Silber Rec.
Remora, Pale Horse and Rider, Rivulets : The Alcohol EPs (US,2002)**°°'
This release had the idea of compiling songs together by three singer-songwriters who experienced excessive? Drinking, alcohol permeated inspiration, while losing control. Alcohol remains a poison and abuse tires any self-development down to a two chord hopelessness. I cannot see how alcohol could bring more inspiration other than what it leaves behind : a hope for departure on its addiction. I reviewed a couple of Rivulets releases before. New to me are Remora, usually down into more underground musical territories, and Jon DeRosa's Pale Horse and Rider from another country flavoured ? background.
REMORA. The music itself takes you somewhat down as well. With excessive alcohol you repeat yourself without realizing. The reverbs on “First Call” don’t make evolution either. The love-call to the bottle (“built”) is a boring lullaby complaint I saw drunk people perform as well, as long as they received more booze, otherwise it would be aggression, which is not performed here. This flows nicely into “Joy Division” and “hope is gone”, droning onto the repetitive drone of oblivion, as much that the player forgets to stop repeating the same idea over and over again. An organ playing along here would have been nice. I think I hear one extra aspect of self-satisfaction with it (,which comes authomatically with alcohol).
PALE HORSE AND RIDER makes actual songs, booze songs, romantic about bar-addiction, nicely arranged with some extra instruments here and there (like “Bruises like Batches”)or with double layered vocals.
RIVULETS describes the person himself, in decomposition (“Anaconda”). Also this one keeps on lasting (for over 12 nice, but pretty similar minutes). On “Gimme Excess” voice and guitar are at the edge of failing, resembling a unique mood, experienced from a drunken state of mind, with an electric bass seemingly coming from the resonance box of the guitar ? varying in moments from almost self-indulgent and over-self-assured expression in its “state of conscious sensibility”, then becoming a bit more aggressive in playing, even overloading for a moment… cars drive by on the background.. evolving to moments of true inspiration.. until something falls down.. a worried voice heard the noise.. “Nathan ?!” which became a true reality document ! Most beautiful track of the album is “Shakes”, a track which I guess will work any time. Very sensitive. Very dark in content, but with clear and virtuous playing, something which makes its expression complete.
I had to leave this aside for a while, because in sober perspective this compilation seemed at first not to bring any transformation, hope or growth out of the situation. Instead the alcohol EP is too much an alcohol FACT.
It’s not an album with an easy access for everyone, but it still is rewarding when listening to the real person behind the inebriate. Listening to the album from this viewpoint makes the project also more unique.
