Mysteries Unfold

Take a deep breath before playing Tassignon’s solo debut Mysteries Unfold, the waters run deep ahead. After several decades working in jazz, theatre and experimental music, the prolific Berlin-based singer holds a wealth of experience. Here she presents a brave vision, an album composed almost entirely of her own voice, with the hope to transport her audience ‘to another place, somewhere outside of this reality, where time doesn’t exist.ʼ

As we dive into opener ‘Guby Okayannie’ the new vocal reality folds around us, a thick wash of overtone, vibrato, multipart harmony and reverb. Tassignon begins a sedate delivery of Yuliy Chersanovich Kim’s titular modern Russian folk song, before drifting upwards into more vocal collage with clamourous utterances and shrieks. Brevity is found with ‘Don’t Be So Shy With Me’, a fun vamping number that Tassignon imparts with some sass. But elsewhere the feel is impressionistic, melancholic (‘Jolene’ and ‘Descending Tide’), wild (‘La Nuit’) and occasionally a little over sentimental for this listener. All said, some serious credit must be given for the intricate arrangements, vocal versatility and creative vision conjured.