:Of The Wand And The Moon: – Your Love Can’t Hold This Wreath Of Sorrow (Album – Heiðrunar Myrkrunar)
Genre/Influences: Neo-Folk, Chanson, Cinematographic.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: Set up in the late 90s by Kim Larsen, Danish formation :Of The Wand And The Moon: became a renowned and established formation active in the wider fields of Neo-Folk music. It took ten years for Kim Larsen to unleash a new studio album, which has been written and recorded over the past three years.
Content: “Your Love Can’t Hold This Wreath Of Sorrow” is much more than simply an old-styled Neo-Folk album; Neo-Folk remains an important source of inspiration and often the basis of the songs, but it has been mixed with other influences. From pure Cinematographic passages to a kind of smoked Jazzy sound to some surprising 60s elements, this work is true music fusion. The songs are driven by the deep timbre of voice of Kim Larsen. The use of acoustic instruments is one of the main characteristics of the composition while some irresistible trumpet sounds/play can be heard as well. A few guests like King Dude, Martin Hall, Sarah Hepburn and Uffe Lorenzen contributed to the work as well.
+ + + : This is an astonishing return! The album is a deeply artistic creation, which can be heard in every single detail. First there’s an impressive production of the vocals revealing the artist’s irresistible timbre of voice. Kim Larsen is a great singer for Chanson. Next there’s the music, a true artistic creation Larsen accomplished together with producer and multi-instrumentalist Mikkel Elzer. I’ve been especially impressed by the magic of trumpet sounds/play. It has something mysterious, but also sensual and perfectly suited for ‘Film Noir’. “Les Journées Sans Fin Et Les Nuits Solitaires” featuring female vocals sung (or half-spoken) in French can’t leave you unmoved. But the absolute pearl of the album is “Let’s Take A Ride (My Love)”. This is such a beautiful song; simply a magic ballad with an elevating effect and featuring great trumpet sound and an explicit 60s influence as well. Darkness becomes beautiful thanks to the genius of this artist.
– – – : If you’re into pure Neo-Folk, you’ll maybe be disappointed, but I don’t have any minus point.
Conclusion: “Your Love Can’t Hold This Wreath Of Sorrow” definitely is one of the best and most artistic works from the year. What a return for this artist!
Best songs: “Let’s Take A Ride (My Love)”, “Les Journées Sans Fin Et Les Nuits Solitaires”, “Nothing For Me Here”, “Your Love Can’t Hold This Wreath Of Sorrow”
Rate: 9.
Artist & Label: www.facebook.com/wandmoon
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