Bottle - Eliza Carthy & Tim Eriksen

Track list:

1. Buffalo
2. Logan's Lament
3. Castle by the Sea
4. Cats and Dogs (You Seamen Bold)
5. May Song
6. Prodigal Son
7. Sweet Susan
8. Bottle
9. 10,000 Miles
10. Whitby Lad (Botany Bay)
11. Sailors Wedding/The Swiss Boy
12. Traveler
13. Love Farewell

Running time: 53 minutes
Released: 2015

More folk. A trans-Atlantic collaboration now. This only came out last year, but it seems longer ago. I recall not liking it much on first listen and not paying it any heed since. When Carthy is good, though, she is very good so I keep giving her slack and picking up releases. Eriksen I did not know, and have not felt compelled to investigate further. So - poor first impression, what does the second chance bring?

The combination of fiddle and a really fuzzy-sounding electric guitar opens us up. I find it discordant, the fuzz, growl and resultant lack of clarity on the guitar part creates an aggravation that I can't get past. The actual fiddling and the cadence of the tune are nice, and the duet works well, but that guitar buzz just blares out over the top of everything. Such a shame. Thankfully the start of Logan's Lament has a cleaner sound, though not crystal; Eriksen clearly likes a little distortion, a bit of grunt and growl, on his strings. Carthy is singing solo here, at least for much of it, but it feels a little like she is competing with the guitar rather than being supported by it. There is something basic and appealing about the guitar part when it crescendos though and the roll of the song is an interesting and engaging one.

The fact that a single guitar, the odd tapping as percussion and one and a half voices (Eriksen's voice is added in places) can hold the interest for the whole long run is a positive thing, and actually although the third track is more traditionally arranged (i.e. losing the electrics for a nice lyrical acoustic) the track is not as arresting. It is a short variation on The Outlandish Knight (a Bellowhead/Spiers & Boden favourite of mine), and frankly not anywhere near as engaging as the other versions I have. It is, however, a good example of how the tracks of this album are infused with American roots - the structure of the playing is noticeably different from the more British traditional playing, and it is in the meeting of these two styles that I guess this album was conceived.

What is the difference? It's really hard to articulate, and now the music has moved on I struggle to find a description that will work; the next song doesn't contain such passages as to shine a light on the differences. It is, again, quite stripped back and here I don't find the two voices meshing well. As with Logan's Lament, my impression is that the guitar part is not really well placed to support Eliza Carthy's vocals. The two threads seem to cut across each other too often. Happily, therefore, May Song is a cappella and (apparently) live. This last bit is given away by the applause as it closes. Carthy has a very distinctive voice and, as a fan, I would much rather it was given room to fill the recording as much as possible.

There is a sharpness to the fiddling in the American style I think, a particular edge and a particular rhythm to the tune and vocal pitch, but the distorted guitar baseline is back on Prodigal Son and disturbing my thoughts once more. This duo are better when that particular trick is kept in the locker. The other stark difference, I guess, is that the folk from across the pond tend to fill in space more, more notes, not that the Brits are always sparse with them, but there is often a smoother feel when fewer notes are bowed, and that appears to be embraced more in the British tradition. I'm typing out of my arse again, aren't I?

In truth I am finding this mostly disappointing - some of the tunes are too long, others too short. What they largely seem to share is a harshness to the tones - be it the buzz on that guitar or long drawn out fiddle notes. Its not a characteristic that endears the tunes to me. I do rather like the very sparse nature of the title track though - some tapping percussion and a tune mostly carried in the vocal, what sounds like tight strings clipping notes in support of a catchy progression. Best so far. 10,000 Miles I was expecting to be another Bellowhead crossover but the styling of the song is completely different and it is a separate tune entirely. The style of the guitar here reminds me of Martin Simpson, though I only have one of Simpson's albums, and that was one with a deliberate nod to the American traditions so perhaps that is not much of a surprise. I find this track too slow to be interesting, the vocal subdued along with the low pace.

A jauntiness is back with the fiddle on Whitby Lad, and a tinny guitar or banjo beneath it, muted and straining to produce notes at points, combines to give us a backbone to the song. The vocal here is much improved and the familiar roll of the stresses and relaxed notes is weclome. There are nice moments where the fiddle seems to be aping a melodeon or similar, short sharp breathy notes - its a real gem of a sound. There is a traditional feel to the opening of the next couplet too, the lyrics flow fast and the fiddle keeps them company. Part dance tune, part song it feels - the instruments could be let loose to encourage movement in the audience, but they hum fast enough simply supporting those words. As half expected though the second half loses the lyrics and lets the tune flow.

Winding down now, with the return of the growling guitar. Here it seems more fitting, combining better with the fiddle, but again I find the music at odds with the vocal. I really like the punchy rhythm, employing that dirty sound in a way that lets it shine rather than annoy. Suddenly I reach the final farewell, an unaccompanied duet that I find a little distant, slow and forgettable. Its three minutes feel more like five and close the disc on an unfortunate down note as it breaks a run of more enjoyable tunes. I think I end up keeping about half of this and lamenting what could have been - there were some clear moments of brilliance but overall the combination has missed as much as it hit.

Amok - Atoms for Peace

Track List:

1. Before Your Very Eyes...
2. Default
3. Ingenue
4. Dropped
5. Unless
6. Stuck Together Pieces
7. Judge, Jury and Executioner
8. Reverse Running
9. Amok

Running time: 44 minutes
Released: 2013

So after revisiting Radiohead, it is one of the things that Thom Yorke went on to do thereafter that follows. I do not recall really listening to this, picked up because it was Thom Yorke, at all. I have its genre recorded as "Odd" which suggests it was ripped without a straight face.

I have a feeling that Atoms for Peace includes some other famous musicians, but I cannot be bothered to look up whom they may be as their names did not stick once and they were not the cause of my purchase. Like Amnesiac this record is in the classic 40-45 minute range but the songs here are sightly longer since there are fewer of them. That could be a good thing or a bad thing... lets find out!

I am guilty in all my writing of overusing two things: ellipses and parentheses. The ellipsis on the end of the title of the opener feels similarly gratuitous. The song itself has a decent shuffle to it, and as Default starts I sense that a shuffling kind of rhythm is going to be a feature. I quite like that, not being averse to electronica... providing there is enough with it to provide structure and musical accompaniment. From the early numbers here there is probably just enough to keep things interesting. The beeps and clicks and whirring are offset by Yorke's ethereal vocal. All in all it evokes memories of Kid A and Yorke's solo album The Eraser but with a slightly more chilled edge - less urgent, more considered. Ingenue begins like it should be a Boards of Canada number, and continues much in that vein. This would make for a good sci-fi soundtrack, or maybe just the background music for a scene played out in a hipster hangout in a dystopian future. "This is how we get through the day."

Random imagery aside, I would not want to listen to this everyday, or in sequence. The effect will, I think, get too much by the end of Amok, which is not to say that I do not like it in small doses. I find the tracks to be well constructed, with just enough going on to maintain interest and a good contrast (though Dropped has too much of a hint of a Windows error message about it in places). However I worry that it all becomes a) much of a muchness, and b) overpowering after a while. There is definitely a groove here though, one to be enjoyed, but I am definitely erring on the side wishing each track was a touch shorter.

Unless seems to darken the tone, the drone seems to have taken on a sinister side, amplified by the vocal signalling disinterest - it commands to me an image of a violent crime just happened, ignored by all passers by; hopefully not the intention! I overcame the error chime thought to really like Dropped, but the tonal shift has me feeling really off about this track. I think there is more to it than a sudden click in of the prophesied boredom with the format, and it is unsettling enough a thought that I want to revisit the song later to check.  The darkness does not appear to pervade though, the overtone of threat is gone from the next track, but it is replaced with a distant uncaring air... a boredom. Me projecting, certainly; this is the prophesy kicking in, right?

I certainly feel there is now a disconnect between the music and me that goes beyond the coffee hit wearing off. I am not sure, but there seems to be less to later tracks - more space, less arrangement, more excuse for the mind to wander. It is really hard to tell whether that is my expectation of distance self-fulfilling or whether I am picking up on a genuine change in the construction of the tunes. Reverse Running reverses the slide a bit though, so I think there may be something to the thought. Incidentally, this is why this project is not about reviews; I am not putting it on my own head to listen again and again to be fair and accurate to what is there; it is going to take me long enough to listen to everything once just to capture the impressions it creates.

God, that sounded self-important given this a purely self-driven, self-rewarding activity. I am such an arse.

Oh, I liked that the last two tracks seemed to mix together. I am not sold by the opening of Amok, but the merge from the end of the previous tune was unexpected. It just needs to gain another layer or two to really get going but I am not convinced another layer is forthcoming. It hovers just under the threshold for full attention, which is really frustrating; as if there is a great tune there trying to come through but a layer of invisible blandness is actively stopping it from realising its potential.

That would be a really harsh note to end on, so here is another. Amok is a pretty good album, if a little indistinct to plough through in full. There was nothing unpleasant here but it only really hit high notes once. Nothing to be cut though, and not for sentimental reasons this time.