Evening of Light » sol invictus

Cloudscape: Tribute to KinkFM X-Rated

admin — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 22:31:43 +0000

Tribute to KinkFM X-Rated by Evening Of Light on Mixcloud

At midnight between September 30th and October 1st the Dutch alternative radio station Kink FM was shut down after 16 years of dedicated broadcasting. Apart form this being a general loss for the Dutch radio landscape, it is even worse for lovers of music in the styles we usually cover on Evening of Light. For with the end of the station comes the end of the program (and since this year 24 hour channel) Kink X-Rated.

Running since the start of the station, X-Rated was the home for experimental music, industrial, wave, neofolk, ambient, drone, and all sorts of other great music. The program was first presented by Arjen Grolleman, who tragically passed away last year, and Bauke van der Wal. Later, Arjen presented the program together with Bob Rusche, who sold records in Boudisque, formerly the best record store in Amsterdam, and another institution that has passed away.

Now that Kink FM is closing down, due to dubious decisionmaking by the overarching media investment company, it also means an end to these 16 years of X-Rated in which we discovered so much great music, heard lovely interviews and live performances, and were blessed enough to be guests in the studio several times. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and Bob will be able to continue the program X-Rated at a new station, the Concertzender, but there is no doubt that the closing of KinkFM is black moment in Dutch pop history.

The mix we have prepared here is a modest tribute of ours to the music of X-Rated. Music we discovered through the program, music which is typical for the program, or otherwise came to mind. For example, Coil, Current 93, and Sol Invictus were always staple artists in the program, as heroes of the (post-)industrial music world, while Raison d’Être‘s Enthraled by the Wind of Lonelienes was the first album we ever bought in the Boudisque shop. X-Rated also functioned as our introduction to the wonderful music of Maarten van der Vleuten, which eventually led to us releasing one of his later albums. All of the tracks here have an emotional value like that, and we hope we will be able to share it with you, and give an impression of what X-Rated was (partly) about.

An immense thanks to Bob, Arjen (rest in peace!) and everyone at KinkFM for making this possible!

The tracks:

Cloudscape #16: July 2011

admin — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 14:30:25 +0000

Cloudscape #16: July 2011 by Evening Of Light on Mixcloud

time | artist | track | album | year

Review: Sol Invictus – The Cruellest Month (2011)

admin — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 12:37:54 +0000

artist: Sol Invictus
release: The Cruellest Month
format: CD
year of release: 2011
label: Auerbach
duration: 56:50

detailed info: discogs.com

It’s been a year or six since the last proper Sol Invictus album, and we’ve had to turn to Tony Wakeford‘s consistent work on various side projects (The Triple Tree, Orchestra Noir, Grey Force Wakeford) and solo works to follow the man’s current musical directions. Nevertheless, it seems he’s gathered enough inspiration from all these endeavours to infuse Sol Invictus’ seminal neofolk with some new influences.

As has been the case with practically all albums by the band in the almost 25 years of its existence (an impressive datum in itself) there is some recycling of themes, melodic motifs, and composition structure. What fascinates me is that despite of this, and with the help of a varying and ever-changing musical arrangement, most of these albums are still interesting and fresh enough, and The Cruellest Month is no exception. Tracks like “Something’s Coming” and “Toys” (though the latter is lyrically very enjoyable) have perhaps a bit too much of that “heard this before” feeling, but overall, there is a lot of variation. Andrew King‘s rendition of traditionals (“Edward” and “Cruel Lincoln”) differ from his solo works in the addition of the Sol Invictus band, and practically embody the part of neofolk that is rooted in folk balladry. Tracks like “Stella Maris” and “Fool’s Ship” tackle a more expansive sound and nautical theme where the rich arrangements for flute (Guy Harries), dulcimer (Reeve Malka) and violin (Renee Rosen) truly shine. The same point applies to the brilliant instrumental “April Rain”.

Another selling point of The Cruellest Month is the collection of series of tracks that have been all over the place, except together on a definitive Sol Invictus studio album: “To Kill All Kings”, “The Bad Luck Bird”, “The Cruellest Month”, and “The Blackleg Miner”. All are live staples, typical anthems, or at least bound to become one, so it’s good to have them all here. I must say that a bit more fire could have gone into the delivery of these here and there, but overall, these are solid tracks, and more examples of what has kept Wakeford’s compositions interesting throughout the years: a strong sense of rhythm, song structure, and memorable melodies.

The first couple of drafts of this review in my head compared The Cruellest Month to side project albums that have impressed me the past few year (Ghosts by The Triple Tree, Marble Heart by Grey Force Wakeford, Not All of Me Will Die by Wakeford solo). The greater degree of experimentation that Wakeford displayed on such albums is in some sense laudable, and part of me wishes a bit more had trickled through into this one. All the same, this is a Sol Invictus album, and another part of me realises that staying relatively faithful to the song-based tradition of neofolk is what keeps the band on track as a project. In that light, the balance struck between tradition and more loose composition and instrumental play on The Cruellest Month is excellent. So, it’s a new album by what stands as the mainstay band of the neofolk genre, and though it’s not a thoroughly surprising one, I’d say it’s exemplary and at the top of what the genre has to offer.

Reviewed by O.S.

Tracklist:

1. Raining In April (2:34)
2. To Kill All Kings (4:50)
3. The Sailor’s Aria (1:38)
4. Fool’s Ship (4:24)
5. Toys (3:20)
6. Edward (5:36)
7. The Bad Luck Bird (4:14)
8. April Rain (5:33)
9. Cruel Lincoln (7:59)
10. Something’s Coming (4:11)
11. Stella Maris (3:26)
12. The Cruellest Month (5:45)
13. The Blackleg Miner (3:23)

1	Raining In April	2:34
2	To Kill All Kings	4:50
3	The Sailor’s Aria	1:38
4	Fool’s Ship	4:24
5	Toys	3:20
6	Edward	5:36
7	The Bad Luck Bird	4:14
8	April Rain	5:33
9	Cruel Lincoln	7:59
10	Something’s Coming	4:11
11	Stella Maris	3:26
12	The Cruellest Month	5:45
13	The Blackleg Miner	3:23

Cloudscape #15: June 2011

admin — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 19:05:56 +0000

Cloudscape #15: June 2011 by Evening Of Light on Mixcloud

time | artist | track | album | year

Cloudscape #4: July 2010

admin — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 21:14:17 +0000

Cloudscape #4: July 2010 by Evening Of Light on Mixcloud

Playlist with starting times in parentheses:

1. (00:09)
Sol Invictus – The Bad Luck Bird
from: The Bad Luck Bird (2010)

2. (03:41)
The Driftwood Manor – Bury Me Alive
from: Holy Ghost (2010)

3. (07:42)
Phantom Dog Beneath the Moon – Poems
from: The Trees, the Sea in a Lunar Stream (2010)

4. (14:03)
Waldteufel – Traumpfad
from: Sanguis (2007)

5. (22:41)
Martyn Bates – Trade Winds
from: Mystery Seas (Letters Written #2) (1995)

6. (25:06)
Ruhr Hunter – Waniyetu Wintruz
from: By the Hum of Ullr’s Bow (2009)

7. (33:08)
Diamanda Galás - Deliver Me From Mine Enemies
from: The Divine Punishment (1986)

8. (35:51)
Diamanda Galás - We Will Not Accept Your Quarantine
from: The Divine Punishment (1986)

9. (38:07)
Wilt – Hemophilic Root Plow
from: Graveflowers (2004)

10. (46:00)
Nadja & Troum – Dominium Visurgis Part 2
from: Dominium Visurgis (2010)

11. (58:12)
Ulver – Your Call
from: Blood Inside (2005)

Review: Sol Invictus – The Bad Luck Bird (2010)

admin — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 15:44:39 +0000

artist: Sol Invictus
release: The Bad Luck Bird
format: 7″
year of release: 2010
label: Auerbach / Prophecy
duration: 7:14

detailed info: discogs.com

It’s been quite a wait, but after almost five years, 2010 sees the release of new Sol Invictus studio material. A full-length album is upcoming on Auerbach/Prophecy, but this 7″ is the first taste of what is to come on The Cruelest Month.

And that is, not surprisingly, classic neofolk as it is not often made anymore these days. Mainstays of the genre like Current 93 and Death in June have moved into different territories or relative silence since the early and mid-nineties, which can be considered the heyday of this particular sound. And as for later bands, we’ve seen some quality material here and there during the past ten years, but on the whole, the genre seems to be in low gear.

Who better than Sol Invictus would come with new material to celebrate this traditional neofolk sound? The A-side is a rousing and swooping song with strong percussion, a guitar chord base, and lead roles for flute, violin, and cello. The track is a logical but more powerful continuation of sounds from 2005′s The Devil’s Steed, and pretty much embodies the side of neofolk dedicated to grandeur and martian feelings. “Stella Maris” explores the calmer, more mysterious side of the music, without letting go of the full instrumentation.

If this style is any indication of what will feature on the upcoming album, it is something to look forward to, especially if you have a soft spot for Sol Invictus‘ particular neofolk style. I must say that I was a bit disappointed by the overly modest packaging and layout of this limited 7″. In this digital age, vinyl buyers like to be rewarded with a dash of colour, a gatefold, or even an insert or inner sleeve would’ve been nice. Apart from that though, this is a very enjoyable single that shows Mr. Wakeford and his merry band have still got it.

Reviewed by O.S.

Tracklist:

A. The Bad Luck Bird (Single Version) (3:37)
B. Stella Maris (3:37)

Review: Sol Invictus – Lex Talionis (1993/2008)

admin — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 23:00:41 +0000

1993 CD

2008 CD reissue

artist: Sol Invictus
release: Lex Talionis
format: CD
year of release: 1993, 2008
label: Tursa (1993), Infinite Fog (2008)
duration: 51:56

detailed info: discogs.com

Lex Talionis is one of the more important albums from the early days of neofolk mainstays Sol Invictus. It was released in 1990, the same year as Trees in Winter, but as part of a limited vinyl box set together with Current 93 and Nurse With Wound. It was released on CD (without the track “Reynardine”) by Tursa in 1993, which is probably the version that most people will be familiar with. However, as we all know, this was 15 years ago, and the album has been long out of print. That’s why it’s good news for younger Sol Invictus enthusiasts that the Russian label Infinite Fog has produced a fine digipak reissue, limited to 1001 copies.

Now, the obvious question for any reissue of an older album is whether it has stood the test of time. Let me begin by saying that compared to its contemporary, the quite excellent Trees in Winter, I believe Lex Talionis falls short in several areas. The problem is definitely not in the area of songwriting; the album contains tracks like “The Ruins” and “Kneel to the Cross” that I consider classic anthems of the genre, albeit in the superb versions on the 1994 album The Death of the West. The versions on the current album, however, sound like rough demos, with mediocre performance by both Tony Wakeford and Ian Read, who sounded much more in form on Trees in Winter. And this goes for many of the other tracks as well. The songwriting is at a high level, but the execution is lacking here and there.

That’s not to say that there aren’t any truly worthwhile tracks on this album, which deals thematically with the laws of just compensation (lex talionis) and nature’s cruelty (tooth and claw). To begin with, there’s the marvellous “Black Easter”, combining a heavy and noisy musical base with the ritual folk chanting of “we take death out the village, we bring summer into the village.” The calmer neofolk style of “Tooth and Claw” is also a well-succeeded point of rest in the middle of the album. Equally enjoyable is the combination of traditional and neofolk in “Abattoirs of Love”. Finally, the bonus track on the latest version of this album is not to be missed, a stirring live recording of “Black Easter” as the band performs it today, featuring among others Andrew King on percussion and vocals.

Weighing all impressions together, I’d say Lex Talionis is mainly interesting for fans of the band, who haven’t been able to acquire an older copy. They should be served quite well by this tasteful reissue. Others might do better to check out Trees in Winter for a highlight from the early period, or one of the more recent albums such as In a Garden Green or The Devil’s Steed.

Reviewed by O.S.

Tracklist:

1. Blood and Wine (1:32)
2. Lex Talionis (6:01)
3. Black Easter (4:29)
4. Kneel to the Cross (4:47)
5. The Ruins (2:50)
6. Tooth and Claw (6:52)
7. Blood Against Gold (4:24)
8. Fields (3:56)
9. Abattoirs of Love (5:23)
10. Heroes Day (2:39)
11. Rex Talionis (2:24)
12. Wine and Blood (2:24)

13. Black Easter (Live) (4:15)

Interview: Tony Wakeford and Reeve Malka (TURSA, Sol Invictus)

admin — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 23:00:09 +0000

Interview with Tony Wakeford and Reeve Malka

February 2008 – guest interview by Peter Webb.
[Comments in Brackets by O.S.]

Photograph by Renée Rosen.

Tursa (http://www.myspace.com/tursa and http://www.tursa.com) as a record label and production house has gone through a number of significant changes and developments in the last two years. Tony Wakeford‘s band of merry troubadours Sol Invictus (http://www.myspace.com/solinvictushq) have been at the centre of the majority of releases by the Tursa label but it is now branching out much further than it ever has before. Sol, reflective of Tony’s personal musical vision and an expression of a remarkable personal journey that has dealt with some of the political contradictions, interests, preoccupations and ideas of a period of British culture stretching from the 1970s to today, have fostered an extremely independent music and cultural scene that developed from punk and post-punk through Industrial to the folk noir or neo-folk scene today. There is little literature on this very underground of scenes, David Keenan’s England’s Hidden Reverse and Diesel and Gerten’s Looking for Europe being notable exceptions, but a cursory glance at the WWW shows a massive number of websites, myspace pages, forums, record labels and distributors who are involved in this area (see Soleilmoon, Tesco, Dark Vinyl, Athanor, Cynfeird, Strange Fortune, Trisol, Woven Wheat Whispers, Cold Spring, Eis Und Licht, Hau Ruck amongst others). Although the scene is not recognised in much mainstream music press (Zero Tolerance being an important exception) across Europe the artists and fans of the scene have created a vibrant and thoughtful music and cultural underground that has explored and fore-grounded ideas about paganism, ecology, individualism, anarchism and local cultural tradition. There are also elements within this scene that foreground philosophical areas attached to the New Right but these groups are thankfully small and marginal to the majority of the scene.

Tony, as an English artist, has honed his craft with Sol through many different phases. The early recordings of raw edgy guitar, bass and drums have given way to an evolving complexity of strings, oboes, violin, bodhrán, found sound samples, acoustic guitar and bass all set off with Tony’s affecting and brooding vocal style that is particularly emotive. The subject matter on the early releases discussed themes related to Paganism and Magick, now those themes have given way to examinations of Religion, Nationalism, Individualism, Love and the strange and rare beast that is English culture. Tony had solely run Tursa as a label inspired in part by David Tibet and his early releases of Current 93 and Nurse With Wound on the Maldoror, United Dairies and eventually Durtro labels (http://www.durtro.com). Death In June also had run their own New European Recordings label, this though had mainly been Douglas P’s baby (http://www.deathinjune.net), so Tony, once he had started Sol Invictus, decided he needed to take control of his own destiny and developed his own label on the Enterprise Allowance scheme (a 1980s government attempt to get people off of welfare and on the road to capitalist enterprise). Although he didn’t become the Richard Branson of the Post-industrial scene he made a concerted attempt at presenting his work and selling it to a wider public. Over the years the label has released 23 Sol Invictus albums and also albums by Skald, Sieben and Algiz. After being through a turbulent relationship with World Serpent (a distributor and finance vehicle for Tursa which ended in a collapse and bankruptcy of the company and left Tony with a large number of debts and non-payment of royalties) he decided to develop Tursa partly as a label in its own right and partly to license recordings to other labels. As the 2000s progressed and the Internet started to instigate massive changes in the wider world of music it also had a huge effect on underground scenes like the Neofolk/post-industrial scene. The net encouraged a decline in sales of recorded music through peer to peer file sharing but also brought people and music scenes together in closer ties through networking sites like MySpace, forums, websites and web communities. With all this in mind Tony has revamped and re-energised Tursa in a number of ways.

Firstly he met the Israeli and Jewish artist M or Reeve Malka. Reeve and Tony first linked up through ‘the evil’ that is MySpace. Reeve had been doing some work with Jarboe (on a yet to be released project) and Tony having worked with Jarboe in the past took a look at Reeve’s work. The two of them corresponded and hit it off. They started to look to ways in which they could collaborate. Reeve is a musician (M, Init, Hatch, The Miller Test – see http://www.idv33.com.) but also a talented producer and they decided that a fruitful relationship could be developed firstly with Reeve as a producer of Tony’s work and secondly as a joint label owner for Tursa as his business acumen was much more refined than the humble Wakeford’s, something he all too readily admits. Their first released work has been Tony’s solo album Into the Woods, a layered, textured and beautifully crafted album that highlights Tony’s structured song-writing on tracks like “Down the Road Slowly” and “The Devil went a travelling” and also his ability to produce dense atmospheric slabs of brooding ambience that evoke, in this albums case, an England of old, steeped in enchantment, magic, fear and mysticism on “Into the Woods” but also so readily brought back to earth lyrically in tracks like “The Hangman’s Son” and “The London Hanged”. The album has shown how the new relationship between Tony and Reeve is beginning to blossom into something quite special. They have also been working on the Orchestra Noir project and a check of the MySpace page of the band also shows the way in which Tony and Reeve’s collaboration is beginning to shape the project into a stimulating mix of classicism, ambient textures and vocal combinations of Tony, Autumn Grieve and Jessica Constable.

As a new business partnership and production house Tony and Reeve have gone about constructing a small empire of acts and bands that initially have come mainly from Tony’s own creative vision. He continues the project Orchestra Noir (http://www.myspace.com/orchestranoir) with a host of musicians some of which are `names’ on the classical scene: Guy Harries (flute, oboe – http://www.myspace.com/guyharries), Mark Baigent (http://www.myspace.com/markbaigentoboe), Richard Moult, Alexandria Lawrence, etc. He also has developed a number of new projects – The Triple Tree with Andrew King (http://www.myspace.com/thetripletree), Grey Force Wakeford with Nick Grey and Kris Force (http://www.myspace.com/greyforcewakeford), Wardrobe with Andrew Liles (http://www.myspace.com/andrewowenliles) and his own solo project. Tony and Reeve have also gone about adding a new set of interesting artists to the Tursa stable: The Zunroyz: a Ukrainian folk band and the melancholic and atmospheric pop of London based Hong Kong in the 60s.

The rest of this decade looks like being an exciting one for the ever-expanding group of musicians associated with Tursa. With these new developments in mind and also wanting to get Tony’s take on his life and the various paths that he has taken up till now, I sat down for a cup of tea and a slice of Zucchini cake at Tony’s London residence with himself and Reeve Malka. We started by exploring Tony’s first interest in politics and discussed his membership of the International Socialist organization (who later morphed into the Socialist Workers Party):

PW – Tell me about your relationship with the International Socialists and your time as a member with them:

TW – Basically they (The IS) came to the door one day to sell my sister a copy of their paper, her being a member of the hoi polloi and all and she got involved. I was about 13 at the time she was 6 years older than me, she was a skinhead girl and I was a little mini skinhead. For me it started as an easy way to get into pubs, as most of the meetings were in pubs, then of course eventually you get involved, she started going out with one of the blokes in the party. So I got involved and became quite active and for a socialist or far left group I think they were one of the best around at the time or the best of a bad lot. They were quite easy going and had a sense of humour and it wasn’t dogmatic but it eventually morphed into the horror that is the SWP [Socialist Workers Party, Wikipedia].

PW – So in terms of the politics did you get disillusioned with them?

TW – Well I was a real mixture of things, my dad was a shop steward and an ex-military policeman and he was a supporter of Enoch Powell so I was a real mixture from my upbringing. I was very socialist, I was in a council estate that was right next to St Georges Hill which was one of the most expensive pieces of real estate in the country at that time. The houses there were full of rock stars, my dad had become a taxi driver and used to drive the stars and rich Arabs about, so there was a weird mixture of different competing prejudices within me. I considered myself to be pretty socialist and left wing but also I was pretty racist as a lot of people were. So there was a real mixture of different views. I also got involved in a lot of the anti-fascist campaigns of the time which is quite ironic as I get a lot of criticism now but I have probably punched more fascists than a lot of the people who criticise me have. There was for me no real disillusionment with the International Socialists but when the SWP came along and dominated the Rock Against Racism campaign and threw people like us into any warzone they could then I got fed up with it. The problems of the far left i.e. being very middle class dominated and the level of self hatred that is expressed where nothing English can ever be any good. All cultures are a mixture of good and bad.
It is a shame that today there still seems to be a self hatred that I think Orwell (George) talked about that is destructive and negative and alienating to a lot of people.

PW – Was that one of the reasons that you got disillusioned then?

TW – Yes it was just how we were treated as members. It is the same with all of these extremist groups they live in their own bubble. You can say exactly the same about parts of the far right; they’ve no connection to reality. Both extremes seem to meet up as `culty’ conspiracy loons. Certainly the far left and the working class could be living on different planets.

PW – So in terms of the music, which was very political at that point, Crisis were very political in a leftist sense, but then you move out of the far left, Crisis splits up and later Death In June forms. Then there is a use of symbolism that is associated with the far right and a whole image that seems to come from a far right aesthetic. Was part of the appeal of that politics and aesthetic finding; as Douglas P is quoted as saying, the ‘left wing’ of National Socialism or even of finding the socialist element of those politics and being attracted by that?

TW – Yes, I think that one of the dangers of being heavily involved in anti-fascism is the danger of attraction. You define yourself in opposition to something so much that you become obsessive. You find out more about it and it gets weird. I had always been a socialist but I didn’t see what was wrong with liking your country and being patriotic and I thought that the views of the British working people were being ignored. So, of course, in the name of a socialism that is patriotic and is interested in what is happening here and not a thousand miles away I looked around. So as I got disillusioned with the left then that became an interest. So when you find out about the Strasser Brothers [Wikipedia] and their ideas, it seemed to click with me, on a certain level and unfortunately, for me, it coincided with the NF [National Front, Wikipedia] having that strain within them. I remember picking up a magazine and being quite surprised because it was quite left wing. So when the members of left organisations are telling you that the NF are the boot boys of capitalism and a bosses front and then you read their material and it seems to be the total opposite of that so rather naively you think okay maybe there is something here. Maybe this is an alternative. I have to add that I was the only one to be stupid enough to fall for it. Neither Doug or Pat [Patrick Leagas] shared my death wish. But the reason that I do deeply regret it is the fact that, regardless of that the underlying strain of that politics is, or at least was then, anti-Semitism. That was also the bizarre thing that apart from having the left wing affectation of being very anti-Israel, I had had Jewish girlfriends before then, the Crisis song “Holocaust” was about the Nazi’s and the extermination program and I was very anti-Nazi and that is one of the real shameful things of it is that you get involved in the bubble that is far right politics and things you don’t believe in get ignored. When I joined I said that I was very socialist and patriotic and I don’t want to know about this holocaust denial and anti–Jewish stuff, I think that is bonkers. Then you get into it, you get in this bubble, you’re drinking and meeting with people and you just let things slide and in the end, I’m ashamed to say, you go out on the piss or to a party and you realise it’s for some dead genocidal maniacs birthday or something. At one point you would have been shocked at that, but because you are in this political bubble you just go along with it. Now, looking back on it, you realize you were aligning yourself to something that had they won power somewhere, would mean that many of your friends, and your wife would not have even been born.

PW – The NF were very good at recruiting amongst football casuals, young guys that were into music, culture and fighting and who were patriotic, socialist in some senses but had the feeling that the left was full of middle class intellectuals. But these people often got fed up with the leaderships of these organisations, wondered about their motivations and often when the more extreme elements of the racism came to the fore it contradicted their relationships with young black kids in their cities, workplaces or schools. How did you see the leadership of these organisations?

TW – I think that with all parties and extremist politics the further you go up the greasy pole the more corrupt and un-idealistic it becomes. You get all these Muppets on the ground, whether it is the NF or the SWP, who get their hands dirty and do all the groundwork but the further you go up the organisation the more cynical and corrupt it becomes. It’s all a bit of a cult.

PW – So when did you decide that you had had enough of that and when did you decide to move away from those politics?

TW – This period, for me, coincided with low level criminality, drugs (the taking and pushing of), drinking far too much, a general downward spiral. I woke up one day and realised that if the police had knocked on the door and come in and searched then I would have `gone away’ for a long period of time. I felt that despite all the changes in the NF and all the different ideas that the underlying ethos was still that the Jews are to blame. Even though there were some of us in the NF who would say that `if it rains they’ll blame the Jews’. Also, even though I was racist the idea of attacking someone because of their ethnic identity felt horrific, I was always polite to people in general whatever their background, because I’m very old school English like that. If people are polite to me then I am polite back. In fact I hate people’s bad manners far more than anything else, so it just wasn’t me. So although the people in the NF weren’t all the Devil incarnate there were some utter scumbags who should have been put down, so I thought what the hell am I doing, this just isn’t me. So I tried to just untangle myself from it all and it wasn’t immediate , it was a gradual process of getting out of it.

PW – So like leaving any organisation that you have spent time in you still have friendships with some of these people. Would it be fair to say that you maintained relationships with some people who had been in the organisation after you left?

TW – Most of the friendships that I had with people were with people that also became disillusioned with the politics. So very soon after leaving I didn’t have friendships with anyone who was still in the NF. Friendships in those organisations, just like the SWP, are often about being in the organisation and after you leave the friendship is dead, you become an outcast. It’s like a crap version of the Mafia. But yeh I don’t know anyone now who is a member of, or active in any of those organisations on the Far Right. But the people who left, we used to get together occasionally over a pint and have a moan and complain and it would always end up with us saying “what the fuck were we doing?”. Of course you still have residual views that carry on for a period of time but the further away you get from it the less you have those ideas. I mean now I’m the least that way inclined than ever, I don’t have any interest in it whatsoever. I find it quite alien. For me the past really is another country.

PW – So in terms of your trajectory since leaving the NF and DIJ what are the themes of Sol that are key concerns of yours. There seems to be a concentration on Englishness, Paganism, the Occult, the Runes, Religion are these new influences for you, or are they themes that are carried on from your earlier path?

TW – Yes, I think to be self critical, that I always needed a crutch of a big idea or a utopian dream. I think that the interest in Magic, the runes and Paganism was trying to fill a gap in a way and of course the Occult is just like all these political organisations in that it’s `cranksville’, people in bed sit thinking that they are great, either they are the new Lenin, Mosley or Aleister Crowley but the fact is they are wankers. In the end you come to the conclusion to mis-quote the Marx Brothers “that any organisation that wants you as a member is probably one that you don’t want to join”. I still find it very hard to look back on a lot of this stuff; I have just pushed it down not because I want to keep it a secret but because I’m embarrassed about it. I just want to forget about it but of course life is not like that. The English love belonging to things whether it is the Women’s Institute or Trainspotters and I guess that I have been a more extreme and sociopathic version of that.

PW – In terms of Sol’s development as that progressed and you got disillusioned with the magical and pagan elements of it what were the themes that remained strong for you in that work?

TW – I think that running all the way through it for good or ill is that I am an English artist and a lot of the music I like reflects a sense of place or culture because otherwise you are just playing lift music for corporate crap. Maybe I’m just being hopelessly reactionary but I think that music should be an expression of the artist. Part of what an artist is, not the only thing, but one thing is where you come from and the culture that you were brought up with and that should be reflected in the art you produce. So I am a very English artist and whether that is good or bad, I don’t know, but that is what I am. So all the hang ups and obsession of living on a little island, all the class, sexual and religious hang ups that England or Britain resonates with all come out in the music. Also, more generally, I write on a more personal perspective now. I’ve tub-thumped for long enough. So in the end how individuals think and feel and act is far more interesting than sprouting some ideology. Politics and art are very uncomfortable bed fellows. Especially when with music, they’re ending up singing alibis for murderers.

PW – So, when you take a good look at your lyrics over the last ten years then I would say that a lot of what you are expressing is the contradiction, the madness, the chaos of English life.

TW – Absolutely!

PW – Rather than saying isn’t this great, let’s fly the flag, it seems to be saying look at what is going on in this culture and look at the strangeness of it. Would you say that is a fair comment on your work?

TW – I am a bit embarrassed by flag waving, I like the kitsch value of it but I do know that it should be kitsch. So the whole contradictions of the English whether… I think that there is a quote that says “brave soldiers, cowardly civilians” if you stick a uniform and a medal on them they’ll die for you but in everyday life if you say jump they’ll say how high. There is also the whole class thing that I think a lot of Europeans don’t understand you know you can open your mouth in a pub and half the people in there will hate you – maybe it is not as much now but it is still there. The whole sexual hang up thing, I came from a very repressive working class family, my parents didn’t even undress in front of each other. I know that sounds ridiculous but it happens and those things have an effect on you. My dad was… another reason that I can speak about these things now, and my wife pointed this out to me, is that with a lot of the politics stuff etc. while my parents were still alive I didn’t want that to come out. My dad was one of those that liberated Neuengamme concentration camp, he had a walking stick… while I was in the NF I pushed all this aside, but I suddenly remembered that it was a walking stick that had been carved by one of the inmates as a thank-you to the soldiers who liberated them. It was very nice piece with the name of the concentration camp on it. Now that my parents are dead I feel more comfortable talking about these issues.

PW – How do you see yourself now? Sometimes you may be described as a Libertarian; do you think that is fair?

TW – In some ways I am a libertarian but there are certain issues that I have strong views on; People who are cruel to animals. Rapists and paedophiles, bullies in general I guess. I’m still a fascist when it comes to stuff like that. But apart from that if people aren’t hurting other people then they should be able to do what they like. That is another thing with the far right is that they had an irrational hatred of homosexuals; people have different views on things but nobody should be killed or discriminated against for who they sleep with.

RM – I think that it is easier for me because I have followed Tony’s music from the early years; a friend of mine introduced me to Sol Invictus and Death In June. I was attracted to Tony’s music because I think he maybe unconsciously developed this winning musical formula of one’s ideas, ideals and opinions through lyrics rendered by folk style music with an experimental nature (needless to mention that folk symbolizes the togetherness) topped with aggression, anger, beauty, mystery, the occult, and many other moods and emotions.

PW – So on the musical front there was definitely a strong feeling from you for what Sol was doing?

RM – Certainly, I loved what Sol Invictus is about, the lyrics and the way to hint and hide behind the words has a definite effect, his good old English sense of humour, the witty language, the insinuations, all of it is Tony’s artistic persona!

PW – What about your background as an Orthodox Israeli Jew? When you hear about Tony’s past how did you feel about that?

RM – I see things in a healthy way, you never judge a person for his opinions only for his actions.
If the good man had murdered someone or something like that then I definitely wouldn’t have anything to do with him. Everybody goes through changes and we always grow. I have to admit and it may seem strange but I knew nothing about Tony’s personal life till I met him, personally I have no intentions to know any details about a musician besides his music. I knew vaguely that there was something about DIJ and colleagues but never bothered to know more or stick my nose in someone else’s business, I’m not the type of person, I don’t like it and I don’t like when someone does it to me. It was after our first meeting when Tony emailed me a true and sincere email about his past, I then figured and said ah, so he was the trouble maker. I simply admired his openness and the good that he is after and took no time to reply yes, we’re going to work together! I have worked with big names in the industry and I will mention no names but there are some who did more harm and were anti-Semitic, people you least expect, but they often put on an efficient disguise.

PW – So now that the two of you are working together in Tursa, have you become a creative part of it as well as a financial part of it?

RM – Yes I am a creative and financial partner.

PW – Sol has this Neo-folk tag attached to it which sometimes makes sense and sometimes not at all and you come from a background where you have been into a wide variety of music and music scenes, do you see these tags as being useful in terms of an audience or categorisation?

RM – Basically I don’t like tags nor categories, I don’t like or want to have the need to explain my art or my intentions, it is strictly up to the individual to absorb and to experience it. It is up to the stores to categorize for efficiency and effectiveness of sales. The Neo-folk tag seems to work as long as the artist has no intention to limit his creativity and vision to one style of working. Artists should not use the Neo-folk flag as a style that can get stagnant and not be explored developed or progressed. I think it is quite unfortunate that the Neo-folk has a reputation that identifies with certain movements and ideals, as far as I am concerned most of the artists I listened to recently in this genre are simple copycats and some of them have got it very wrong or they simply don’t understand!

PW – The other development at the moment seems to be Orchestra Noir. There have been two previous projects that were quite classical in approach, what is the approach being taken with the new ON project?

TW – It’s got, not so much of the martial elements, I’m really tired of all these martial sounding acts, casio panzer divisions, plastic kettle drums etc. Richard and I when we first got together on this wanted to do something more emotional, much more personal but with classical elements and other ideas coming into it.

PW – Has that become much more of a band or unit as a whole?

TW – Well it used to be French based and now it is UK based. A lot of the people are now in London or the South East so it can come together much more easily now. Hopefully we will actually be able to play live. That won’t be easy especially with the nature of things as they are now (the expense of live performance) and with the fact that there are up to ten people involved. But the core of the project is me, Richard (Moult), Reeve and Mark (Baigent), the horrendously talented oboe player that we all hate. There is a lot of potential there, before I was knocking it out and someone else was arranging it where as now it is far more. Well not a democratic band because the ideas originate with me but Reeve gets involved. So for example the track “The Last Train”, Richard sent me a piano piece, there was a passage I liked so I looped it, wrote some bass and some lyrics and then everyone else got involved. Reeve created a really good percussion part that changed the direction of the piece, so it is a very interesting project.

RM – The track “Unto Eden” is an example of the new direction that we might take ON in, not for this coming album, but certainly for the next.

PW – So I’m not sure how many projects that you are now involved in, is it 7, why do think that you are involved in so many projects?

TW – I think that partly it is… I’m not sure really. I really enjoy that side of things and I hate the business side of things and Reeve as well as being an artist can do the business side. I think that some projects, like for example The Triple Tree – the M.R. James project, originally that was an Orchestra Noir project but it seemed to be too rigid for that so Andrew King and I developed that work. So these projects arise because we have such a big pool of fantastic musicians and within the Tursa family there seems to be no big egos. I’ve been in the music industry for a long time and I don’t know who is worst for ego versus talent; drama students or musicians. But within Tursa we have a great bunch of musicians who have no need for huge egos; they know they’re good and I know they’re good. We all respect each other and so far there has been no problem. I’m never sure whether those with the big egos are those who are lacking in talent?

With The Triple Tree, this started out as a one off project for Woven Wheat Whispers, a great on-line site that Mark Coyle started. He is a real unsung hero of the folk scene and I am very proud to have the Tursa catalogue as part of it.

PW – When people look at Tursa from the outside and don’t know about the development of it and Tony’s development they may look at someone like Richard Moult and ask questions about him e.g. where has he come from, he had links to an organisation that were on the extreme edges of Satanism and National Socialism, does he still have those ideas? He is not here himself so he can’t talk about it but how would you describe that relationship?

TW – The bizarre thing about it is that I didn’t know about Richards past at all until fairly recently and as soon as it came out I thought “oh no this is a conspiracy theorist’s wet dream”. I found out about him through Current 93 and his artwork and I thought that his work would be good for an album. When I was thinking about the solo album I contacted him and said that I really love your artwork and would you consider doing an album cover for me. He said that he would love to and we got talking and he said that he really loved the Orchestra Noir stuff and if you ever need someone to tinkle the keyboards then I’d love to do that. So we started collaborating and like a lot of these things nowadays you don’t meet, you send stuff to each other and work on it. But on one occasion he was coming up to London to do some stuff with us and I thought it was a good opportunity to have a conversation with him. Because of my past I like to tell people about it, I did it with Reeve because he is Jewish, Lesley and Caroline because they are gay.

RM – Yes he sent me an e-mail and we had a chat and I thought: great, this person is very genuine.

TW – There is always a cloud hanging over you, especially if they have a good reason to be offended by my past. But with Richard he was just a painter from Wales, so he came up and we were working and I thought I’ll make him a cup of tea and tell him. So I said `Richard I’ve got something to tell you’ and he said `well I’ve got something to tell you too’. I said `do you know about my past’ and he said `oh yes I know all about your past, don’t worry about it’. He then said `do you know the group the Order of the Nine Angles’ and I thought `oh my god, of course I know, David bloody Myatt!’. For me all of that is way beyond the pale, whatever he has been involved in whether it has been far right politics, magic or Islamic stuff, the underlying core of it has been a virulent anti-Semitism. For me that is just too much and I would never have any sympathy with any of that shit, I never will have and Richard knows that. If I thought that Richard was still involved in any of that then it would be `goodbye’. But for me I had to tell people who I wanted to work with about my past, like Reeve, Caroline, Lesley and they have been very gracious and understanding, so what am I meant to do when someone comes to me and says something that is of a similar situation. I couldn’t tell him to fuck off. I did think when he first said it that I might go for a piss and come back and find the cat with its throat cut splayed inside a pentagram, but he said to me that this was ten years ago and he totally rejects it now. So I thought okay, fair enough, if this is genuinely in the past then let’s keep working but I know that this will cause a load of shit and people will use it to stir things up. He is however ultra sensitive about it and he does think that he was stupid, but we know that if this wasn’t in the past then we couldn’t work together anymore. For me all the David Copeland stuff and everything about them is beyond the pale. I have been through some really shameful, horrible things in my life so it would be the height of hypocrisy for me to not treat him with respect when he says he has turned his back on those ideas. But of course, if I was looking at it from the outside then I would think look at these connections, but I genuinely didn’t know at the time and now we have resolved all of that. If I was part of some underground occult movement trying to pervert our pop kids then I think I would go about it in a slightly more undercover way.

PW – Another side to this, away from the politics is the classical and operatic side that Richard has brought to the Orchestra Noir project. He has a background in interpretations of Britten’s work and pastoral music and it seems to have brought another element into the project.

TW – Yes it really does and he has brought something else to it. There are some disparate strands involved but they work really well together and everyone who is working on it has said that they feel it is a very special project.

RM – Yes classical, experimental, ambient even some pop elements there is not much like it out there at the moment. The way this music is performed we achieve an emotional response, strong and soft at the same time, intelligent and elegant songs and we all seem to love the outcome- it is an extremely strong band!

PW – Before it has just been your voice, but now you are bringing in some female vocals to it. What was the thinking behind that?

TW – I’m not the biggest fan of my voice and with this project I thought that there was a definite need for contrast, because the female voice takes it into different areas and gives it a different feel. The contrast between the two is good, the melodies get more interesting. With the project you have Mark Baigent, who is one of the best oboe players in Europe and he is classically trained, but he can improvise and that adds to the sound and suits a variety of voices.

RM – He’s great, he can produce anything with his oboe!

TW – Then there is me, I don’t know that many chords, I just play what I play, but within that and with Reeve and Guy (Harries) who are great musicians, we gel really well and there is a great feeling about the group.

PW – So you have an album that is being completed and that is going to be released next year and that is coming out with which label?

TW – We don’t know yet. We are leaving our options open because we are not sure who to go with. It is a very important release and I don’t want it to trickle out and do a thousand. So we want it to come out on the right label that will really push it and promote it.

PW – For the Orchestra Noir stuff you, Reeve, have brought a lot of different feels to the music especially in the percussion end of things.

RM – Yes, I look at each song and lay down what is needed, lacking or what will make it work. I am a percussionist by nature and I always push towards rhythm but in the end it is up to us to decide on the production and the image of the project.

PW – So in terms of Sol Invictus? What is the plan there?

TW – We have an album planned for 2008 which at the moment is called The Cruellest Month. The last album was 2005 and this one has gone through many stages. It has been percolating for many months. It started off as basic guitar and voice and since then we have added a lot to that which may get stripped off again the nearer we get to the final mixes. Reeve has got some ideas for cello and trumpet parts so we again are going to spend time on it because it is also an important release. It will be the first studio album with this line up. So we are going to take our time and get it right. But I am very happy with the way it is going I think it will be a very good release.

PW – Apart from Orchestra Noir and Sol Invictus, what about The Triple Tree and Grey Force Wakeford?

TW – Grey Force Wakeford (a collaboration between Tony Wakeford, Kris Force and Nick Grey) is all done and dusted as an album, Athanor are going to be putting that out next year. The Triple Tree will be put out by Cold Spring in January. Also Renee and I did a concert in Norway, with a communist promoter no less, and friends of his have a band that are mainly accapella with bits of percussion but amazingly beautiful. So we may do some work with them on Tursa or with Orchestra Noir and bring something out.

PW – So you are using Tursa for some projects and other labels for others like Cold Spring for example. They put out a CD from the concert you did last year, how is the relationship with them working?

TW – Yes that relationship is good. Justin has been really supportive and has stuck by us after the World Serpent fiasco. I like the fact that he is generally a good bloke and he has been very good with us. He organised a good concert and put out the compilation so he’s been fantastic. I don’t like everything on the label but you could say that about most labels and it is his project. So he has always treated me very fairly and likes The Triple Tree. God that sounds so sycophantic. He is a northern git and Cold Spring is just a front for dwarf smuggling into the UK. Something should be done!

PW – So in a way this is an example of the diversification in the music industry using different labels and looking at how those labels may connect you to audiences etc?

TW – Exactly, we will have the Tursa logo on the albums but we are using lots of different labels and we see ourselves as almost a production label. But that is the way the industry is going it is all about diversification and the whole industry at the moment is in flux.

PW – And what about your other projects Reeve?

RM – I am doing a project called iNiT as well as Hatch with my dear friend and a colleague of 12 years Guy Harries and I’m quite proud of them. iNiT is electronic pop rock infused with middle eastern influences and people seem to really love it and dance to it. With iNiT we are looking for a major label as it is pop and dance orientated music. I also work and perform under the name of M and have a few unreleased albums of which one is double album masterpiece with Jarboe of Swans and I’ll release them when the time is right!

I also play in and produce The Miller Test also on Tursa, as well as Zunroyz which is a band I was commissioned to put on together for a few highly successful shows and then had a pressure to record an album and when I gave Tony a copy we decided to bring it to the Tursa repertoire.

PW – Are there any other projects that you are involved with at present Tony?

TW- I’m working on a solo album for the Israeli label The Eastern Front. I met Tanya and Igor who run the label when I was staying in Tel Aviv. The album will be called Not All Of Me Will Die and is based on the poems of the Polish poetess Zuzanna Ginczanka. I’m exploiting the talents of people from Zunroyz, Sol and Orchestra Noir on it. I’m very pleased with how it’s going. I find the couple of poems by her translated into English very moving and powerful. She was shot by the Nazis in Krakow just before the end of the war. She was denounced to them by a neighbour. Her work was ignored by the Communists. I guess being Jewish and having friends in the Polish resistance did not put her in Uncle Joe’s top ten.

With that I finished my Zucchini cake and cup of tea with soya milk said my goodbyes and headed for the exit. Tursa and the individuals that make it up, as a production label and a group of musicians are producing music of real quality that stretches way beyond the confines of a narrowly defined Neo-folk whilst also maintaining its relationship with that audience. Tony Wakeford has forged an interesting and productive relationship with Reeve Malka and a listen to the various MySpace pages of Sol Invictus, Orchestra Noir, The Triple Tree, Grey Force Wakeford and Tursa show the breadth of music that Wakeford is instrumental in producing. The story of Tursa is also one of change. Tony Wakeford’s own personal journey reflects this change and shows how a simplistic view of someone’s political history can never capture the place that they have come to. Wakeford seems at one with himself and very open to a discussion of a period of his life which now is well and truly behind him. The future looks increasingly good for the various projects that Tursa has instigated in the last few years and the label is striving to provide an alternative beacon for independent music and production in the 21st century.

[Interview with Tony Wakeford and Reeve Malka, London, September 2007. Written and undertaken by Peter Webb, February 2008]

Links:

Review: John Barleycorn Reborn (2007)

admin — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 23:00:56 +0000

artist: V.A.
release: John Barleycorn Reborn : Dark Britannica
format: 2CD + MP3
year of release: 2007
label: Cold Spring & Woven Wheat Whispers
duration: 5:08:16

detailed info: discogs.com

Where to begin with an absolutely massive compilation like this? Well, it all started with Mark Coyle’s Woven Wheat Whispers label, which started in late 2005. Since then, he has managed to gather an impressive number of artists to his MP3-only label, covering the broad area of underground modern folk music, ranging from traditional to folk rock, from neofolk to psychedelic folk, from mediaeval to pagan folk. Hundreds of albums have been (re-)released, and the scope of the label has become huge. All the more reason why an overview compilation like this one is very welcome. Not only does the first edition of the John Barleycorn Reborn series contain a host of great artists, this is only the tip of the iceberg, for as the subtitle gives away, only English artists have been featured on this album (with the unforeseen exception of novemthree). More editions are to come, which will contain American artists, other European countries, and who knows what else?

But, let’s focus on this one first. In collaboration with English neofolk/post-industrial label Cold Spring, Woven Wheat Whispers has released the main part of the compilation on a fine 2CD set, contain well over two and a half hours of music. But, a WWW release wouldn’t be complete without some free stuff. In this case, this means a huge MP3 supplement, freely downloadable if you’ve bought the CDs. It contains a further two and a half hours of music, making the total running time of the set over five hours – now there’s value for money.

But, the value is not only in quantity, but also in quality, as there are so many great artists from various subareas of the folk world featured on this compilation. Even more so here than anywhere else, it would be a fool’s errand to try and give an in-depth review of every track. As it as, I’ll try and pick out the highlights, while giving a taste of the diversity contained in here at the same time. Of course, this compilation wouldn’t be complete without renditions of the traditional song that gave it its name: “John Barleycorn”. Both CDs start with a version of this classic, and The Horses of the Gods and The Anvil both pull it off convincingly and originally. Other traditionals also feature on the album, such as “Lay the Bent to the Bonny Broom” by Charlotte Greig and Johan Asherton, who deliver a long, intimate rendition of this cruel ballad. Clive Powell‘s “Reed Sodger” is based on various pieces of traditional rhyme, and features Clive’s unique voice over subtle electronics. The omnipresent (but rarely dull) “Twa Corbies” is here executed by pyschedelic folkrockers Mary Jane, who turn this track into a quite funky affair. “Pew Pew” is a Scottish traditional text, here set to harp and recorder by Quickthorn, featuring the vocals of Prydwyn. But, one of my absolute favourites has to be Venereum Arvum‘s version of “Child 102″, the ballad of the birth of Robin Hood. Sean and Rachel’s vocals soar in unison above subtle accompaniment, letting the beauty of the melody speak for itself convincingly.

Also the non-traditional tracks contain some great stuff. The English division of neofolk can’t be left out here, of course, and least of all Tony Wakeford‘s Sol Invictus, who come with a brand new track, representative of the band’s recent experimental direction. This is equally true of The Triple Tree, where Tony collaborates with Andrew King. “Three Crowns” is a dark track combining acoustic soundscapes with obscure folkloric themes (in this case from an M.R. James story). Andrew King solo is a guarantee for traditional song delivered with conviction, and based on proper research, and his version of “Dives and Lazarus” is no exception. This is a re-recorded version of the track which originally appeared on the split with Changes. Matt Howden‘s Sieben is also featured with a remix of a track from Ogham Inside the Night; a fine example of his original violin ‘n’ vocals approach to folky modern song. Finally, there’s While Angels Watch, with a not totally convincing track, which nevertheless has a very nice atmosphere and development.

But there’s so much more going on here I just have to mention. Damh the Bard delivers a rousing piece of pagan folk on “Spirit of Albion”. The Kitchen Cynics‘ “The Guidman’s Ground” is a song based on spacy guitar, accompanied by subtle vocals telling a rather dark folk narrative. “Summerhouse” by The A. Lords is a wonderfully serene piece of pastoral music, based on guitar, organ, and field recordings. The ever impressive Sharron Kraus comes with the very nice little “Horn Dance”. More esoteric things are happening with Alphane Moon, who offer a brilliant mix of semi-gregorian singing and the mystic acoustic sounds we’ve come to expect from these people at Oggum Records. Even more occult is English Heretic, of course, as always exploring obscure folkloric subjects, and presenting the results in the form of experimental music, here with electric guitar freakiness, wild vocals, drums, and samples. “Stained Glass Morning” by Sand Snowman is a great piece of psychedelic folk, combining superb acoustic guitar melodies with soothing female vocals.

And that was just the first 2CD part of the collection! If you get this album, be sure to get the free MP3 download as well, because there are quite some hidden gems in there as well. Of course, no time to mention them all, but here’s the ones that stuck with me most. First of all, Far Black Furlong present a wonderful epilogue (again with great oboe work) to the already excellent The East Room album, also on Woven Wheat Whispers. Odd one out is American novemthree, who nevertheless brings two convincing instrumental track of his foresty folk with nice percussion. Alan Trench and Martyn Bates‘ Twelve Thousand Days presents “Thistles”, a wonderful track from their 2006 album From the Walled Garden. Other work of Trench’s is also featured, with nice tracks by Orchis and Cunnan. Paul Newman‘s “Lavondyss” is a very good melancholic track on vocals and acoustic guitar. We also get a very nice selection of tunes from some of England’s finest mediaeval artists, such as The Daughters of Elvin and Steve Tyler. Best of all is Misericordia‘s “De Poni Amor A Me”, a superb song based on hammered dulcimer, hurdy-gurdy, and bagpipes.

I haven’t mentioned all, of course, and this is not the place for an even more in-depth approach. It doesn’t mean the unmentioned tracks aren’t good or interesting, of course, because this compilation has a very consistent quality level. What’s also not mentioned yet is that in addition to a load of great music, John Barleycorn Reborn also has a very firm folkloric concept. A selection of artists, as well as project initiator Mark Coyle have written short contributions in the booklet, to clarify their feeling towards this compilation, and towards the new folk revival that is being documented by it. For I believe a revival is a correct term. Folk music and lore has served as an inspiration to many artists over the past two decades or so, John Barleycorn Reborn is one of the first to provide an overview of at least a part of this area of music so full of original approaches. I firmly believe that this set and its followers will serve as a monument to this revival, and I imagine myself looking back to this in a couple of decades with a sense of nostalgia. I commend Woven Wheat Whispers and Cold Spring for putting this together for us, and I’m looking forward to the followups. Anyone who wants to know what’s happening in underground folk music these days should absolutely get this treasure trove! Even for those who knew many of the artists already, there is loads to discover.

Reviewed by O.S.

Tracklist:

Part 1: Birth:

1. The Horses Of The Gods – John Barleycorn (3:56)
2. The Owl Service – North Country Maid (2:39)
3. The Story – The Wicker Man (2:30)
4. Damh The Bard – Spirit of Albion (4:15)
5. Mary Jane – Twa Corbies (5:13)
6. Andrew King – Dives and Lazarus (6:29)
7. The Triple Tree – Three Crowns (5:37)
8. Sol Invictus – To Kill All Kings (5:55)
9. Sieben – Ogham On The Hill (Remix) (4:03)
10. Sharron Kraus – Horn Dance (3:30)
11. Charlotte Greig And Johan Asherton – Lay The Bent To The Bonny Broom (7:54)
12. Pumajaw – The Burning Of Auchindoun (5:43)
13. Peter Ulrich – The Scryer & The Shewstone (5:06)
14. Alphane Moon – Where The Hazel Grows (4:30)
15. English Heretic – Hippomania (6:50)
16. Far Black Furlong – Icy Solstice Eye (3:28)

Part 2: Death:

1. The Anvil – John Barleycorn Must Die (4:37)
2. Tinkerscuss – To Make You Stay (2:55)
3. The Straw Bear Band – Trial By Bread & Butter (3:37)
4. Electronic Voice Phenomena – The Sorrow Of Rimmon (3:56)
5. The Purple Minds Of Lazeron – Dragonfly (4:21)
6. Sand Snowman – Stained Glass Morning (5:56)
7. The A. Lords – Summerhouse (5:11)
8. The Kitchen Cynics – The Guidman’s Ground (4:18)
9. Quickthorn – Pew Pew (2:32)
10. Clive Powell – Reed Sodger (4:19)
11. Venereum Arvum – Child 102: Willie and Earl Richard’s Daughter (aka The Birth of Robin Hood) (7:33)
12. Drohne – Nottamun Town (6:55)
13. Stormcrow – Gargoyle (6:16)
14. Doug Peters – Pact (4:21)
15. While Angels Watch – Obsidian Blade (5:07)
16. Xenis Emputae Travelling Band – John Barleycorn: His Life, Death And Resurrection (4:52)
17. Martyn Bates – The Resurrection Apprentice (2:42)

Part 3: Rebirth:

1. Magpiety – The Rolling Of The Stones (2:05)
2. The Story – All Hallow’s Eve (5:07)
3. Telling The Bees – Wood (4:44)
4. David A Jaycock – Bonny Jaycock Turner (2:46)
5. Yealand Redmayne – Oh My Boy, My Bonny Boy (3:49)
6. Charlotte Greig and Johan Asherton – The Bold Fisherman (4:37)
7. Steve Tyler – Tierceron (4:02)
8. The Wendigo – The Wendigo (6:32)
9. The Owl Service – Wake the Vaulted Echo [Tigon Mix] (4:52)
10. Far Black Furlong – The East Room V (3:35)
11. Xenis Emputae Travelling Band – Brightening Dew (3:14)
12. Sedayne – Corvus Monedula (4:05)
13. The Straw Bear Band – Bear Ghost (5:08)
14. Novemthree – Scythe to the Grass (2:33)
15. Paul Newman – Lavondyss (4:59)
16. James Reid – Kingfisher Blue (5:17)
17. JefvTaon – (Digging The) Midnight Silver (4:24)
18. Wooden Spoon – Children’s Soul (1:49)
19. Big Eyes Family Players – A Dream of Fires (3:20)
20. Sundog – Kilpeck June 2007 (4:15)
21. Clive Powell – Ca The Horse, Me Marra (11:14)
22. Mac Henderson of Grand Union Morris – Jack In The Green (2:41)
23. Cunnan – Seven Sleeps, Seven Sorrows (11:58)
24. Orchis – The Silkie (3:46)
25. Twelve Thousand Days – Thistles (5:30)
26. Novemthree – Harvest Dance (2:32)
27. James Reid – Elder (3:51)
28. Mary Jane – When I Was In My Prime (5:06)
29. The Daughters of Elvin – Ognor Mi Trovo (3:19)
30. Misericordia – De Poni Amor A Me (6:15)
31. Venereum Arvum – Child 102 (lily flower mix) (7:54)
32. The Anvil – John Barleycorn Must Live (5:39)
33. The Sunshine People – The Old Way (1:07)