SeaBuckThorn – In Nightfall 8.0

                SeaBuckThorn is dark. How dark? Well, let’s say Andy Cartwright must write this at night as there’s hardly any light allowed. Listening to this, I’d consider him a practitioner of John Fahey’s concept called “American Primitivism” despite his English roots. John Fahey’s idea behind this phrase was acoustic guitar music would meld together neo-classical with country blues fingerpicking. “In Nightfall” embodies his concept perfectly. 

                We begin with the tactile “Address the Night”. There’s no adornment on here. No other guitar. Other songs possess a little background with an electric guitar, violin, or piano. Most of the time it is a one man show, with Andy playing a lonely tune. “Carrier” is a favorite of mine. Around the one minute mark I’m reminded of Nick Drake’s playing style, sparse, simple, and effective. Hearing the small rhythm emerge makes me extremely happy. “The River Answered” sounds hypnotic. Little flourishes of sound in the background give me the sense of a giant space. 

                At times the sound is nearly silent. “Gone Estray, Being Circled” may be the quietest offering on here. Only occasionally does the volume increase to a near-audible amount. I like how well the name goes with it. An Estray is an animal found wandering or lost. Witnessing it being circled would be much like the effect I hear on this song: quiet, tense, and bleak.

                I liked this album quite a bit. For preparation I had to wait until I could find a quiet enough place. As this is a dark and soft-spoken album, it is best to listen to at night. This is a vivid, unusual album. Not too many artists are interested in this sound right now. Thankfully SeaBuckThorn managed call this niche his own.

Nick Drake – Pink Moon 10.0

When I entered my first relationship, the other person happened to be a folk fanatic. Not the good kind, mind you, but the lame beat poetry can’t play a guitar kind. The kind that can deliver lines like “My soul was black like my coffee” and singing in atrocious free verse.

Nick Drake ended up being the thing that we could agree on. Even now, I adore how this, his sparest album, will never age. Since there’s no period embellishments (like with Five Leaves Left or  Bryter Layter, though I love those as well) you get pretty much the rawest version of Nick’s mind. There’s nothing to hide the fact that this is perhaps one of the most depressing albums you’ll ever hear. He’s singing with nothing else but a guitar, and his voice has this intimate, in the room with you quality.

Unlike a lot of his contemporaries, he seemed interested in having his songs having a more ‘live’ recording. Perhaps it had to do with his aversion to performing live, or his generally distant manner. For even his friends and relatives stated how no one really understood what went on inside his mind, since he was so close-lipped.

“Pink Moon” the title track might be familiar to you as “his VW ad song”. While many discussed how Nick would have handled it, Nick had financial concerns as well so he probably would have been happy with it. Towards the end of his life, he became more interested in becoming popular and felt frustrated about how his talent didn’t translate into actual money or fame. Not that one can imagine Nick becoming a celebrity, but his lack of success definitely ate into him.

Really, the whole album reeks of sadness. If autumn needed a soundtrack, this would be it. Autumn, resigned to death. Each song shows off Nick’s detached personality, how he had a hard time relating to other people. It is like he could only communicate through song, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to maintain the distance he sought between him and others. 

“Things Behind the Sun” ranks as one of my favorite folk songs of all time. Here the guitar and lyrics melt together like little else I’ve heard. Even the attempt for Nick to try and sound cheerful makes it more depressing. He’s trying to be uplifting and cheerful, trying to show that he can be happy. But it arouses not pity, but just more nervousness. “Free Ride” follows a similar theme, of trying to be happy, and seeming like a doomed romantic. 

Only at the end of the album do we get a song that rises above this sadness “From the Morning”. Light appears briefly in its two and a half minutes. Then it’s over. 

Having been to England before, I kick myself for not visiting his part of the countryside. I’m saddened that he left so early, before he could see the positive effect his music has had. For music so universal it brings so many together is a rare thing indeed.