Trollheart

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Title: The Rain
Artist: Ghazal
Genre: Classical/World Fusion
Artist Reaction: Never heard of them so shrug
Genre Reaction: Not at all bad. I like classical and I can certainly dig some world music
Familiarity: Zero
Suggested by: grindy
A Little Background: Very little really that I can dig up. Ghazal appears to be a three-man outfit, helmed by Kayhan Kalhor, who plays something called a kamencheh, which from the picture appears to be a cross between a lyre and a violin, and is an Iranian traditional instrument, Shujaat Khan, who plays the sitar and Swapan Chadhuri, who plays the tabla. Their style is said to be a blend of Indian and Persian classical music.
Expectations: Not really sure, but this could be at least a Like I hope.
Overview: Their fourth album, The Rain was actually nominated for a World Music Grammy in 2004. Oddly enough, despite the above, tabla player is listed as Sandeep Das, so perhaps a lineup change for this album? It only has three tracks in all, but none of them run for less than fifteen minutes, so the album still comes out at around 53 minutes in total.

Fire: The unmistakable sound of a sitar, always, in my mind, synonymous with Indian and Eastern countries like that is joined by what sounds like a violin, and therefore I’m assuming this is the first we hear of the kamencheh. For someone completely unversed in this kind of music the traditional images appear in my mind, of deserts and camels and rolling dunes and dudes swathed in white flowing robes with dark, piercing eyes, the sun a burning orb in the clear, metal-blue sky above. Yurts and oases are other images, all I’m sure very stereotypical, but this is what comes into my mind. Very relaxed and gentle as it begins, a certain shimmering in the music which reminds me of snake charmers (stereotype 101, I know) but one thing certainly emerges very early, and that is that these guys are not just adept on their instruments, they’re masters of them.

Vocal now comes in, very low and I must say soothing, almost a lullaby, gentle and reassuring. This is by now almost five minutes into the eighteen-minute opening track. Some great interplay now between the instruments, the tabla coming more into the mix, vocals dropping out for the moment. That kamencheh is just a beautiful instrument I must say, and the sitar complements it so well. I don’t think we’re about to get any shredding, but the guys can make both sitar and kamencheh rock when they want to. A little more vocal in the tenth minute - these guys are definitely believers in the axiom of less is more, at least when it comes to vocals; Shujaat Khan knows just when to sing and when to let the music do the talking - then we’re off on a pretty frenetic instrumental call-and-response between sitar and kamencheh, with the tabla looking on wisely.

Three paragraphs, and only the first track? You’d better believe it! This album does not deserve a few pithy lines, and in fact I doubt that would even be possible. It’s quite likely that I will end up writing as much as, or even more than I wrote for Beefheart’s thirty-odd tracks as I do for these three epics. The soundscapes these lads weave between them are nothing less than spellbinding, and to draw on yet another cliche, they have the power to transport you to a foreign land and make you feel instantly at home there. Really speeding up now as we head into the final few minutes, and by Allah it doesn’t seem like it’s been eighteen! Big finish and we’re onto track two. Hey, sounds like that track was live! Maybe all of this album is.

Dawn: Kamencheh opens this one on a low, mournful sequence as the rest of the instruments hold back for now. This is the shortest (!) track, at just seconds under fifteen minutes, and now the sitar is taking over, running off a kind of Bachesque fugue there, then quieting right back down again as the kamencheh comes in hard (ooer!) and re-establishes its mastery and domination of the track. If you’re wondering why I’m referring to the instruments and not the musicians, there’s a very good reason: I’m a lazy bastard and don’t want to keep writing out those Indian names! Sitar now pushing kamencheh to one side and saying “I’ll take this one, son,” and doing a hell of a good job on it. To be perfectly honest, though they’re probably there I can’t hear much of the tabla and this piece seems almost percussion-free so far, which is the sixth min - oh I hear it now. Very hollow and almost like tapping on metal pipes or something, and now the singing begins, again very low and soft, almost muttered or hummed before it picks up in strength a little.

This is without doubt beautiful, ethereal, almost spiritual music, and I think though it’s a little hard to review it, it’s certainly going to be harder to stop listening to it. To paraphrase Monty Burns: is all Persian music this wonderful? And again it appears to be live, though you can only tell by the applause (very much deserved) at the end. Of course, it’s not the kind of music where you would expect to have people shouting and whistling and clapping. Calls of “Yeah!” or “Play Eternity!” would not, I think, go down well in this environment.

Eternity: Opened this time on the sitar, though it doesn’t take long for the kamencheh to join in. This is in fact the longest on the album, almost twenty minutes long. All the instruments coming together really well here, but so far (six minutes and counting) no vocals. And just as I typed that someone spoke. Just a word I think. Still no singing yet. A more uptempo piece this, I feel, kind of bouncy and joyous whereas the last two have been more restrained and kind of elegant, a real sense of peace and tranquility about them. There’s that voice again. If this is, like the other two tracks, live, then maybe they’re just talking to each other occasionally as they play?

Twelve minutes now and still no vocal. I’m not complaining; not that the vocal is unwelcome, but the music is just so damn good that it survives on its own. Singing is a great bonus, but I’ll take this. And it’s turning out to be the best track too. Out of three, I know that’s not saying much, but given the length of each track and how absolutely not a second of either even came close to sucking, I think that it is quite an achievement. As we head into the seventeenth minute I feel it’s safe to assume there will be no singing on this track. Stunningly superb even so. A real workout for the guys: bet they were sweating after that. Rain indeed!



Conclusion: Talk about someone opening your eyes! For some reason I assumed grindy’s selection would be black metal or noise rock or experimental or some mad thing. I was certainly relieved when I read who Ghazal are, but there was still an element of maybe, will this be boring? Hell no! Best pick so far. I know there’ve only been two, and the first I already knew of, but top marks g-man!

So, Love or Hate? Total True Love here.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Neapolitan

As promised: Gang of Four - entertainment! See no Frownland & Neapolitan conspiracy there. N.B. this post is for later, when cycle through all the other members' requests and begin: Love or Hate Reborn - Round 2
Gang of Four - entertainment!

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Trollheart

I'll take it, but I'd prefer everyone wait till their selection has been done before posting their next one. Otherwise I'll be forever going back and forward, trying to see who posted what when.

So, any more suggestions from anyone who has already an album in the queue, hold off please until your album is done.
Thanks.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Tristan_Geoff

Can you add my band's album? I think I gave you the link earlier

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Emo/Pop Punk Journal

Techno Journal

Neapolitan

OK will do. I was going to wait, and let it be a surprise, but then there was this conspiracy theory floating around involving Frownland and me over the Trout Mask Replica album recommendation. I wanted to let you know I was on the level, and wasn't conspiring with Frownland. So that why I posted it so soon.

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grindy

Very glad you enjoyed Ghazal!
I was relatively sure you would but then again it might have been too exotic, the tracks too long and it all too (gasp) live.

Next one:
Illusion Machine by Bret Higgins’ Atlas Revolt
https://open.spotify.com/album/3L1bg...apNkF7EKy?nd=1

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A smell of petroleum prevails throughout.

Trollheart

Yeah, probably Trollheart circa 2012/13 might have; he was an impatient, intolerant bastard. They'll never find his body though.

No I really enjoyed it end to end, not a bit of it I didn't. Yer man has such a soothing voice, and that kamencheh? Just beautiful. Thanks for introducing me to this music.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Title: The Invisible Comes to Us
Artist: Anna & Elizabeth
Genre: Folk/World/Country
Artist Reaction: Never heard of them so neutral
Genre Reaction: No problems here
Familiarity: Zero
Suggested by: Frownland
A Little Background: Anna Roberts-Gevalt and Elizabeth Laprelle are an American duo who specialise in integrating traditional folk music, Americana and especially Appalachian music with experimental techniques. Anna plays banjo while Elizabeth sings and is a multi-instrumentalist.
Expectations: The word “experimental” always worries me, but I don’t fear too much that I’ll hate this. I’m going for a hopefully pretty strong Like.
Overview: This is their second album, and no, I have no idea what the title means, though it sounds vaguely spiritual or religious.

Jeano: Starts acapella, very haunting, reminds me a little of Suzanne Vega, then deep organ sighs in, and Anna and Elizabeth begin to harmonise, which is very nice indeed. Can’t find much in the way of details on the album but it sounds like maybe horns and some sort of bells being added in, which gives an extra layer to the music. Fading out now on sort of oriental-style chimes. Very nice start.
Black Eyed Susan: Darker and more brooding this time, with heavy, sullen drumbeats and the banjo leading the tune, organ in the background kind of, then that all fades out and we’re left with the vocal, solo this time, and banjo, sort of a distant rolling percussion which also fades out. One of the longer songs on the album, this runs for just over five minutes. Nice sort of stuttering effect, which sounds like someone crumpling up tinfoil or static on the radio. Fits in well.
Ripest of Apples: Led by banjo again this time, a softer vocal with a kind of more upbeat tone that the last two tracks, sort of a country feel to this. Drums get very insistent and powerful here near the end.
Irish Patriot: First time since the opener we hear the two ladies sing together. They should do this more. Another droning organ complementing them, not a carbon copy by any means of “Jeano” but quite close in structure. Some sort of taped speech now, getting a little confused, with a swirling keyboard line and now alto sax, which pulls it back on track.
John of Hazelgreen: And more vocal harmonies, almost acapella but accompanied by soft tripping banjo, and sounds like there might be flute in there too. Nice.
Woman is Walking: Pure acapella as the two girls harmonise. It’s short, so I hope it stays like - no, there’s organ and some small percussion coming in now. Well it’s still really nice; I just would have preferred, for such a short track, them to perform it acapella.
Virginia Rambler: Basically acapella again but just one voice this time, with some sporadic percussion behind her. If I assume that to be Anna singing, then Elizabeth has now joined her, and there’s a droning organ adding its effect too.
By the Shore: Sounds like Waits does folk for a few moments, then the organ slides in (oo-****ing-er!), the vocal fast and sort of echoed in delay (not sure if it’s the same voice, probably not). I’d say this is the first one I haven’t really liked. Reprises the chorus from “Woman is Walking” for some reason. I guess this is where they use the experimental technique, lots of odd and discordant effects, doesn’t really work for me personally.
Farewell to Erin: I read recently that Appalachian music originated when settlers arrived from Ireland, Scotland and England, so it’s not such a surprise to hear them singing about Ireland again. Kind of adds an extra dimension to the album for me, I guess. I can’t say I’m mad about the vocal here though, which seems to almost mirror the drone synth, itself at times sounding like badly-tuned bagpipes. Very discordant and therefore not music to my ears. This also happens to be the longest on the album, almost six and a half minutes. Just my luck.
Mother in the Graveyard: Like this one a lot better. Sort of a slow, bouncy banjo with the two ladies harmonising, which is really nice.
Margaret: Starts out with an annoying announcement. Not sure about the point in that, then some crackly recording of an old song with I think the girls adding some of their own musical accompaniment to the old recording. Clever, but perhaps too much so. Doesn’t do anything for me. At least it’s short. Bad end to a decent album.


Conclusion: Certainly don’t hate it, but it’s probably not something I would come back to, and I wouldn’t be searching out any more of their material. There’s nothing necessarily bad about it, but the combination of kind of weird electronic effects, recordings and voices over folk music doesn’t really work for me. Two lovely voices, two very accomplished musicians, but even without the experimental stuff I’d probably still be saying, nice but that’s about it.

So, Love or Hate? I’ll give this a Like. It’s not a strong one though. Whatever that means.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

The Batlord

I keep having to go back to the OP to figure out what the colors mean cause they're arbitrary.

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