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Recommended by us on 24th June 2011
...according to our Ant on Fri 24 Jun, 2011.
The photograph of Scafell Pike on the digipak of this CD takes me back to a terrifying nights camping up near a tarn just below the summit where a storm hit and myself and a couple of mates had to batten down the hatches for fear of our lives. The occasional toilet outing also involved an occasional peek outside to find a view very similar, with bleak battleship grey skies, howling wind and horizontal rain. As a visual it sets the scene well for the audio created over a six year period from this member of Rameses III. The seven tracks have been split into three movements which document the artist's emotional state at various points - depression, slow recovery and finally grace. Bearing this in mind and listening to opener 'Dark House Walk' it's clear that Daniel was battling some demons at the time of its creation as it's an incredibly blackened piece which shows zero signs of a way out. The overall effect is claustrophobic to say the least. A feeling that continues into the dark throbbing drones of 'Staring Into Black Water'. For me the sound of water in its many states and in particular the sea evokes many feelings. Having grown up on an island I would often find solace in the sound of the waves. It would appear Daniel also likes to become introspective to these sounds (as I'm sure many people do) with the inclusion of beach recordings from Padstow, Cornwall. The addition of these recordings really complete the piece adding a very chilling dynamic. As things unfold over the twenty five minute duration it's like a journey into Daniel's frame of mind at that particular time, the effect is of feeling lost and alone and is incredibly powerful.
'The Beauty Of Doubting Yourself' begins the second movement with fast, intricate synthesized (possibly??) percussion and icy chimes. It recalls a Coil track that I know but cannot remember its name. There's a distant sense of hopelessness dissolving into the background while the overall emerging tone is uplifting and ready for change, happiness is almost within grasp. 'The Might Of Angels' with its looped violin phrase almost feels like being touched by the divine. The image I'm given when I close my eyes is one of a cadaver being given mouth to mouth resuscitation by a ghostly blue angel, breathing new life into a mortal shell. Then comes 'The Devil Would Steal Your Joy' which is really amazing with its distorted darkside drones and disembodied vocals which really threaten to pull things right back into the darkness of the abyss but then the juxtaposition of heavenly dulcimer denies them their want and steers things away from what feels like a genuine threat of regression.
Moving forward we land at the first part of the third movement with 'Elegy And Rapture (For Margaret)' Which is touchingly dedicated to Daniel's late mother. This is a profoundly moving piece of music on many levels. 'Staring Into The Light' is as expected a stark contrast to the sounds that first introduced the album. The gentle distant melodies speak like a huge weight has been lifted off of Daniel's shoulders. To be clear things are not all upbeat and party vibes. That's not this chap's style. What is very apparent though is there has been a major transition from where the album first began with gorgeous Rhodes keys that sparkle and retreat into the distance.
Ultimately the audio documents Daniel's six year journey from darkness into the light and is a tale of the challenges and struggles that we all face at some point in our lives. It is the story of being human and how art and creativity can be therapeutic and healing. Fortunately Daniel emerged on the other side. The power of this album is that we must never lose hope and that at the end of every tunnel comes the light. Highly recommended.
Daniel Thomas Freeman is a founding and current member of Rameses III, the South London group who in the last ten years have released ambient / drone / folk albums on labels such as Type, Important, Digitalis and Under The Spire and who have supported such genre luminaries live as Stars Of The Lid, Current 93, Murcof, Fursaxa, James Blackshaw, Yellow Swans and Astral Social Club.
The Beauty Of Doubting Yourself is a deeply personal document from the Rameses III musician Daniel Thomas Freeman. Written over a period of six years this instrumental album is split into three movements chronologically representing the artist’s deep depression, his slow transition to recovery and his eventual experience of grace.
Whereas Rameses III’s music is designed to instill beauty and peace with every release, this album is a challenging yet rewarding listen in its own right whilst keeping the luxurious depth of the later Rameses III recordings.
The first movement commences by pitching a mutated 2004 field recording of Westminster Cathedral bells against junk percussion to create Dark House Walk, named after the tiny London street near where the composer reached his nadir. Imperfections and leakages in the field recording enclose the listener in a claustrophobic well with daylight a dim and distant memory whilst juddering strings loom half-seen ready to swallow the few last remaining shards of light.
Thomas Köner-style thunder announces the main drone of Staring Into Black Water; a nervous malevolence of hydra heads breathe out fogs of despair. Drop-out waves hiss and spit and cave rain pelts and mottles grey skin. Improvised beach drums, voice echoes and groggy keyboards rail uselessly against the black tide as the rain pours in. Finally only the hydra is left, howling victory over the barren rock as it sinks back into the oil-slick ocean.
And yet hope exists.
The second movement dawns with the hammered icicles of The Beauty Of Doubting Yourself. The worst over, the artist’s previous self-reliance is shattered revealing a higher truth. An utterly forgotten component of an old unused track, Beauty was discovered glinting in the wreckage.
With The Might Of Angels there is lightning in the clouds. Violin loops soar and blood pounds once more. The simple underlying riff grows ever more immense, sweeping away despair before it climbs into the clouds, its job done, leaving the hypnotic loops to circle gleaming metal points. The Devil Would Steal Your Joy speaks of the fragility of transition. Rough and scarred slabs of concrete drone and torn vocal fragments try and overwhelm the clean dulcimer echoing high above, yet to no avail.
The third and final movement is peace. Elegy And Rapture (For Margaret) – dedicated to the composer’s late mother – documents the sadness for the time lost in chaos since her death in 1999. The most accessible and conventional track on the album, most of the components are generated from very heavily edited violin recordings. A stately drone gives way to interlocking lines. Horn calls mourn what could have been and the different and clearer path that might have been taken. Slowly the requiem melodies are obscured by a rapture of a thousand points of heat distortion burning the sadness away.
The album ends with the mirror image to Staring Into Black Water. Staring Into The Light is based on a drone directed through the same reverberation chambers and filter clouds as the former track. Water is again present but this time the waves announce salvation. Rhodes clusters gently caress the pain away and vocal sighs breathe easily as the drone increases in strength and complexity. Low Mellotron strings glide into view and the Westminster Cathedral bells from Dark House Walk return, this time in their original unaltered form. Finally the drone ebbs away and the remaining Rhodes shards sparkle and shimmer into the sky. Grace is upon us, pain can be borne and the waves reflect the light all around.
Daniel Freeman, March 2011
Edited by Spencer Grady
All tracks written, produced, engineered, mixed and mastered by Daniel Thomas Freeman
Design by Jeremy Bible
www.descendingangel.com
www.ramesesiii.com
FIRST
01 Dark House Walk
02 Staring Into Black Water
SECOND
03 The Beauty Of Doubting Yourself
04 The Might Of Angels
05 The Devil Would Steal Your Joy
THIRD
06 Elegy And Rapture (For Margaret)
07 Staring Into The Light
Phil said:
I heard this for the first time last night and it's absolutely breathtaking. I 100% agree with Ant!
So, what do you think? Best reviewer each month gets £10 off their next order!
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