nederlands
englishAll content is © 2006-2009, Evening of Light.
As a result of friendly correspondence, the well known US metal band Agalloch teamed up with the Finnish purveyors of 'naturewave' Nest to release a split 10" EP. The result is a very fine collector's item, with ample attention paid to both music and artwork.
"A metal band on Evening of Light?", you may well ask. Now, Agalloch were never known for a conventional approach to metal, and this EP is no different. Like on others of their side releases, they focus on a different side of their music, using this opportunity to present a wholly acoustic song. "The Wolves of Timberline" is an elaborate reworking of the final melody of "Hallways of Enchanted Ebony", from their first album, Pale Folklore. The result, an instrumental based on guitar, cello, and mandolin, is marvellous in its simplicity, and one of my favourite Agalloch tracks altogether.
Nest is a duo from Finland that combines the acoustic sounds of the Kantele, a zither-like string instrument, with hand drums, bass and synths to produce what they call 'naturewave'. This is generally very relaxing music, based on profound themes from nature and folklore. To make the band cooperation complete, Nest is joined on "Last Vestige of Old Joy" by Agalloch's John Haughm on vocals and Don Anderson on guitar (including a nice solo). However, this isn't one of my favourite Nest tracks, because of the keyboard flute sound, which doesn't appeal to me in its artificiality, and which is not on par with Nest's more recent, much better synth sound. Those who have no qualms with keyboards will enjoy this, nevertheless. In any case, Nest more than make up for this with the absolutely stunning artwork, which features on both sides of the vinyl, and on separate postcards. A. Tolonen crafts highly evocative scenes with (in this case) coloured pencil, and in his own unique style, which fits this release very well. Especially the Agalloch side - entitled "Nine Hidden Wolves" - appeals to me a lot. Trying to find those wolves is a daunting task, by the way.
I think this is a great release, and a must have for lovers of either band. It's almost sold out everywhere at the time of writing this, though, so if you haven't been able to procure one, be quick!
O.S.
"A metal band on Evening of Light?", you may well ask. Now, Agalloch were never known for a conventional approach to metal, and this EP is no different. Like on others of their side releases, they focus on a different side of their music, using this opportunity to present a wholly acoustic song. "The Wolves of Timberline" is an elaborate reworking of the final melody of "Hallways of Enchanted Ebony", from their first album, Pale Folklore. The result, an instrumental based on guitar, cello, and mandolin, is marvellous in its simplicity, and one of my favourite Agalloch tracks altogether.
Nest is a duo from Finland that combines the acoustic sounds of the Kantele, a zither-like string instrument, with hand drums, bass and synths to produce what they call 'naturewave'. This is generally very relaxing music, based on profound themes from nature and folklore. To make the band cooperation complete, Nest is joined on "Last Vestige of Old Joy" by Agalloch's John Haughm on vocals and Don Anderson on guitar (including a nice solo). However, this isn't one of my favourite Nest tracks, because of the keyboard flute sound, which doesn't appeal to me in its artificiality, and which is not on par with Nest's more recent, much better synth sound. Those who have no qualms with keyboards will enjoy this, nevertheless. In any case, Nest more than make up for this with the absolutely stunning artwork, which features on both sides of the vinyl, and on separate postcards. A. Tolonen crafts highly evocative scenes with (in this case) coloured pencil, and in his own unique style, which fits this release very well. Especially the Agalloch side - entitled "Nine Hidden Wolves" - appeals to me a lot. Trying to find those wolves is a daunting task, by the way.I think this is a great release, and a must have for lovers of either band. It's almost sold out everywhere at the time of writing this, though, so if you haven't been able to procure one, be quick!
O.S.