Robyn Carlsson has been a successful pop star in her native Sweden since 1994, when she released her first single at the tender age of 16. This self-titled fourth album was a smash hit in her homeland in 2005, but a combination of illness and record company problems prevented it from making any serious impact internationally. A shame, because female pop really doesn’t get much better.
This re-released version of Robyn features the original 14 songs, plus four bonus tracks. There’s a great mix of styles (pop anthems, rap, ballads, dance) and Robyn proves herself more than adept at all of them. The pulsing ‘With Every Heartbeat’ is an instant dancefloor classic, ‘Konichiwa Bitches’ and ‘Cobrastyle’ are as sharp and sassy as they come, and ‘Any Time You Like’ is a real tearjerking ballad. And there’s much more here besides.
Robyn has the potential to easily become as much of a star as Kylie or Britney. Though it’s unlikely that they’d dare end an album with a rude cover of Prince’s ‘Jack You Off’. So maybe she’s the new Madonna.

KEY TRACK: ‘WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT’