preview release 
Stephanie Hladowski : The Third Scatter -demo- (UK,2007)
-> Singing Knifes Rec.-including The High High Nest 10"EP- (UK,rec.2004,pub.2008)****
Stephanie Hladowski has sung and recorded with a group called Scatter. Through Alex Neilson she was introduced to various folk songs, which she sung for the first time for this solo project recording. This gives a very spontaneous unique vibe to the songs, of lost and gone areas relived like feeling its entities like ghosts speaking out with something of those eras.
“In the month of January” is sung a’capella, a way of singing in which you very much prove your skills and feeling for songs, a test which is passed with a glance. The songs are accompanied with use of folk drones and certain sound freedoms which makes this approach rather experimental, within the range of traditional folk.
“My Son David” and “Henry Martin” are sung by Hanna Tuulikki of Nalle, with Aby Vulliamy, Christopher Hladowski (also of The One Ensemble Of Daniel Padden), a psychfolk group which I need to check out soon. Hanna’s voice is something special. Especially on the second track she reveals a very special bizarreness in voice (a bit reminiscent of Björk, but more natural exotic). There has been made some use of scraping iron-like sounds working in combination with a cello vibrating on the background, like a experimental “folk-industrial” droning noise. “I started singing along to industrial machinery”, Stephanie writes on her website “…but I didn't look for the noise. It has always come to me. The last noise that came looking for me was very discordant and I have been practising to sing these harmonies so that I can record them in the new year.” This little special weird effect to folk interpretations could be compared to some interpretations of Alasdair Roberts or even better, of M.J.Harris with Martyn Bates. While the others sing harmonious together the campfire warmth is replaced by stranger sounds, while the warmth remains. But there’s more in it. Instead of accompanying songs as usual by guitar, Christopher Hladowski plays bouzouki (sometimes electrified), something which gives a more special troubadour, slightly acid, medieval folk sound to the song. Especially “Seven Virgins (the leaves of life)” sounds most medieval (also with silent jew’s harp, clarinet). Also harmonium is used for the accompaniment.
On “Cruel Mother” we hear the very gentle girly curly voice voice of Isobel Cambell (Belle & Sebastian) singing, while the cello is for a part humming in the background with the other voices. It was Isobel who experimented the strange cello sounds.
“MaCrimmond’s Lament” is a’capella singing with low cello droning.
Last track, “Come Write me Down Ye Powers Above” is a harmony singing together song, where just one voice deliberately strangely drones, only like an overtone with the rest, a great fun weird aspect that concludes this perfect session well.
4 tracks of this preview demo are reserved for a 10” by SingingKnives early 2008 while the whole collection is in fact a more complete recording, which I hope will see a release next year as well.
