psychedelic Folk review page : Fernwood

demo Montgomery : demo (US,2007)****

I received this very strong demo (not sure if it is available as a release as well) of multiple acoustic string arrangements improvisations based upon guitar and a bit of sitar, with the strongest focus on mood creation. The tracks follow all melodic or otherwise a bit bluesy excursions. The melodic multi-layered melodic inspirations seems to have hints to folk improvisation, or have flavours of primitive renaissance guitar, or just here and there follow a more rhythmic finger tapping swing. The guitar arrangements are more often built by combining different instruments, like (double or solo) acoustic guitar with slide-guitar, and sitar. Extremely enjoyable.

Montgommery : “The three tracks with sitar are from the Montgomery T. Singh, psych-folk project .The concept of this album initially was to create a dreamy acoustic-"surf-music" record. This recording will be limited to 5 instruments, (maybe 6) acoustic guitar, slide-Irish bouzouki, sitar, bass, and Rhodes piano. I play guitar, bouzouki, and sitar, and my friend Gayle Ellett (from Djam Karet, see my friends section) plays 5-string bass, Rhodes piano, and bouzouki. We are recording it and producing it ourselves. We are planning on making about 1000 copies and sell it on my myspace page and elsewhere, but it's not quite ready yet. All the other tracks are from my Irish bouzouki-only project called "Ancient Bouzouki Tunes". (www.myspace.com/tjmontgomery) Nearly all of the 13 tunes on this recording are based upon ancient Irish harp tunes from the Edward Bunting collection published in the 1790's. The idea of this album was to find the oldest tunes I could, (all tracks chosen were listed by Bunting as "ancient" in 1795) and put a modern psychedelic spin on them, and use only the Irish bouzouki. I have written transition parts, harmony parts, and altered arrangements in a non-traditional manner. I have nearly finished the artwork and final mixes, and will sell it as a CDR on my TJ Montgomery site. It should be available via paypal in the next couple of weeks. (I play anywhere from 2 to six bouzouki parts on these tracks.)”

Homepages : http://www.myspace.com/montgomerytsingh & http://www.myspace.com/tjmontgomery

Private (Topangam Musik) Fernwood : Pacific (US,2007)****

Fernwood is a musical entity of two musicians who feel each other’s essence for such cooperation well. Certain melodies are the fundaments for the 6 tracks, which are coloured rhythmically or arranged with the different instruments. Gayle Ellett (Djam Karet) plays Greek bouzouki, acoustic guitar, bass, cumbus, oud, Rhodes piano, organ, harmonium and Todd Montgommery plays the Irish bouzouki, acoustic guitar, sitar, slide. I noticed already before how Gayle Ellett explored some interesting acoustic ideas on some of the latest Djam Karet albums. This acoustic cooperation is rather descriptive in a very moody way, with pickings and notes in different rhythmical speeds, spinning around inand with some lovely tunes.

Homepages : http://www.myspace.com/montgomerytsingh & http://www.myspace.com/tjmontgomery

demo Fernwood (US,2007)****

I also heard the full (13 tracks) demo release ready for release (no label has been found yet). The listing in my ‘acidfolk’ section to a degree does not completely do justice to the release. Especially young people often tend to look for something with a hype factor, with "weird" or strange or modernity associations, while maturation also recognises better things that last longer, or that reflect harmonic balances. For companies harmonic results are also harder to sell or categorise when the music does not follow any of the mainstream tendencies. Fernwoods music reflects harmonic pulses and melodies, arranged by inspirations of a duo playing together with interactions and melted ideas of compositions, when playing on guitars, or bouzouki and guitar, sitar and guitar, etc. more often also arranged in multi-track and with a whole diversity of instruments.

Gayle plays Greek bouzouki, upright bass, gimbri, rhabob, ruan, Rhodes piano, harmonium and cumbus ; Todd plays sitar, slide and plucked Irish bouzouki, mandolin and guitar.

Gayle Ellet has been already a busy and in demand musician for the last thirty years. His music ranges from traditional world music, acoustic contemporary folk, jazz, progressive (Djam Karet), deep electronic (Ukab Maerd), soundtracks, animations on MTV, hard rock, and so on.

Todd Montgommery learned American folk & bluegrass traditions for mandolin, traditional Irish music for Irish bouzouki. In the mid nineties he joined George Lockwood’s dual mandolin band Buzzworld. He performed also once with the Chieftans. In the late 90s he played with Irishman Kim Caroll in Madra, a Celtic folk-rock band. The both performed on the soundtrack of “Chasing the dragon", "The Veronica Guerrin Story”. Then he started to learn for some years traditional Indian music on sitar with Hari Har Rao (student of Ravi Shankar) as his teacher. In that time he accompanied singer-songwriter Danny Kelly on sitar and mandolin. For his project Fernwood all his past in American folk, Celtic and classical native Indian music left its marks, although never in an obvious way. I was convinced.

& http://www.myspace.com/tjmontgomery

next release->

private cd Fernwood : Almeria (US,2008)****

Finally the duo (Gayle Ellet, known from Djam Karet and Todd Montgommery) released an official CD privately. I can hardly add much more to my previous reviews of their demos (on next page), because the same tracks are involved. It is an album with string instruments mostly (sitar/bouzouki/guitar most often), but we hear also harmonium twice, used more as an accordion instrument. One of the tracks is bluesier, another is a waltz. It is very melodic music with a beautiful ear for a descriptive melodious sound and clarity, which is a pleasure to hear, and which makes me listen to this album again and again, as one of those rare albums that probably will remain with you for a lifetime of appreciation.

-PS. I could have added the album to my acidfolk section or regard it as 'acoustic fusion', but even when it is an independent inspiration, it could still fit within the whole world, therefore it was listed at first in the whole-world music section-

Private release Fernwood : Sangita (US,2009)****

I always look forward to every Fernwood release. This is the second official (digipack) CD of the duo (Todd Montgommery and Gayle Ellet, also know for his guitar work for Djam Karrett). A few new instruments were bought for the album. The instruments (with an emphasis on wood) used now are slide and plucked bouzouki, tenor banjo, guitar, sitar, dilruba, ruan, cumbus, bulbul tarang, jal tarang, mandolin, oud, dotara, swarmandal, gobijen, harmonium, piano, organ, Rhodes piano, fiddle and upright bass. The instrumentals very much give the impression of colourful summer evening moods that breath rhythmically like a breeze, with musical themes that evolve rhythmically (handclapping, shaking, walking, waltzing,..) with colourful string arrangements, swinging, humming, longing, most often warm and with an inner happiness. “Helen Island” has something of a rearranged Beatles song with sitar (remember Lord Sitar, but much more meditative than that). Of course the few tracks with sitar as one of the instruments bring a bit more an exotic flair. Several of the later tracks are more melancholic due to different combinations of instruments, like with the slower swings of sitar with harmonium or through the influence of double bass, as later night sad-happy moments. Another beautiful album giving the impression you’re living on an island, nature and a seashore lie ahead of you smiling at you day by day.

Info & audio : http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/fernwood2 & http://www.myspace.com/montgomerytsingh