Switched On – Amongst The Pigeons: Exit Strategy (Peace & Feathers)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Daniel Parsons has been busy in the last five years! Under the moniker Amongst The Pigeons he has now notched up seven albums, three in the last two calendar years.

The number 7…or more specifically, 007…assumed greater importance as he was writing Exit Strategy, with a fascination developing around the world of living a double life, and themes of spies and secrets in particular.

He has hinted that this might be a swansong for this particular pseudonym, but perhaps that means plans are afoot to go even deeper under cover!

What’s the music like?

A constant in the music of Amongst The Pigeons is the melodic activity, which is there in abundance wherever Parsons lends his talents. Exit Strategy is no different, with a bubbling cauldron of inventive beats, propulsive beats and rhythms that – while tending to the Bond theme – also broaden out to address current political and social concerns.

These are often delivered with a dash of wit, as in AI Heart U, which manages to be both humourous and a bit creepy at the same time! Monalisa Smile also straddles that emotional meeting point, while Sugercoated Poison is initially playful but grows into an imposing track of some stature.

Watch The World Burn is an intricate rhythmic workout, with bubbling mid-range sonics, while to complement it Cloudbursts takes a step back, panning out to a much bigger space. Space is also found during A Thousand Possibilities, through electronic music of a more delicate persuasion.

Parsons saves the best until last, Not Without Danger starting with watery loops that flow easily while the rhythms get progressively bigger, working to an epic finish.

Does it all work?

It does. The personal, intimate construction of Amongst The Pigeons music makes it easy to relate to, while there is always a hook to hang your coat on!

Is it recommended?

It is indeed. For anyone who enjoys electronic music with character and meaning, this is an easy album to recommend.

For fans of… DJ Food, Plaid, Orbital, Hexstatic

Listen & Buy

Published post no.2,388 – Monday 9 December 2024

On this day…the premiere of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony

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On this day, 211 years ago, the premiere of Beethoven‘s Symphony no.7 in A major took place in Vienna, Austria.

Even within an output as consistently strong as Beethoven’s, the Seventh Symphony enjoys a special place. It is, quite simply, a wonderful piece – from the gravitas of its introduction to the release of purely positive energy once the first movement gets into its stride. The much-played second movement is a profound Allegretto with the implications of a funeral march – sentiments swept aside by the bubbling motifs of the scherzo. The finale is the crowning glory, a wholly affirmative statement that brings the symphony to a bracing conclusion.

And all this from a composer whose hearing was steadily worsening! Have a listen below and enjoy the power and poise of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under Bernard Haitink:

Published post no.2,387 – Sunday 7 December 2024

In concert – Eugene Tzikindelean, CBSO / Kazuki Yamada: Elgar Violin Concerto & Walton Symphony no.2

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Eugene Tzikindelean (violin, above), City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Kazuki Yamada (below)

Elgar Violin Concerto in B minor Op.61 (1909-10)
Walton Orb and Sceptre (1952-3)
Walton Symphony no.2 (1957-60)

Symphony Hall, Birmingham
Wednesday 4 December 2024

Reviewed by Richard Whitehouse

His tenure so far as music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra has shown Kazuki Yamada to have real sympathy for British music, hence it was no surprise to encounter this programme of works by Elgar and Walton, which itself proved (unexpectedly?) satisfying.

Following on his highly regarded performances of Nielsen and Walton over previous seasons, CBSO leader Eugene Tzikindelean took on Elgar’s Violin Concerto for a reading which was fine if not consistently so. The opening movement, in particular, lacked forward momentum in its restless first theme so that not enough contrast was established with its rapt successor – the highlights being Yamada’s vigorous handling of its orchestral introduction and a development as powerfully sustained as it was combatively rendered. Tzikindelean was more fully at home with the central Andante, its variously reflective and heartfelt melodies drawn into a seamless continuity enhanced by a notably beguiling response from the CBSO woodwind. Whether or not the most profound of Elgar’s slow movement, this is arguably his most perfectly achieved.

The finale was, for the most part, equally successful – this being hardly the first performance setting off at a suitably incisive tempo, only to lose impetus once the poised second theme has entered the frame. Not that there was insufficient energy to make the emergence of its lengthy accompanied cadenza other than startling – this latter proceeding with a suffused mystery and poignancy, not least in recalling previous themes, as finds Elgar as his most confessional; the movement then resuming its earlier course as it surged on to a decisive and affirmative close.

Although his later orchestral works have never quite fallen into obscurity, Walton’s tended to fare better in the US than in the UK. Not least the coronation march Orb and Sceptre – all too easily denigrated next to the opulent grandeur of predecessor Crown Imperial, but evincing a jazzy lack of uninhibition and, in its trio, a suavity Yamada clearly relished in the company of an orchestra that made benchmark recordings with Louis Frémaux almost half a century ago. Even the latter could not summon the pizzaz conveyed here with that trio’s infectious return.

Walton’s Second Symphony has been equivocally regarded ever since its Liverpool premiere, but Yamada clearly harboured few doubts as to its conviction. The opening Allegro unfolded methodically if remorselessly, its main themes subtly yet meaningfully differentiated not least in bringing out the compositional mastery of sizable orchestral forces. Nor was there any lack of pathos in the ensuing Lento, its ominous tones denoting music shot through with intensely ambivalent emotion. Much the most difficult movement to sustain, the final Passacaglia was no less successful – Yamada binding its successive variations into a tensile if never inflexible whole, while making a virtue of Walton’s premise that a 12-note theme can resolve effortlessly in tonal terms at the peroration: a journey as fascinating as its destination proved exhilarating.

Interesting to note this concert was ‘being recorded for future release;, given the Walton was undoubtedly an account to savour. Yamada is back with the CBSO next week in a programme which pairs Mozart’s penultimate piano concerto and Bruckner’s (unfinished) final symphony.

For details on the 2024-25 season A Season of Joy, head to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra website. Click on the names to read more about CBSO leader, violinist Eugene Tzikindelean – and the orchestra’s principal conductor Kazuki Yamada

Published post no.2,386 – Saturday 7 December 2024

On Record – Kim Deal – Nobody Loves You More (4AD)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

It’s hard to believe that this is Kim Deal’s first full solo album. She has hinted at music on her own since 2011, when she recorded Are You Mine? and Wish I Was, composed after her contribution to The Pixies’ ‘Lost Cities’ tour. Deal is an original Pixies member, playing bass guitar from 1986 to 1993 then reprising her role in 2004. Simultaneously she has fronted The Breeders, from their founding in 1989.

The album has a plethora of collaborators, from Breeders past and present (Mando Lopez, twin sister Kelley Deal, Jim Macpherson, Britt Walford), to Raymond McGinley (Teenage Fanclub), Jack Lawrence (Raconteurs), Savages’ Fay Milton and Ayse Hassan, and Steve Albini, who recorded a good deal of the record.

What’s the music like?

Full of depth, and with the odd surprise.

Deal has a slight husk to her delivery, her voice an instrument that can move between intimate, heartfelt asides and more brash statements. The big band blast of the title track is a case in point, where the bold brass complement her softer thoughts.

There is a most enjoyable wit and mischief to this album, too, delivered in the catchy Coast – not just in Deal’s voice but in the rasp of the accompanying trombone and slide guitar. The polar opposite of this are the slow songs Come Running and the heart-melting Are You Mine?, where serene strings tug at the emotions and Deal asks to “Let me go where there’s no memory of you, where everything is safe and nothing is true”.

On a more psychedelic tip are Crystal Breath, layered with distorted thoughts, the garage rock call to arms of Disobedience, and the boomy Big Ben Beat. The album ends with the winsome Summerland, with “music blowing in the breeze”

Does it all work?

It does. Deal’s versatility between styles makes for a tightly structured album, compressed but full of expression, emotion and musical twists and turns.

Is it recommended?

Definitely. Kim Deal’s solo debut is well worth the wait, containing a wealth of good music and letting us into all aspects of her world. One of the albums of the year for sure!

For fans of… Cate Le Bon, The Breeders, The Pixies, Joan Armatrading, Sonic Youth

Listen and Buy

Published post no.2,385 – Friday 6 December 2024

On Record – Mark Barrott – Everything Changes, Nothing Ends (Reflections)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Mark Barrott’s eleventh album under various guises is his most personal yet. It tells the story of the sad passing of his wife Sara in 2023, but at the same time recognises the incredibly positive effect she ultimately left on his life.

About the record, he has said, “This is a story. A story of life and ultimately death. A story of two lives coming together through a chance meeting on an aeroplane and spending the next 20+ years together via the craziness of Berlin in the late 90’s to Northern Italy, South America and finally the tranquility of rural Ibiza. The story of how life can change and be snatched away in the blink of an eye. But this is not a sad story, it’s a story of joy, love, grief and gratitude for what was.”

For the first time Barrott has harnessed choral and orchestral forces to tell the story. This was not the original intention, but once started the music continued to expand, its natural point of expression found.

What’s the music like?

Unlike anything Barrott has done before. If your way into his music has been through the pair of heat-soaked Sketches From An Island albums, this will come as a surprise – in a good way.

This is not an album where the orchestra and choir are used almost for the sake of it, to beef up the sound. Instead Barrott uses them sparingly, shading their contributions with a delicacy that suggests he’s been doing it for a long time in his head.

The music proceeds with a really satisfying blend of presence and poise, Barrott successfully embracing the orchestral medium with confidence. The muted trumpet on the second part of Butterfly In A Jar offers a beautiful hint of melancholy, while ushering in a track where the blend of jazz and electronic inflections is beautifully judged. Meanwhile Looking Through The Mirror Of The Soul catches telling reflective glimpses, its lovely flashes of light from the strings adding a mysterious edge to the music.

January 25th – presumably the day of his wife’s passing – is the most powerful track on the album, the shackles off as Barrott harnesses the choral power at his disposal. It has a slow but deliberate tread, and a full-bodied, widescreen sound laced with drama.

Ultimately, as Barrott says, the outlook is positive, and the beautiful weightlessness of The Light Is Still There looks upward to much better times ahead, its electronics floating on a warm breeze.

Does it all work?

It does. This is a moving testament from Barrott, one that traverses all kinds of emotion as the album naturally runs its course.

Is it recommended?

Very much so. This was clearly a cathartic album for Mark Barrott to make, and his heavy personal investment bears fruit in music of great beauty and emotional power.

For fans of… Hybrid, Sasha, A Winged Victory for the Sullen, Thomas Newman

Listen and Buy

Published post no.2,384 – Thursday 5 December 2024