Reviews
Artist:Twin Headed Wolf Album: Altarwise
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 12
Website: https://twinheadedwolf.wixsite.com/twinheadedwolf
Having been introduced to the extraordinary music of Twin Headed Wolf through their debut album recently, this latest album was "recorded, mixed, and mastered over a period of years between 2013 and 2017. This has been resurrected from the archives and has been sent on a time travelling voyage to this moment." This means much of the material dates to the same time as The Long Decay but is far fuller in arrangement. That debut was largely the unaccompanied voices of Branwen and Julie Kavanagh, where this has a variety of traditional instruments as well as sounds provided by Wheelbarrow, Chains, Spoonophone, Bike, Jug, and Radiator. On opening tune Shrines And Ceremonies these non-musical instruments provide an eerie backdrop to the more conventional singing.
Take a Hammer to the Old Love is an almost Atonal piece and feels like an ancient tune reinterpreted, but unlike the earlier album everything here has been written by the Kavanagh twins themselves.
The album was created in a more typical recording space than the Emanuel Vigeland Museum in Oslo, home to their earlier release. Although reading the notes that accompany Altarwise the recordings actually predate the Long Decay. Fourth song in, Martha, is an almost ordinary folk song in structure, softly picked guitar and their exquisite voices blending into a dreamy soundscape. Once your ear is attuned to the words, they have a far more sinister undertone. The last verse: "When it's time to follow the black horse. Head bowed and cap in hand. Remember it's only my body that's left me. I'm there in the lay of the land."
Howl is another set of lyrics to send shivers down your spine. "I howl cause I'm hollow. I scowl with the pain. I growl I won't grovel. While you prowl again." The voices weave their magic again with what sounds like clinking chains the only obvious instrumentation. The brief Take Me Away is almost American Gothic in its mood. Ghost of the Circus's off-key piano leads an instrumental piece that hints at whole other dies to their music that we haven't heard yet.
The album closes with Liar, the most substantial of the songs offered here. And shows that ethereal whimsy is not the only mode that Twin headed Wolf have to offer. Sadly, the duo no longer performs live, and the implication of their website bio is that this album draws a line under Twin Headed Wolf. That is a shame as their "unique, experimental, theatrical and surreal expression" is something we could do with more of.
Tim Martin
| Previous | Next |
|---|---|
| Cole And Ward: Blues And Other Truths | The Hanging Stars: On A Golden Shore |
Recent Reviews
- The Clarkes And Co:Save the Pangolin and Nine Other Love Stories
- Surrender Hill:Wild Country
- Simon Kempston:A Poet Or A Painter
- Kate MacLeod's Mind The Gap:Home Brewed
- Jason McNiff:10 Blue Songs
- Greg Hancock:Words Of Wisdom
- Chris Clark:Across A Carnival
- Adam Beattie:Home Fires Burning
- sundayclub:sundayclub
- The Lost Notes:Live At Symphony Hall
The Black Keys
Fatea Showcase Sessions
The Fatea Showcase Sessions are a series of downloads featuring acts that we've really enjoyed and think that more people should get the chance to hear.
Pirate is the current session and features 16 fantastic artists check out the website to find out more about them and download your copy
www.fatea-showcase-sessions.co.uk for all the artist information.