Also released in September 2018, but on Navigation Records, this
was the second sample CD received in August 2018 recorded by by a
quintessentially English, female folk singer. Unlike the Kelly Oliver
one,this is a debut album Comparisons are odious, but listening to
them back to back was an interesting experience and raised some
interesting contrasts. She is also on Tour to promote the
launch,mostly far afield, but can be seen at Leicester in November.
As
with the Kelly Oliver album Sam Kelly has his imprint stamped all
over this one also. He produced it, in partnership with Jacob
Stoney and some of the Lost Boys turn up again too. There are
supplementary vocals,banjo,cello,melodeon and guitar. Jacob
Stoney,Tom Moore and Josh Clark (who also mixed and mastered) add
their musical two penn'orth also. ( What busy chaps..how do they ever
find time to record
themselves, or tour?). Recorded in Truro and Bath, it has West
Country stamped all over it. (Even if it is watermarked so you can
only see it when holding it up to the light. And even then,like the
enigmatic, elusive quality of the album itself-not everyone can see
it).
Already critically acclaimed by some
folk journalists, Namer of
Clouds follows an E.P.
Released in 2016. It is more mainstream that Traditional,though its
roots are indisputably maritime and rural it is essentially
acoustic. The overall impression is of a pretty little
piece,prettily written and prettily sung. Many of the tracks are more
poems set to music than songs. And Kitty is a decent poet who
conjures up some decent imagery and creates some effective sound
pictures .
That said, Kitty has put a lot of
research, travel and thought into collecting arranging and composing
these songs. An eclectic and mysterious collection of work which,if I
possessed a clifftop cottage,would have seen me gazing out to sea and
watching the revolving glow of a faraway lighthouse as I listened.
Given the timbre of her voice I was
rather hoping that “Seventeen”
would be the Janis Ewan
version,but nine of the eleven tracks on here are original. The
production is high quality,as one might expect from the Kelly stable.
Lots of fade-ins involving “Found Sound” effects as on
“Starling Song,”
“Morgan's Pantry”
and “Inversnaid”
(Words
to the latter by Gerald Manley Hopkins).
The atmospheric “Sea
Silk” was
co-written by Sam and Kitty with
native Sardinian mutterings,mysterious chuckling and wave noises sandwiching
the vocals. There is much multi-tracking on the album,and a lot of
subtly mixed harmonies which add to the overall ambience.
“Man and Friendship”
has a folksier feel to it than the rest of the album and is worth a
second hearing.
In
fact, it is all worthy of a second hearing. “Namer of
Clouds” is harder work
than the Kelly Oliver album-but gradually, it grew on me too. It has
been described as “cerebral
and classy” and I suppose
that means you have to listen carefully when so much is going on
lyrically and musically. Listening to it made me think of The
Somerset Levels even before I read that the cover photo was taken on
those very marshes of Avalon. So her music made connections in my head-and
that's what any writer and performer aims to do, isn't it?
Finally, an additional House Point for
the presentation. The CD I received was in an attractive three way
gate-fold sleeve,with the CD itself (a picture disc) cosily perched in
an envelope in the middle. The artwork was attractive and the
accompanying notes were very informative.
