Orleans or classic prog rock guitar.

Ilya are, of course, previously known for their critically-acclaimed debut album, They Died For Beauty, which spawned the single Bellissimo that has subsequently featured prominently on world-wide advertising campaigns by both Revlon and Cacharel.

Their second album, Somerset builds on the success of that debut, drawing on many classic styles that seek to ring the maximum effect out of those breathy, dreamy vocals.

There are times when you can imagine their music providing a fitting backdrop to some of the European adventures of Sean Connery's '60s-based 007, or set against the smoky bar scene of high-society Paris, such is the rich imagery that is conjured from their music-making (and that's not bad for an outfit from Bristol!).

Some of the tracks are more of an acquired taste than others, yet there is absolutely no denying the distinctive quality of those vocals that ensure Ilya defy comparisons with anyone contemporary.

Opening track September Rendezvous kicks things off in sultry fashion, providing a dark jazz backdrop for Swan's vocals to seduce you, while there are some more sunshine melodies surrounding the follow-up In The Valley that recall the breezy style of California Dreamin'.

There's an altogether rockier feel attached to the lively Falling Everywhere, with its foot-stomping bursts of guitar and grittier vocal style. It gives way into a genuinely catchy chorus that invites a sing-along to emerge as one of the album's brightest moments.

There's more electric guitar on the tender, piano-based Wonderful, a dreamy love song that builds slowly with verses such as 'if I lose everything I have, if I break apart so easily, will you always be wonderful', before giving way into a beautifully intoxicating chorus that abounds with hope.

Airborne drifts blissfully back into the jazz era, slowing things down a notch and delivering another set of vocals to drool over, while there's a happy go-lucky, folksy appeal to We Shone, with its cute melodies and generally warm glow.

The rest of the album continues in similarly expressive fashion, with tracks like Glory proividing a shuffling style and vocals that hint at the deep, husky tones of Bassey. It's in stark contrast to the slower, more deliberate final tracks Sleepwalking and Still You Can't Say No that ease the album to its close in meticulous, slow-building style (the latter, especially, becomes a powerfully emotional listen).

It means that Somerset is an amazing listen that really does catch you off-guard with its ability to be different. Those that seek it out from Universal Digital won't be disappointed.

RoomThirteen.com

Ilya are Bristol based duo Joanna Swan and Nick Pullin, and 'Somerset' is their second album, which hopes to build upon the success and massive critical acclaim of their 2004 debut, 'They Died for Beauty'.

Many different styles are incorporated into this album, with no two tracks sounding quite the same. 'September Rendezvous' opens with Swan's deep, husky vocals; a muffled, muted electric guitar screams quietly behind the trippy, midnight feel of the dark, laid-back Jazz vibe, while the second track, 'In the Valley', goes down a more guitar-orientated route, with deep, elegant contemporary folk vocals almost reminiscent of later Joni Mitchell. Until this stage the tracks err on the side of smouldering background music, full of warm melodies, but 'Falling Everywhere' shocks slightly with its punchy swagger, big vocal chorus and a catchier, stomping melody, before breaking down into funky finger-clicking rhythms.

'Airborne' returns to the more echoing, laid-back jazz sound of earlier tracks, with hot trumpet and a melody that floats in the air while the vocals envelop you with their velvety tones. Meanwhile, 'We Shone' shifts again to a more up-tempo shuffle, coupling catchy, twinkling melody with harmonized whispering vocals.

'Winter in Venice' melts muffled, up-tempo drumbeats with more of Swan's elegantly haunting vocals and a distinctly European influence, which also seeps into the French-café sounds of 'Glory'. As the album heads towards a its conclusion, there's something beautiful but sinister in the mixture of gently ominous drumbeats and delicate, icy piano, while Swan's vocals soar to smooth new heights.

With its mix of chill-out and smouldering intensity, jazz fans, contemporary folk fans and maybe even Indie fans could easily find themselves captivated by Ilya's exciting mix of sounds and genres.

BADGER iTUNES

This record starts on familiar territory with September Rendezvous, franco jazz noir, then veers off into 'In The Valley', stunning 50's retro. Falling Everywhere defies catagorisation.There's something for everyone here, some latin freakout, some sweaty desert blues, all centred around the amazingly rich and throaty vocals of Joanna Swan.Gnarly pearls of guitar greatness and beautiful shimmering production dusts the whole.

www.ideabiografica.com

From Bristol, terra buona Very British con un prestigioso passato musicale. Quello più recente, girandosi giusto un nano-secondo alle spalle, è targato Portishead-Tricky e Massive Attack. Ebbene, molto probabilmente, abbiano trovato i degni eredi (se così si può scrivere) degli artisti sopra menzionati. Ilya con "Somerset" hanno saputo confezionare un lavoro sopraffino e splendido come i seni prosperosi di una bella donna. Canzoni da favola, qualcosa da raccontare ai posteri. Un evento meraviglioso, una beltà fuori dal tempo come "September Rendezvous" e "In The Valley"; trip hop frullato in salsa Pop contagioso ed operativo. Dopo "Dummy" (1994 - Portishead) altre Postcards provenienti da Bristol, Ilya con "Somerset". Voce suadente che rapisce, contagia e fa perdutamente innamorare. E' bello emozionarsi ancora. Mi stupisco, ancora una volta, quando riesco a piangere sentendo e captando questi segnali musicali. Troppo bello.

Q Review March 2004

Is there a Bristolian left who doesn't harbour ambitions of a torchy, cinematic bent? Ilya are the latest to go public, plumping for velvet-draped melodrama, orchestral swathes and even a Bond-theme finale. Though covering similar turf to massive Attack's Francophille accomplices Alpha, at least Ilya take things to pleasurable the edge of overkill.Happy And Weak fuses flamenco fervour trumpet solos and Middle Eastern vocal samples, while on the soaring title track, vocalist Jo Swan's sassy diva act goes the whole Shirley Bassey-meets Nina Simone hog. With jazzy AOR tinges of Sade on Bliss and Soleil Soleil, the coffee table crown is theirs for the taking.....Martin Aston

March 2004
Letter from, Hans...
Executive Director of SEAsian region of Virgin

I just HAD to write to you about Ilya........

It's almost midnight in Hong Kong right now and I am listening to this album that brings to mind everything and everyone from Scott Walker, Jacques Brel, Jobim, Ipenema, and Paris to James Bond, gitanes, jazz, blues, R&B and everything in-between.

And I guess that's the key- Ilya defies comparisons and does everything in-between. If there is old-fashioned, then she is a new fashioned chanteuse-and from Bristol.

If there is an EPK or music video or any onstage performances, I would love to see/hear it all. Cheers. I'll certainly do my best to pass on the message: Ilya est ici....And so is the Future.

Thankyou for sharing this brillient album with us all, including me. It's been quite a ( musical) trip.

Just wish I could work on this act......

Hans

Adam Sweeting
The Guardian April 24th 2004
Ilya live at Ronnie Scott's London

Weird and exotic things have a habit of tiptoeing up the M4 from Bristol,and the latest is Ilya. Part band, part high-art concept, their debut album They died For Beauty proved an instant intoxicant for critics.

Ilya's sumptuous track Bellissimo has just been bought up by cosmetics momolith Revlon for a world wide advertising campaign, and you sense that this is an outfit on a roll.

This show was a somewhat experimental toe in the water before Ilya hits the road in May, but the relaxed atmosphere at Ronnie's on a sleepy sunday night made a perfect fit with their languid beats and daring stylistic inventions. Maybe they set out with the intention of making life tough for critics, because their music comes close to being indescribable, there's something like trip-hop in there somewhere, but there's also Edmundo Ros-style dance music, cool jazz, modern jazz, Hungarian dances and grand opera.

The core of Ilya is guitarist/writer Nick Pullin, bassist Dan Brown and Singer Joanna Swan, with the sound filled out by extra violin, mandalin and trumpet, plus a devious pallette of samples.

Their "act" is just them in the process of making music, though Swan is one of the more striking vocalists you're likely to see. She stood centre stage in a black chiffon night gown with red feathery trimmings, hinting at a bottomless decadence hidden behind suburban net curtains. Her voice has a husky bloom to it that travels comfortably over the cracked rhumba of All For Melody or the Balkan -Hyspanic brew of Happy And Weak as if these sorts of hybrids happened all the time. In Quattra Neon, Swan held the microphone further from her mouth to unleash a strident contralto-ish tone Jessye Norman might have admired. Thanks to her bell-like diction, you could hear all the lyrics too-"Here in paradise dog's are sleeping on the ice". It don't mean a thing, but it swings.