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Binkelman's Corner by Bill Binkelman |
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Bill Binkelman is a long-time icon in the industry. |
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| In the Wake |
| By Ann Sweeten |
| Label: Orange Band Records |
| Released 2/14/2012 |
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| In the Wake tracks |
1. Was It Yesterday?
2. Falling Leaves
3. Metamorphosis
4. Love Remembered
5. A Chance For Goodbye
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6. In The Wake
7. On Wings Of Light
8. Out Of Embers
9. The Abyss
10. October Sky
11. Now, And Again
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In the Wake |
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Ann Sweeten has one of the more distinctive and recognizable musical signatures among all the piano/keyboard players recording in New Age music today. Her previous release, Just This Side of Spring, somehow lost that recognizable element, but her newest, In the Wake, showcases it and that is a very good thing – Sweeten's characteristic melancholic, gently sad style comes through loud and clear (I can't articulate why that sound was missing for me on Just This Side of Spring).
In the Wake contains memorable eleven tracks and is once again produced by Will Ackerman while engineering and mastering is handled by Tom Eaton who does a good, but not necessarily great, job. There are a small number of guest artists who are featured: Ackerman himself on acoustic guitar, flutist Trisha Craig, oboist and English horn player Akane Setiawan, violinist and violist Andrew Eng, and cellist Liz Ehrman. These are not the usual suspects one associates with an Ackerman-produced release and this helps In the Wake have a noticeably different sound when compared to other CDs he has produced over the last few years.
What I've enjoyed about Sweeten's compositions in the past and now once again is her tenderness and palpable sense of shared intimacy, leavened many times with either a gentle sorrow or a sensation of melancholic introspection. Even when she interjects a flourish of drama, the music is kept on an "emotional leash" as it were, so that melodrama or an overblown feeling of maudlin emotion is held in check. Sweeten emphasizes a fluid, flowing melodicism, many times heard as an abundance of rolling chords.
The CD's first track, Was It Yesterday? features Ackerman and Craig contributing just the right amount of accompaniment and coloring to Sweeten's wistful, sadly romantic melody. On Falling Leaves, Sweeten is accompanied by Setiawan on English horn. When the English horn comes in, the pace picks up a tad, as if the titular leaves are now falling faster, perhaps with a gust of autumn wind. Metamorphosis is an introspective solo piece with a nice juxtaposition of upper and lower register notes. Love Remembered joins Eng's violin and viola to Sweeten's more uptempo piano, playing a less than usual somber melody. The strings are subdued so you have to listen for them, unless you don headphones (I think the string instruments could have been brought slightly forward in the mix, personally). Ehrman's cello lends A Chance for Goodbye a particularly poignant undercurrent while Sweeten draws deep-rooted emotion out of her instrument, evoking both the tenderness and sadness of the farewell.
Each of the remaining six tracks has an element to recommend it, whether Sweeten's playing or the contributions from others or the combination of both. The last track, in particular, where Sweeten is joined by both cellist Ehrman and oboist Setiawan, shines as all three players seem to be on the same wavelength, each injecting the right element of a sweet form of melancholy (especially Setiawan).
If (I repeat, if) there is a "knock" to be made on Ann Sweeten's music, it would be the possible perception of its inherent sameness. However, her melodic sensibility and overall approach to crafting piano music represents her leitmotif, her musical persona, if you will. There are certainly other artists in the new age genre who exhibit this same trait. The fact is that there is variety present in Sweeten's music, but it is easier discerned under direct, even intent, listening. However, In the Wake can also be enjoyed and appreciated played simply as background music, where the overall similarity would be less of an issue. All that being said, Ann Sweeten's gentle piano ruminations will likely prove difficult to resist for dreamers and hopeless romantics.
I do have one last nit to pick - cover art. Putting Sweeten in a formal black evening dress and then photographing her on a rocky beach just seems all wrong and inconsistent with her music's "feel." Also, if you're going to photograph an artist for her CD cover, at least frame her in a more flattering way, i.e. dressed to suit the environment, and for heaven's sake, don't shoot from the ground pointing upwards – ye gads!
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Rating: Good +  |
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- reviewed by Bill Binkelman on 6/22/2012 |
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