WEEK OF 080526 PLAYLIST: VOLCANO THE BEAR // ZELENKA // BEETHOVEN
Volcano the Bear: Amidst the Noise and Twigs
At the first few listens, I thought, "oh jolly! this falls immediately into my 'essential space folk' list!", but after a week of listens (and aggravation to my housemates), I noticed that it suffers from the same problems that the latest One Ensemble (an offshoot) albums are fouled by: dishonest weirdness and unattractive singing. There is a holiness to certain moments, as with the first two One Ensemble of Daniel Padden albums, but there aren't any songs that are so sublime that they would get placed on a mix, for they frequently fall into the realm of being annoying, from writhing, squawking, shrieking, etc.
Zelenka: Symphonia A-moll
This should have received its own weeklong study. It's very nice. Fans of Bach, check it out. It's interesting to hear early concepts of the symphony form, as I have otherwise exclusively been listening to things from Beethoven on. To me, the symphony is a cathartic experience of emotion and development and travel. This, on the contrary, was like eating a really good piece of dessert.
Beethoven: Op.44: Variations in Eb