Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best collaboration between the two artists, 11 Jun 2002
Yet another vital entry in the canon of Sidsel Endresen, the most important and original musical voice on the planet. Of her three collaborations with Wesseltoft, this is the one with most intent. There's only one cover version here - an arresting version of a song by Neil Young - the rest being original compositions. There is a slight feeling here of a bits and pieces collection, but once one has put that reservation aside, the album works cohesively as a whole. The opener 'Truth', is a reworking of a track from her first solo album, 'So I Write'. It is less austere than the original, and is ultimately more compelling and convincing. Survival Techniques, Parts 1 to 3, co written by John Balke, as was much of her early music, one senses have been lying around for a while, but this makes them no less effective, given a radical modern treatment as they are. The three pieces segue into each other, featuring some scary tape-manipulated vocalisations, which reoccur later into the album. During the first part, she gives us a modern take on Johnny Mercer's 'Accentuate The Positive', telling us: 'Accentuate the navel/if that is what looks best/Then cover up the rest'. This is Sidsel at her most inimitable, saying things that no one else says, in a way that no one else says things. And we get her curious, tribal vocal percussion as well here. Part Two is spoken, and is basically informative like an educational tape for children: 'Eyes look/Hands touch/Ears listen . . . These are basic survival techniques'. The third part is just voice and piano, and is in the vain of her first two solo albums - sparse, beautiful, direct - before once more slipping into the vocal percussion. The title track, is arguably Sidsel's least left-field recording, though it's pushed near by the final track, 'Try'. Both are rhythmic and accessible, and would not be out of place on a mainstream jazz album, but inevitably, Sidsel does it better than anyone, as her lyrics carry so much more intent and intelligence. 'Names, Numbers' is a list song - semi-random associations - 'cars, curbs, mass murders, marching bands'. In another's hands, it would be dull, but Sidsel never loses her edge. Sidsel's cover versions are always incomparable, as she is able to strip a song of any excess waste, render it as purely and beautifully as snow. This is true of her version of Neil Young's 'Birds', one of the highlights of the album. 'Heartbeat' has a dark undertow to it, and it jangles the nerves of the listener a bit. This is followed by 'Ido', during which she vocally improvises and reiterates some abstruse phrases from her masterpiece, Undertow. On this track and the previous one, her voice is a bit too croaky, but it is a minor quibble. Overall the album is consistently excellent, as any Endresen fan has come to expect. If like me, you enter the listening experience expecting a sequel to Undertow, you will be slightly disappointed, as it is a collaboration, and not a solo album, and therefore is slightly looser and more playful. But if you are a fan of the previous two collaborations with Wesseltoft, it will prove a very satisfactory experience. It is less patchy than Duplex Ride, and more accessible overall than Nightsong. For hardcore Endresen fans, the three solo albums constitute her most important output, but this is the next best thing to a new solo album.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
sidsel endresen, 28 Oct 2009
I bought this CD because i've hear the first track "Truth" on the latest North Sea Jazz promotion CD. A beautifull subdued number and lyrics. I like the rest of the cd also, although some tracks are rather experimental.
Grz.
Wim
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~ Sidsel Endresen
~ Bugge Wesseltoft
~ Sidsel Endresen
~ Bugge Wesseltoft
~ Bugge Wesseltoft
