Bel Canto
Dorothy's Victory

Four years after the cold shower of "Rush," Anneli Drecker and Nils Johansen team up one last time, and even if the chemistry between the two is no longer what it was in their best days, this final attempt is an almost necessary act; it would have been truly sad for a very illustrious name like Bel Canto to end their story with a failure, and "Dorothy's Victory" from 2002 ensures the Norwegian duo a high-ending exit. Its beautiful and evocative cover (likely an inspiration for Elton John's "The Diving Board") perfectly represents the context of the work: the sea becomes a huge swimming pool, calm seas, serene skies, with the perspective of a great and enigmatic white cloud on the horizon, the right image on which to let the closing credits roll after years of searching and exploring.

On the sparse Italian Wikipedia page dedicated to Bel Canto, "Dorothy's Victory" is summarily dismissed and belittled as an album that "turns towards a certain lounge music without significant artistic peaks"; I could say that's a big nonsense, but I prefer to keep a higher profile, in line with the subject matter, and so I limit myself to expressing my total disagreement with this very simplistic and inaccurate definition, to use an euphemism, especially because it doesn't do justice to a broad musical offering, of great quality and exquisite craftsmanship. Anneli Drecker is the most inspired component of the duo, many of the solutions experimented with in her "Tundra" are revisited and reworked, and for his part, Nils Johansen returns to perform excellent work as an arranger and supporting guitarist, completely eliminating any reference to the cold and electronic sound of "Rush"; this album is certainly not a return to the origins, nor a rapprochement to the sounds of the more recent "Magic Box," with which it has little or nothing in common in terms of style and musical offering. The eclectic and refined "Dorothy's Victory" is a top-notch pop record, characterized by a very positive feeling and a particular "layered" conformation that makes it a unique specimen, just like all the other Bel Canto albums, as well as an interesting, engaging, and long-lasting listen.

"Dorothy's Victory" can be divided into three well-defined moments: a lively synth-pop at the beginning, a very reflective and elegant central part focused on jazzy-lounge atmospheres, and a conclusion enriched by varied ethnic nuances, with a magnificent grand finale. Inspired melodies are meticulously crafted, and there certainly are artistic peaks, regardless of what Wikipedia says, such as the long and fascinating "Night Lady" with its atmosphere of a muffled and smoky night club and a cold and sensual whisper, another masterful interpretation and demonstration of class by Anneli, the hypnotic and decadent languor of an "I'm Best'n Beihs", sung in Gaelic, minimal electronics and almost psychedelic reverberations, and the bittersweet surrealism of "Dorothy's Victory", an enigmatic and crepuscular acoustic ballad. The initial synth-pop triptych adds freshness and liveliness but also depth, with the refined and captivating midtempo "Foolish Ship", a perfect high-class pop song, dreamy and romantic in the most artistic sense of the term, introducing the dynamic duo "Feels Like I'm Already Flying"-"You Rock My World Tonight", danceable and charming rhythms just right, catchy and well-emphasized choruses, and Anneli more than ever a pop star and graceful.

Vivacity and brilliance are not exclusive prerogatives of the first segment of the album; even the last part of "Dorothy's Victory" offers high-quality pop moments, in a slightly more subtle form, like the playful childlike fantasy of "Polliwog (Happy Times Fly Fast)" and the refined and sensual electronic-soul-baroque mix of "Corals, Jade And Pearls", provocative and creative melodies, full of aftertastes and nuances, accompanying the listener to the epilogue, the last line of the last act of Bel Canto's story. "Ich weiss es ist ein traum", sings Anneli, and indeed a song like "Ladonia" (inspired by a curious real event) finds its strength in idyllic and utopian dreaminess; a classical melody accompanied by a harp that vaguely resembles the sumptuous "lieder" typical of the early Bel Canto, but with a more liquid and sensual approach; the result is an authentic swoon, a melodic perfection and breathtaking beauty hardly describable in words. The best way to close a story made of sounds and visions like Bel Canto's and a truly luxurious album, meant as superior sensitivity for beauty and good taste and not as opulence and ostentation; over the years, there have been rumors of a possible return of Bel Canto with new and very ambitious projects, but to date, it seems that these rumors have remained dead letters. There has never been an official breakup, and the future remains in the realm of speculation, wishful thinking, and hypotheses; it would be nice if Nils Johansen and Anneli Drecker decided to continue the story, but if not, with "Dorothy's Victory," they have ensured a more than worthy, extraordinary epilogue.