Artist: Paladin
Title: A Feast In The Time Of Plague
Type: Album
Label: Digital / Fogged Entity
A Feast In A Time Of Plague. Even before I hit play for some reason that title resonated with me; a title for our times as well as the world in our minds. But what do Paladin do with such a power?
More than you could imagine.
‘Rowan And Rye’ suggests some countryside, perhaps agricultural melody but as it opens up with low plucked notes and a steady drum breat, the layers begin to slide over and an absolutely gorgeous, rich medieval sound fills your soul. Think Dead Can Dance circa ‘Aeon’; incredible, deft compostion which at first is so immediate it seems simple and yet the arrangement, the layering, the atmosphere is… full of such grace. It is a bright flickering light.
‘Midsummer Crown’ is a slower wistful sound. Imagine the bright sparkle of some village celebration brought to the castle and played by the royal minstrel. The tune, the melody, the emotion the same but the sound somehow refined to dwell in vaulted halls and genteel ears. But bringing the touch of the countryside to them in truth.
‘Stonecircle Dance’ somehow, with its agile drumbeat and and insurgent like bass notes, the scampering melody offer delight and a lightness of being. But then it halts, a moment of introspection perhaps to allow the significance of the celebration to rest upon you. To bring you closer to realising the power of nature about you. And then it smiles once more, the dance returns with joy and an added layer of respect to the beat. This is just masterful music.
‘Bones Beneath The Abbey’ as you might expect has a layer of melancholy to it, but that sadness is with the lightness of the tune, tempered with a certain happiness for the memories it perhaps evokes. It’s measured tones make me think of a life lived well, of a soul with respect. Someone worthy of remembering even if the rest of the world has moved on and left the name in the dust in the mausoleum. A moment of reverie, of solitude. And maybe the hope that when out time comes someone, some time, will remebr our name in the same simple tones.
‘Scythe Of The Summer Lord’ somehow brings a vision of a slow dance, people in white robes in a slow exchange, arm to arm to the beat of the tambourine. There is light in this place, within or without, and there is a seriousness but no regret. Just following the flow of the season. Till, sow, grow, reap….
Strange the complexity of vision music can bring.
‘The Five Bells Of Chailey’ has a lovely deep drum sound, a swift but smooth layering of notes and melodies. And then it grows quiet. For some reason, my mind refuses to clarify why, I begin to feel a little trepidation. Perhaps the low, almost subliminal drone that gradually rises as though some cloud is on the horizon. But then the woodwind sounds pipe up, a lovely harmony between them and that worry is soothed. Something watches over us and for the moment its watch is gentle.
‘Candle’s End’ is the close. With a slow rhythm but the swift sprinkle of notes it has a bittersweet air to it. Solitude in the deeper melody that coaxes the next one to rise with it. Friends at the soft end of the early hours, a low light, a night shared in the quiet company worth a thousand riotous, drunken taverns. Memories sdhared once more, smiles given, gentle humour. And the candlelight fades.
This is just one of the most beautiful, and if I may, sweet but nontheless deeply emotional works I have heard this year. Nimble notes and perfect arrangements bring light joy and quiet introspection. Courtly demeanour, rural celebration, respect for those passed and love for those still with us. Paladin have given us something deceptively intricate, and strong in its delicacy. Something we all need.
Gizmo
Walking The Liminal Space 