Peter Broderick - Http://Itstartshear.Com

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5...according to our Mike on Thu 23 Feb, 2012.

Fans of the recent Oliveray LP from brothers in minimal Peter Broderick and Nils Frahm have reason to celebrate today, as the Brodster drops his second vocal-led solo album, with a little help from his friends. Unsurprisingly, the Frahmotron makes his presence known on this Brod-centric album, appearing on no less than eight of the ten tracks on offer here, so in a way it feels like an extension of their constant collaboration. I've gotta admit I wasn't too crazy about the album title at first, but then I went to the website in question and discovered that it's packed with tidbits of information about the creative process that's gone into creating this piece of work on a song-by-song basis, and in a way it completes the package and helps it to feel more rounded and personal. As for the music on here, it's largely folk-inflected stuff, often with neoclassical touches and sometimes just straight mournful fingerpicking and hushed vocals; sometimes, like on the pulsating title track, it's a little more adventurous and a bit trip hoppy (although to be honest I'm a little weirded out about the chorus where he keeps repeating his website address...”aitch tee tee pee, colon slash slash, dubya dubya dubya dot it starts hear dot com”)...it kind of comes across like Massive Attack have written him a radio jingle. I'm more taken by the folkier numbers and the more soulful piano-led neoclassical bits. The album's slow-burning centrepiece 'Asleep' culminates in huge gang harmonies that give the already heady atmospheres a kick into gospelly transcendence, and there's a lovely cover of his father Steven's folk song 'Blue' which he put out as a 7” recently. Senor Brodski has a really smooth and soulful voice that reminds me of Sandro Perri's and he never overeggs things so it's a tasteful ride throughout. Once again Team Broderahm comes up with the goods.

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How do you feel about music downloading?

It is a common question addressed to musicians and one that I have been asked several times in interviews. My response has always been that it doesn't bother me. It is unavoidable. And in the best case someone who downloads an album and likes it might consider buying it at some point, or they might come to a concert and buy it directly from me at the merchandise table.

What does bother me about downloading is how most of the time the listener doesn't have access to the artwork and/or text that comes along with a physical copy. Perhaps for many people this doesn't even matter, but personally I have always felt a great satisfaction from having an image and some words by the artist to accompany and enhance the sounds. To take in the full picture as the artist intended, which in my mind includes all the liner notes and artwork as well as the music.

So, http://www.itstartshear.com was designed simply to be a place where all listeners, no matter what format they obtain the music in, can easily access all the lyrics and notes and visuals which are meant go along with the songs. And as a title, http://www.itstartshear.com serves the music well by automatically becoming a link any time the album is written about. A link to the place where people can learn all about the album, directly from the source. A link that is the album.

Or at least a link that will be the album, once it comes out, on February 20th 2012. For those who read this and hear the music before that date, I am happy to tell you that http://www.itstartshear.com is the result of nearly three years of studio work, and is my first album created without any self-made restrictions. Whereas on albums past I set out to work strictly with certain sets of instruments, this one includes anything and everything I could get my hands on and which seemed appropriate for the song.

Produced by Nils Frahm at his Durton Studio in Berlin, it is my first project on which the sonic timbre of the songs was treated equally as important as the music itself. I have been in awe of the sound on the many records coming out of Nils' studio over the last couple years, so I thank him deeply for helping me to explore a richer, wider sonic landscape.

Furthermore, many of the songs on this album were made in dedication to someone or something in particular. There is a recollection of a romantic letter exchange from several years ago (A Tribute To Our Letter Writing Days), a song written by my father when he was 19, which I discovered on an old cassette tape in late 2008 (Blue), a remembrance of a friend who passed away in a kayaking accident, for which I enlisted anyone and everyone to submit recordings by sharing a commemorative text over the internet (Asleep), a celebration of a little-known artist who has inspired me greatly (Colin), and a dedication to a bird whose life I stole while driving alone in the countryside (Trespassing), among others.

Thank you for taking the time to read and listen.

Sincerely,
Peter Ray Broderick – November, 2011

TRACKLISTING:

1. I Am Piano 2. A Tribute To Our Letter Writing Days 3. Blue 4. It Starts Hear 5. Asleep 6. Colin 7. Bad Words 8. With The Notes In My Ears 9. Trespassing 10. Everything I Know

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