Right now, it seems Europeans do it best. Just this July English soul singer Adele released her critically acclaimed and commercially successful sophomore album 21 and Swedish songstress Lykke Li is keeping up the momentum with her sophomore release Wounded Rhymes. Li's latest is a dark and haunting blend of 60s R&B influence and deep, melodic pop sounds. Wounded Rhymes takes a sharp turn from the breathy dance-pop on teenage musings featured on her 2008 debut Youth Novels. Li spent the last six months in sunny Los Angeles writing a haunting album full of the frosty Swedish winter. The singer's reinterpretation of 60s R&B through her poetic lyrics is all at once heartbreaking and heartwarming. On "Unrequited Love" the heartbreak is ever present in Li's voice as she emotionally and simply realizes love can sometimes be a one-way street. In the time it takes to find love and lose it (which can be two years or five minutes) Li's voice on Wounded Rhymes is seductively stronger which makes the longing in tracks "Sadness Is A Blessing" and "Love Out Of Lust" even more profound. The first single "I Follow Rivers" is a confident declaration with a melodic drumbeat. On "Get Some" takes pop straight from an 80s girl band. And instead of being the next pop singer to strip down to show her growth, Li on strips down her track "I Know Places" with just an acoustic guitar and vocals that sound like a folk altar call. While Li doesn't have the resounding best voice with Wounded Rhymes Li manages to take a homegrown sound and make it all her own. One more point for the Europeans.