Too Late for Edelweiss

by The Tallest Man on Earth

Overview

Most of the time, if a singer/songwriter records an album of covers, it suggests they're either short on ideas or they're just goofing off. For Swedish tunesmith Kristian Matsson, better known to fans as the Tallest Man on Earth, his 2022 album Too Late for Edelweiss seems to fall into the latter category, though it was clearly a productive form of play rather than laziness. The album collects ten interpretations of songs from other artists that Matsson recorded in his home studio, and the set list is diverse enough to include tunes from the songbooks of Ralph Stanley, Bon Iver, Lucinda Williams, Yo La Tengo, and the National, among others. While Matsson adds just enough home studio trickery to keep this from being just one guy with his guitar (or banjo) in his living room with occasional washes of electronic accompaniment, these performances are purposefully stark and simple. The focus is on Matsson's voice throughout. As an interpretive vocalist, he handles these songs with skill and assurance; his versions of "In My Life" and "Fairest of the Seasons" won't make you forget John Lennon or Nico, yet he puts enough of his own personality and emotion into them that they stand on their own, and he adds a ghostly touch to "Lost Highway" (best known in its recording by Hank Williams) that honors the song's roots as well as bringing it into the present day. Too Late for Edelweiss was originally available only at the merch table at the Tallest Man on Earth's shows, and that suggests a proper context for it -- this is clearly a labor of love and a bit of fun that's best heard by Matsson's loyal fans rather than being regarded as a major release in his canon. That said, it documents a fine singer putting his spin on some songs he clearly loves, and if you like the Tallest Man on Earth's originals, you should find this set of covers pleasing. ~ Mark Deming

Product Details

Release Date:	08/18/2023
Label:	Anti-
UPC:	0045778796717
Rank:	16067

Tracks

1. For Sent for Edelweiss
2. Metal Firecracker
3. Little Birdie
4. Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye
5. Blood Bank
6. Tears Are in Your Eyes
7. Fairest of the Seasons
8. Pink Rabbits
9. Lost Highway
10. In My Life

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Tallest Man on Earth   Primary Artist