Secret Eye
Long Live Death : To do more than God..to die (US,2004)***° (ex)
On the first ritual folk track where the group sing a repetition of “There is no death” I imagine this can only come from a keep-away-from-all-reality-in-a-disturbed-or-let-us-not-be-disturbed-by-what-we-can-imagine-brain commune based group. I wonder what this message could bring to people outside this separated context, because I say with “one gun-shot everybody is dead”. Death might need no effort, but living surely does. But perhaps this Baltimore based (semi ?-) commune gives less attention to the overexposed living our society and focuses on the meditation beyond death, in the same way we give significance to birth. Anyhow, with some kind of reason this mantra is the intro for very moody song-oriented chamber psych-folk music. The mind goes into a certain concentration, and here on this release, even much more than most communes based psychedelic groups, the body of music has its own development and thorough foundation as well.
The group itself is a mini chamber music ensemble, with Anna Messing playing cello, U.S. Romance, flute, percussion, roland 307 and guitar, Justin Eckland Levy, guitar, Christoffer Freeland, big drum, gong, bells, Lord Nathanael Fowler, accordion, The Solar Word, violin, flute, and James Saarsgaarde, musical saw and melodica.
After the ritual intro, this chamber music feeling unfolds its own beauty making it a perfect 25 minutes. Despite its title it is not at all dark music, but celebratory, like life, seen from a different angle, which is not loosely taken, but is well structured and thoroughly developed. Very good !
The group toured last year with Will Oldham.
Preliminary recording of new album (ready for release) : "Anna's Song"
