The story of Swedish duo Flora Cash begun with the meeting on Soundcloud, continued on Skype and it is still on. Shpresa Lleshaj and Cole Randall are not just music partners, but also love partners, and they are building their relationship in high intensity from the very beginning. The first EP Mighty Fine was released in 2012, and everything happened quickly after they have met online.
Following Made It For You EP and I Will Be There EP, this year we have finally got their new EP titled Can Summer Last Forever. Every now and then they have released some singles, then cover of Tim Buckley’s Song To The Siren, Ellie Goulding’s Love Me Like You Do and Mumford and Sons’ Hopeless Wanderer.
Considering that Scandinavia is full of high quality musicians operating in various genres, it is not strange that Flora Cash are a diamond. Their style is closest to indie folk, or to be precise, folktronic. Dreamy and chill songs wrapped in simple arrangements leave impression of clear expression and easy creation. Shpresa and Cole switch vocally, so the effect is even more glorious.
Collaboration between the two of them flows naturally, so their soft vocals sound candid and approachable. The title question whether the summer can last forever fits the concept of the album perfectly. The music is an expression of summer and warm atmosphere that never turns to lethargy. A dose of melancholy is to be felt in few songs sung by Shpresa.
Although innovative is nowhere to be found, the touch of invention is omnipresent. Flora Cash connects folktronic and dream pop in a fresh manner. In the end, they sound more Scandinavian than American, just because of that intersection of light and melancholy. Flora Cash are not drowning in the monotony of the sound. They play with music possibilities, and they manage to sound sparkly, attractive and sophisticated.
It is tough to recognize dominant style. It’s as If they combined various subgenres and put them together in a personalized mix. For Someone is the intimacy pinnacle of the album, with vocals complementing each other, while Atone is a melancholic fairytale. Closing track Pharaoh shows the lightness in the duo. Nightmare proves how effective is their technique of crossing genres, while Down On Your Knees brings Ben Howard to mind.
This is a phenomenal EP, especially for winter days. What a refreshing duo!
