The Rheingans Sisters - Receiver (2020)
BAND/ARTIST: The Rheingans Sisters
- Title: Receiver
- Year Of Release: 2020
- Label: bendigedig
- Genre: World, Folk, Nordic
- Quality: MP3 320 kbps; FLAC lossless
- Total Time: 54:56
- Total Size: 129; 302 MB
- WebSite: Album Preview
Receiver is a rich collaboration between the Rheingans Sisters and visual artist Pierre-Olivier Boulant, whose solarographs (pin-hole camera images) form a significant part of the sleeve notes as well as a framework for expressing the artistic process behind the album.
A combination of story and observation Receiver is an orchestration of life as it plays out. There is close attention to sonic soundscape in every track - "the crafting of frequencies" as I later read in the sleeve notes. Which brings me to ask - when ought a listener to read album sleeve notes? Should the artist's intention be clear from the music alone or is further explanation an important part of the whole experience?
The tracks are not straightforwardly stories in and of themselves but tapestries woven in some cases by coincidence and in others by nuanced consideration. There is no attempt to paint a bigger picture. If you want to feel safe this might not be the album for you right now. If you just want to feel, then trust in the artistry this album offers.
There is a profound respect from the sisters for the music they have created as well as for the instruments they play (few sleeve notes give credit to the makers), apparent in their exploration of timbre, sonic range and use of repetition inviting the listener to really listen. And there are a number of instruments to take in from flabuta (a three holed flute) and bell tree to the perhaps more familiar banjo, violin, and viola.
Receiver brings together traditional and contemporary as if the two not only coexist on this album but as if the question 'what is folk?' had never been asked. On Salt of the Earth banjo, violin & electric guitar gather like old friends whilst Rachel Cohen (the album's only guest musician) lends subtle yet sensitive alto saxophone for example on Moustiques Dans Les Mûres. Elsewhere the use of feet and synth add further colours and textures.
Vocals are used sparingly on some tracks and not at all in others, for example on Orogen where they provide an accompaniment towards the end of the track, lying low in the back of the mix. Perhaps this is an acknowledgement of the need for greater perspective in the way humans reflect on their place in the world. On The Photograph vocals are at the forefront; the lyrics taking centre stage in the storytelling whilst the instruments play a supporting role conjuring seascapes, the saxophone making a cameo to suggest the soft speech of freedom.
Reading the sleeve notes after my first listen, I appreciate how the collaboration with Bouland came to be and at once my understanding of the album title and essence of the music is complete. I admire the risk of spoilage inherent in the approach of all three artists; their "openness to unseen possibilities" and to the questions these possibilities may pose. Receiver appeals to my sense of adventure and enquiry. I enjoyed the artistic expression in its entirety and I needed them to co-exist as I found my way into this extraordinary album. The Rheingans sisters have reimagined the role of artist not as observer but as receiver, reflecting back objectively and bearing witness to life.
Louise Jordan
Tracklisting:
01. The Rheingans Sisters - The Yellow of the Flowers (5:06)
02. The Rheingans Sisters - Östbjörka (3:54)
03. The Rheingans Sisters - Salt of the Earth (4:50)
04. The Rheingans Sisters - One More Banjo (3:02)
05. The Rheingans Sisters - Insomnia (3:37)
06. The Rheingans Sisters - Lament for Lost Sleep (2:29)
07. The Rheingans Sisters - Moustiques dans les mûres (4:12)
08. The Rheingans Sisters - The Bones of the World (3:21)
09. The Rheingans Sisters - Urjen (3:09)
10. The Rheingans Sisters - After the Bell Rang (4:32)
11. The Rheingans Sisters - From Up Here (4:50)
12. The Rheingans Sisters - Orogen (4:03)
13. The Rheingans Sisters - The Photograph (4:53)
14. The Rheingans Sisters - Waltz from Lozère (2:59)
A combination of story and observation Receiver is an orchestration of life as it plays out. There is close attention to sonic soundscape in every track - "the crafting of frequencies" as I later read in the sleeve notes. Which brings me to ask - when ought a listener to read album sleeve notes? Should the artist's intention be clear from the music alone or is further explanation an important part of the whole experience?
The tracks are not straightforwardly stories in and of themselves but tapestries woven in some cases by coincidence and in others by nuanced consideration. There is no attempt to paint a bigger picture. If you want to feel safe this might not be the album for you right now. If you just want to feel, then trust in the artistry this album offers.
There is a profound respect from the sisters for the music they have created as well as for the instruments they play (few sleeve notes give credit to the makers), apparent in their exploration of timbre, sonic range and use of repetition inviting the listener to really listen. And there are a number of instruments to take in from flabuta (a three holed flute) and bell tree to the perhaps more familiar banjo, violin, and viola.
Receiver brings together traditional and contemporary as if the two not only coexist on this album but as if the question 'what is folk?' had never been asked. On Salt of the Earth banjo, violin & electric guitar gather like old friends whilst Rachel Cohen (the album's only guest musician) lends subtle yet sensitive alto saxophone for example on Moustiques Dans Les Mûres. Elsewhere the use of feet and synth add further colours and textures.
Vocals are used sparingly on some tracks and not at all in others, for example on Orogen where they provide an accompaniment towards the end of the track, lying low in the back of the mix. Perhaps this is an acknowledgement of the need for greater perspective in the way humans reflect on their place in the world. On The Photograph vocals are at the forefront; the lyrics taking centre stage in the storytelling whilst the instruments play a supporting role conjuring seascapes, the saxophone making a cameo to suggest the soft speech of freedom.
Reading the sleeve notes after my first listen, I appreciate how the collaboration with Bouland came to be and at once my understanding of the album title and essence of the music is complete. I admire the risk of spoilage inherent in the approach of all three artists; their "openness to unseen possibilities" and to the questions these possibilities may pose. Receiver appeals to my sense of adventure and enquiry. I enjoyed the artistic expression in its entirety and I needed them to co-exist as I found my way into this extraordinary album. The Rheingans sisters have reimagined the role of artist not as observer but as receiver, reflecting back objectively and bearing witness to life.
Louise Jordan
Tracklisting:
01. The Rheingans Sisters - The Yellow of the Flowers (5:06)
02. The Rheingans Sisters - Östbjörka (3:54)
03. The Rheingans Sisters - Salt of the Earth (4:50)
04. The Rheingans Sisters - One More Banjo (3:02)
05. The Rheingans Sisters - Insomnia (3:37)
06. The Rheingans Sisters - Lament for Lost Sleep (2:29)
07. The Rheingans Sisters - Moustiques dans les mûres (4:12)
08. The Rheingans Sisters - The Bones of the World (3:21)
09. The Rheingans Sisters - Urjen (3:09)
10. The Rheingans Sisters - After the Bell Rang (4:32)
11. The Rheingans Sisters - From Up Here (4:50)
12. The Rheingans Sisters - Orogen (4:03)
13. The Rheingans Sisters - The Photograph (4:53)
14. The Rheingans Sisters - Waltz from Lozère (2:59)
Year 2020 | World | Folk | FLAC / APE | Mp3
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