-
neumu
Monday, November 11, 2024 
-
-
--archival-captured-cinematronic-continuity error-daily report-datastream-depth of field--
-
--drama-44.1 khz-gramophone-inquisitive-needle drops-picture book-twinklepop--
-
Neumu = Art + Music + Words
Search Neumu:  

illustration



edited by michael goldbergcontact


Old And New With Death Vessel

The music of Death Vessel (a Providence, Rhode Island-based collaboration of Joel Thibodeau, Eric Carlson and Pete Donnelly) reaches far back into the past, beyond the 1960s and 1970s folk troubadours beloved by psyche-folk artists, toward old-time minstrels, hootenannists and string-band itinerants. Cuts like "Mandan Dink," off the new Stay Close on Northeast Indie, feel like authentic relics of another age. From the latticework guitar-picking to the high, lonely vocals, the mood is so old-time that you wait for the pop and crackle of 78 vinyl. Yet on other cuts, such as the glowingly beautiful "Break the Empress Crown," more modern textures and tones permeate the sunny melody.

Thibodeau says that this contradiction — between familiar and antique — is something that fascinates him, not just in music, but in older objects, writing and art.

"Music, but also objects, have this whole other dimension of emotion to them," Thibodeau said. "Some of the issues that people are dealing with in old songs and old writings are things that we don't seem to deal with right now. Of course, there's a continuing emotional sentiment carried over, as far as just humanity goes, but just the type of troubles that you have, or the things you do in your daily life... what we do today is so different."

He added, "A lot of old folk music has this contradictory element, where things can be very pleasing and disturbing at the same time. I don't really know what that's all about, but it ends up being very interesting."

"It's the combination of familiarity and strangeness," agreed Carlson. "You recognize the thing, whether it's an old object or music or writing. You recognize what it is and what it was for and why people were doing it. Still, the fact that it's from this different era makes it strange and allows you to see things about it that you can't see in things from your own time period. It's that removal that adds an element of strangeness, but it's not just the strangeness... it's that it allows you to see these things and feel them in a different way because they're familiar and yet very removed from you."

For instance, the band's first album, Stay Close, now out on Northeast Indie, is illustrated with an altered daguerreotype showing three boys, one unmistakably lying dead in the arms of his brother. Thibodeau's brother and artist William Shaft found the image and added a skeleton's image. The result is disturbing, backward-looking and oddly beautiful, just like the music inside.

Thibodeau is originally from around Kennebunkport, Maine, while Carlson grew up in Ohio. The two met in Boston in the mid-1990s, when both were fully committed to other bands. Thibodeau was playing in the traditionally-rooted Stringbuilder with his brother Alex, while Carlson was in the more modern Purple Ivy Shadows. With both bands slowing down, the two began to talk about working on a project together, something that, as Carlson put it, would combine their very different strengths.

In fact, they ended up with two projects. Death Vessel brought Carlson's strong sense of texture and atmosphere to Thibodeau's tradition-referencing song structures, while Area C harnessed Thibodeau's folk instrumental skills in a more free-form and experimental format. Both bands had two members — Thibodeau and Carlson — creating a bit of confusion for Boston-area bookers. "We would do these different duo shows. It would be myself and Eric and then... myself and Eric," said Thibodeau.

Carlson, meanwhile, was becoming more and more fascinated with older folk music, particularly through the landmark Anthology of American Folk Music. "There was just a fascinating quality to that folk music that had been passed around by generations, but also something that was expressed through musicians who were trying to make it as musicians in their own way in that period," he said. "And just the oddity of the recordings themselves, the sound quality of those recordings, was what made them so captivating. That's always been something that's been important to me, how things sound, the way recordings sound has a lot to do with the effect that it has on me as a listener, and the quality of those recordings and the way music and personalities were expressed through that was very influential for me, and I think... I'm not sure exactly how, but it definitely affected the way that I approach songs that Joel and I were working on together."

Yet while these earlier influences were definitely important, Thibodeau also drew inspiration from more contemporary songwriters, including Tom Waits, Stephin Merritt of the Magnetic Fields, and Will Oldham of Palace and other bands. "But one of the things that those bands or people all do is to make these songs that obviously have stories that go to them," he said. "And also, all three of those people have a very distinct sound that, again, creates this kind of mood that, it's unmistakable if you listen to any of those bands, who it is. That's partly what makes them great."

Carlson explained that while Thibodeau does most of the initial songwriting, the two of them work closely together to bring melody, mood and instrumentation into alignment. "We take those bones of it, the essential elements of the song, and really spend a lot of times trying different ways and just exploring the different possibilities within those parts and trying different things over," he said. "When we are playing together, it's just exploring the different ways that we can play our instruments together. That's essentially leading to the finished idea."

On Stay Close the pair also drew on the talents of a number of like-minded musicians. Pete Donnelly, who appears on nearly every track, singing and playing bass and drums, recorded the album. Micah Blue Smalldone, who like Thibodeau is originally from coastal Maine, contributed his intricate, traditionally-rooted guitar-picking to two tracks. Stand-up bass came from Brendan Skwire, who also plays with Jim and Jennie and the Pinetops, while Laura and Meg Baird (who also is a member of the Espers) provided gorgeous backing vocals.

The songs range from very traditional ("Mandan Dink" "Tidy Nervous Breakdown") to sunnily lyrical ("Break the Empress Crown") to more rock-oriented. "Blowing Cave" blends an Appalachian minor-key guitar pattern with distorted electric guitar slashes for one of the album's most intense and striking tracks. Thibodeau says that the idea for this track came from his boyhood home. "I grew up in Maine, and apparently pirates in Maine weren't able to bury treasure in the sand, so they would actually bury it in caves," he explained. "The town that I grew up in in Maine has this place called 'Blowing Cave,' which is this hollowed-out little cave, supposedly a pirate cave."

Cerberus Shoal's Chriss Sutherland, who knows Thibodeau from his Stringbuilder days, said, "Joel has a little Neil Young in there, with a mix of Carter Family and Bill Monroe. Maybe he sings indie grass." He added, "He is adorable and his voice is angelic. On a good night, if you're open to it, Joel can really take you away."

Thibodeau says he has already started working on a new record, which will most likely be recorded this winter, with Donnelly again, in a studio in Philadelphia. He is also playing a few shows throughout the Northeast. Check the band's Web site (www.deathvessel.com) for confirmed dates.

If you go, though, don't yell out any requests for "Girl From the North Country" or "My Back Pages." A recent Dylan-themed show in Boston, timed to coincide with an exhibit of newly rediscovered photos of the artist from 1964, left Thibodeau literally speechless. "I think that Dylan's a great songwriter that has had a really big impact on a generation, and that's obviously carried over. His voice is so strong, and his music is so strong and enigmatic, to play his songs is very strange to me. So I was going to do 'Love Minus Zero,' and I got to the second line and I... drew a blank." An unusual event for one of new folk/bluegrass' most assured and unusual new voices. — Jennifer Kelly [Tuesday, December 20, 2005]


Alejandro Escovedo's Joyous Rebirth

John Vanderslice Kicks Genre

Paul Duncan's Elusive Pop

Stephen Yerkey's Wandering Songs

French Kicks Complete 'Two Thousand'

Spazzy Romanticism: Love Story In Blood Red

Brain Surgeons NYC Rock The Big Questions

Jarboe's 'Men' Charts Turbulent Emotions

Delta 5's Edgy Post-Punk Resurrected

Blitzen Trapper Spiff Things Up

Minus Five: Booze, Betrayal, Bibles and Guns

New Compilation Spotlights Forgotten Folk Guitar Heroes

Chris Brokaw's Experiment In Pop

Old And New With Death Vessel

Silver Jews: Salvation And Redemption

Jana Hunter's Beautiful Doom

Vashti Bunyan Finds Her Voice Again

Nick Castro's Turkish Folk Delight

Katrina Hits New Orleans Musicians Hard

Paula Frazer's Eerie Beauty

The National Find Emotional Balance

Death Cab For Cutie's New Album, Tour

Heavy Trash's Rockabilly Rampage

Help The Wrens Get Their Albums Released!

Devendra Banhart, Andy Cabic Launch Label

Lydia Lunch's Noir Seductions

Bosque Brown's The Real Deal

PDX Pop Now! Fest Announces Lineup

Sarah Dougher Starts Women-Focused Label

Jennifer Gentle's Joyful Psyche

Mountain Goat Darnielle Gets Autobiographical With 'Sunset Tree'

Mia Doi Todd's Beautiful Collaboration

Return of the Gang of Four

Martha Wainwright Finds Her Voice

Brian Jonestown Massacre's Acid Joyride

Solo Disc Due From Pixies' Frank Black

Heartless Bastards' Big-Hearted Rock

Mike Watt's Midlife Journey

The Black Swans Balance Old And New

Nicolai Dunger's Swedish Blues

The Insomniacs' Hard-Edged Pop

Yo La Tengo Collection Due

Juana Molina's 'Homemade' Sound

Beans Evolves

Earlimart's Songs Of Loss

Devendra Banhart's 'Mosquito Drawings'

Negativland Rerelease 'Helter Stupid'

Alina Simone Transforms The Ordinary

Sounds From Nature: Laura Veirs

Octet's Fractured Electric Pop

Sleater-Kinney Working With Lips Producer

The Cult Of Silkworm

The Evolution Of The Concretes

Devendra Banhart's Exuberant New Songs

Catching Up With The Incredible String Band

Gram Rabbit's Desert Visions

Three Indie-Rock Stars Unite As Maritime

Remembering Johnny Ramone

Jarboe's Many Voices

Phil Elvrum's Long Hard Winter

First U.S. Release For Vashti Bunyan Album

Incredible String Band To Tour U.S.

New Music From Lydia Lunch

Le Tigre Protest The Bush War Presidency

Joel RL Phelps: Bleak Songs Rock Hard

Time Tripping With Galaxie 500

Patti Smith Wants Bush Out!

Sharron Kraus: A New Kind Of Folk Music

The Fiery Furnaces' Psychedelic Theater

Harder, Heavier Burning Brides

Sonic Youth's Ongoing Experiment

The Dt's Do It Their Way

Poster Children Cover Political Rock

Rare Thelonious Monk Recordings Due

Uneasy Pop From dios

Beck, Lips, Waits Cover Daniel Johnston

Understanding Franz Ferdinand

The Truly Amazing Joanna Newsom

Mylab's Boundary-Crossing Experiments In Sound

Have You Heard Jolie Holland Whistle?

The 'Magical Realism' Of Vetiver

The Restless, Rootsy Songs Of Eszter Balint

The Sun Sets On The Blasters

Devendra Banhart To Tour U.S.

The East/West Fusion Sounds Of Macha

Destroyer Gets Mellow For Your Blues

TV On The Radio Get Political

Sonic Youth, Modest Mouse To Play Lollapalooza 2004

New Music From The Fall

Apocalyptic Sound From The Intelligence

Fast And Rude With The Casual Dots

'Rejoicing' With Devendra Banhart

New Album, Tour From The Polyphonic Spree

Shearwater Take Wing

Sleater-Kinney To Tour East/West Coasts

Resurrecting Rocket From The Tombs

Visqueen Want To Get A Riot Goin' On

Lloyd Cole Makes A Commotion

Funkstörung's 'Cut-Up' Theory

Waiting For Mirah's C'mon Miracle

Electrelane Find Their Voice

The Television Is Still On!

Experimental Sounds From Hannah Marcus

The Ponys Play With Rayguns

Ex-Mono Men Leader Returns With The Dt's

Mountain Goats' Darnielle Adopts A More Hi-Fi Sound

Sun Kil Moon To Tour U.S., Europe

Nothin' But The Truth From The Von Bondies

Sultans Survive 'Shipwreck'

Sebadoh Reunite For Spring Tour

Xiu Xiu's 'Reality' Rock

Meet The Patients

Beth Orton, M. Ward Make Sadness Taste Sweet

Oneida's Pathway To Ecstasy

Radiohead, Pixies, Dizzee Rascal To Play Coachella

Young People Tour Behind War Prayers

Pixies Tour Dates Announced

Ani DiFranco Tells It Like It Is

Deerhoof Back For 2004 With Milkman

McLusky Set To 'Bring On The Big Guitars' Again

Pixies Reunite For U.S., European Tours

American Music Club, Decemberists To Play NoisePop 2004

Damien Rice Set To Tour U.S.

The Frames Accept Your Love

Punk Rock's A-Frames To Re-Record Third Album

Finally! Mission Of Burma Record New Album

A Solo Detour For Ladybug Transistor's Sasha Bell

Return Of The Old 97's

Spending The Night With Damien Rice

Tindersticks Reissues Due This Spring

The Evolution Of 'A Silver Mt. Zion'

Neil Young Rocks Australia With 'Greendale'

Poster Children Back In Action

'The Great Cat Power Disaster Of 2003'

Chicks On Speed's Subversive Strategies

Oranger At A Crossroad

Peaches On Tour And In Control

Jawbreaker's Complete Dear You Sessions To Be Released

Belle & Sebastian + Trevor Horn = Sunny Pop Nirvana

Von Bondies' Pawn Shoppe Heart

Descendents Are Back!

Modest Mouse Touring; Album Due in 2004

London Suede Take A (Permanent?) Break

Saul Williams Wants You To Think For Yourself

The 'Zen' Sound Of Calexico

Elliott Smith Dead AT 34

Debut Due From Mark Kozelek's Sun Kil Moon

The Hunches: Music That'll 'Fucking Live Forever'

Vic Chesnutt Speaks His Mind

90 Day Men Cancel Tour

Keith Jarrett, Cecil Taylor Highlight SF Jazz Festival

For My Morning Jacket, It's The Music That Matters

EP Due From The Polyphonic Spree

Bright Eyes, Neva Dinova Collaborate On EP

The Rise & Fall & Rise Of Ben Lee

Catching Up With Cheerfully Defiant Tricky

Hanging Around With The Polyphonic Spree

Sophomore Album Due From The Shins

Noise Rock From Iceland's Singapore Sling

Death Cab To Tour U.S.

Rufus Wainwright's Want One Is 'Family Affair'

Death Cab's Transatlanticism On The Way

Heartfelt Rock From Sweden's Last Days Of April

The Minus 5 Get Down With Wilco

Tywanna Jo Baskette's Southern-Gothic Rock

Xiu Xiu's Stewart Takes On 'Gay-bashing'

Portishead Producer Resurfaces Behind New Diva

Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Wire, Primal Scream On Buddyhead Comp

Yeah Yeah Yeahs To Tour West Coast

Sonic Youth, Erase Errata Kick Off 'Buddy Series'

The Locust Are One Scary Band

Damien Rice In The 'Here And Now'

Remembering Karp's Scott Jernigan

ATP-NY Postponed 'Til At Least 2004

The Soul Of Chris Lee

Gits' Frenching The Bully To See Re-Release

Stephen Malkmus Is In Control

Superchunk To Release Rarities Set; Teenage Girls To Swoon As A Result

Summer Touring For The Gossip

Babbling On About Deerhoof

Irish Song Poet Damien Rice's O Released In U.S.

Chatting With ATP's Barry Hogan

Former Digable Planets Frontman Surfaces With Cherrywine

ATP L.A. Festival Rescheduled For Fall

Freakwater's Janet Bean Takes A Solo Turn

Lee's 'Cool Rock'

Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs Highlight YES NEW YORK

Mark Romanek's 'Hurt' Revives Johnny Cash's Career

The Rapture's Post-Punk, Post-Dance Sound

R.E.M., Wilco, Modest Mouse Highlight Bumbershoot Fest

Set Fires To Flames' Sleep-Deprivation Sound

Southern Gothic Past Shadows Verbena's La Musica Negra

The Subtle Evolution Of Yo La Tengo

Spring Tour For Jolie Holland (Plus A Live Album)

Liz Phair Still Pushing The Limits

Gold Chains Wants You To Dance And Think

Young People's War Prayers On The Way



peruse archival
 



-
-snippetcontactsnippetcontributorssnippetvisionsnippethelpsnippetcopyrightsnippetlegalsnippetterms of usesnippetThis site is Copyright © 2003 Insider One LLC
-