BEWITCHING

With her second live album, A Night At The Symphony: Hollywood Bowl young Icelandic singer Laufey managed the enviable feat of topping two US charts simultaneously: Jazz and Classical. Where did this highly successful songstress spring from?

Laufey Lín Bing Jónsdóttir was born—along with her identical twin sister—to a Chinese mother and an Icelandic father on April 23, 1999 in Reykjavík, Iceland. She began learning to play the cello at a age eight and the piano even earlier.  By the time she was 15 years old Laufey had performed as a soloist with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. The young woman’s formal education in music continued at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she honed her skills in composition and performance, graduating in 2021.

Lauren’s 2021 debut E.P. introduced her retro jazz-pop style, but it was her second album, Bewitched, which brought her international attention. The album won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, a significant achievement in a relatively brief career.

Two years later, a live album with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra charted in both the UK and the US, encouraging a further foray into large scale concert recordings. Thus we have A Night At The Symphony: Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, released in a limited vinyl edition for RSD 2025.

This two-record (45RPM) set is an altogether grander affair than its live predecessor, featuring a major orchestra and an iconic venue. Some 17,000 fans packed the Hollywood Bowl that summer’s evening, fulfilling a long-held dream of the star performer. Of the fifteen tracks all but two were written or, more often, co-written, by the artist. With the L.A. Philharmonic providing a lush backing for her beguiling vocals, she sails through the concert effortlessly. American music trade magazine Variety gushed about her ability to blend jazz sensibilities with contemporary appeal while another review praised the concert’s role in introducing jazz to a new generation.

It should be noted that this is not the jazz of John Coltrane or contemporary trumpeter Yazz Ahmed. This is the jazz of Ella Fitzgerald dancing with the gentle swing of Frank Sinatra. It is lyrical, accessible and inviting, with nothing to challenge ears or ruffle feathers; it is indicative that the album topped the Classical as well as the Jazz chart.

A Night At The Symphony: Hollywood Bowl is squarely in the orchestral jazz tradition, but where it varies from the music of the 1940s and 50s is in the songs themselves. Laufey writes about social anxiety, digital age dating and loneliness, and introspection and self-worth. These are themes to connect with a present day audience and are an important part of what makes her unique—she is doing something old, but in a way that feels emotionally and culturally current. Fans eagerly await her new album, expected in the second half of 2025.

P.S. The giant double-sided poster inclued with the album is a stylish bonus.

© Bruce Jenkins—May 2025