My holiday week continues! This
review comes from a secret bunker at an undisclosed location, accessible by
neither phone nor email.
Disc 848 is….The Garden
Artist: Ruth Moody
Year of Release: 2010
What’s up with the Cover? This is one of my favourite album
covers. I like the simplicity of it, and I like the colour scheme which is very
restful to the eyes. I think it would make a cool tattoo.
I also
love the art concept of thistles growing from a woman’s corset. It says “our
lives are like a garden, full of both beauty and thistles.”
How I Came To Know It: I’m a fan of the Wailin’ Jennys,
and Ruth Moody is one of them when she’s not doing solo stuff. When I saw she
had her own album out I decided to give it a shot.
How It Stacks Up: I have two Ruth Moody albums which is most of
them (apparently there is a solo EP from way back in 2002, but I expect it is very
hard to find). Of the two that I have (this one and 2013's "These Wilder Things" I put "The Garden" in top spot.
Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4
“The Garden” is just that; a pleasant walk through
one of those overgrown English gardens where you can get lost a little, but
never too much.
Of all the Wailin’ Jenny’s, Ruth Moody has the
purest tone to her voice; a breathy quality that is equal parts innocence and
mystery. She seems to know this about herself, and tends to write songs that dovetail
well with her voice. Every now and then I wanted a bit more ‘oomph’ out of
these songs, but generally I was happy just to soak in the warm tones.
While there are many guest musicians and background
vocalists (including appearances by fellow Jennys Nicky Mehta and Heather
Masse) Moody does a lot of the playing herself. In addition to lead vocals, she
plays acoustic guitar, banjo, piano, ukulele and accordion. Some people are
just gifted at picking up new instruments. Like her vocals, Moody’s playing style
on all the instruments is light and breezy. She always sounds relaxed, and
listening to her sing and play is like having a tall glass of lemonade in the
shade after a long day of working in the yard. She decompresses me.
The first four songs on the album have already
become some of my favourite folk songs.
The title track is a beautiful blend of Moody’s
voice and her banjo playing, and felt like a Wailin’ Jennys song, with a prayer-like
quality that calls you toward positive action.
“Cold Outside”
is an intimate song that is playful and sexy in equal measure. It would make a
fine companion to Heather Masse’s 2010 song “Mittens” (off her solo album reviewed back at Disc 209) as
songs that take the Canadian winter and turn it into a lover’s embrace.
“Travellin’
Shoes” is a classic folk wandering song, with a nice mid-tempo walking pace
to go along with it, and a bit (if only a bit) of a rock edge. “We Can Only Listen” starts with a
brilliant banjo riff and a nice harmony with Matt Peters, who is apparently so ‘not
famous’ I couldn’t find him on…the internet. Thanks to this blog entry future searchers will have better luck.
Unfortunately, the middle of the album doesn’t meet
the same standards of the first four songs. It isn’t that what follows is bad,
it is just that after those first four tracks I was expecting greatness and
ended up with just plain good.
Part of the challenge is the lack of dynamics in the
high end of the production, which lets the bass notes dominate and drain the
energy out of the melody. The exception here is “The Nest” at Track 8, which is buoyed by some fabulous fiddle
playing by Jeremy Penner but other than that not one of my favourites.
I did enjoy “Tell
Me” which Moody does in the style of an old forties or fifties crooner. Listening
to the song I had visions of her in a calf-length dress entertaining the troops
home on leave from fighting the Fuhrer. I would fight the Fuhrer for you, Miss
Moody.
…ahem….
Anyway, before the album closes Moody gives us one
more standout with “Valentine.” This
song suffers from the production a bit, but there is no stopping the intimate
soul-bearing vocal performance on this song, which speaks of love that is so
powerful it cannot be denied, whether it is right for the people swept up in it
or not. As Moody sums up at the end of the song:
“I must have been crazy
Lost in your blood-shot eyes
again
But love she marches in
And takes us like an army
now and then”
Overall this album speaks quietly and you have to be
willing to settle in and listen to get everything out of it. It is best heard on
a summer afternoon while sitting in a secluded garden gazebo. You may wish to
have a cup of tea while you’re out there.
No comments:
Post a Comment