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Heidi Mortenson is a Danish musician whose eclectic range of influences include Nina Simone, Ani Difranco, Prince, PJ Harvey, The White Stripes, Sun Ra, Coco Rosie, Kevin Blechdom, The Knife, Aretha Franklin, The Gossip, Jamie Lidell, Courtney Love and Madonna, to name but a few. So it’s not surprising to hear her debut album doesn’t pigeonhole itself into one particular genre. Described as electro, sex, hip hop, pop, punk rock, rap, soul, electronica and funk, Mortenson has created a cacophony of sounds that ironically, seems to work. A one woman effort (Mortenson wrote, played, mixed and produced the entire record on her label Wired Records), ‘Wired Stuff’ is a strange record, for lack of a better word. The front cover gives an indication of what Mortenson may be like. Wearing a straightjacket, she seems to be one of those eclectic types that appear to be not all there, and this more than often tends to benefit the music.
Starting off with the sample heavy ‘I Just Know’, Mortenson sounds like she has channelled the Presets. Her sweet vocals contrast with the lyrical content. “I don’t know, what the fuck is wrong with me / I just know that something ain’t right”. Here she laments not being able to say goodbye to a relationship that was over a while ago. “Workin’ On It’ sees her trying to work through a troubled relationship. “…and I believe it’s magic when you spell me with your words / and I just don’t find a way to separate the sky from the birds / but I’m workin on it”. With samples that sound as if they’ve come from an 80’s video game, Mortenson suddenly appears to have the persona of an emotionally undeveloped child.
By now the listener realises that the songs seem to flow together in a narrative. On ‘And Shut Up And…”, Mortenson shows that’s she’s not the demure little girl that her voice seems to suggest. “Heidi doesn’t say please / (she drops her pants to her knees) / and you come cause Heidi says come / and you come cause Heidi says come”. Out come the claws on ‘Player’, when Mortenson hits back at some guy (or girl, even this isn’t clear) who has played her. “You’re a bad-ass bitched-out britch-on motherfuckin’ limpcunt ruthless egotistic scattered lowdown selfish cheating trifling player”. The message here is clear. Don’t fuck with Heidi. Bordering on the extreme side of weird, Mortenson comes up with ‘Surfer Grrl’. Quite possibly the weirdest song on the album, she forces the listener to question her sexuality. “…by the way I photographed myself in your underwear, cuz you left them there lying on the floor”. The underwear in question belongs to the surfer grrl. What this means is anyone’s guess.
Although disjointed at times, it is a solid debut that would have benefited more from a clearer focus. But perhaps that is the point. Knowing the musical direction one is going in kind of takes away the surprise element. Not knowing how or why Mortenson chose this particular beat, sound or lyric is half the fun. However at the same time, the record sounds a little clichéd, as if Mortenson is trying too hard to be different. I suppose attempting too many different sounds could water down the effect she is trying to have on the listener. Suitable for lovers of electro and experimental music. Everyone else would just be confused.
