TRAH NJIM

First album from this three brothers (or sisters as they like to call themselves) folk formation that also features a non-brother guitarist with a sombre three skimpy yesteryear dresses as an artwork. The album is almost all acoustic and present a very medieval soundscape throughout, and although the music is very instrumental, the presence of vocals sung in traditional languages (can't define some for sure, but apparently there are some old Slavonic lyrics) is very much one of the group's trademark.

Most of the 15 (rather short >> max 4-mins length) tracks are of the same mould, meaning relying mainly of the percussion-less (except for two pieces) rhythms of the bowed-strings instruments (violin, contrabass), underlined by the mainly-dronal accordion (the better way to play that "thing"), while the guitar can alternate rhythmic patterns or lead lines (which can be electrically amplified). The moods of the pieces are generally medieval, sober, reserved, polyphonic, plaintive and even introverted, which gives the album a sombre ambiance, something enhanced by the gloomy artwork. A few tracks have middle-eastern or downright Arabic soundscape, but are no-less medieval-sounding that their sisters tracks. The album peaks with the energetic (and sometimes demented) second-last Troesj track, a poignant moment that can draw chills to your spine, if caught off-guard.

So this first album might actually qualify in the truest sense of the meaning of progressive folk (ala early Gryphon), instead of being prog-rock with lots of folky influences (ala Jethro Tull). Surprisingly enough, the album carries the EMI logo, but this was released on the subsidiary label Zoku. Don't look for any rock elements in the album, but if you like your proggy/folkish atmospheres, jump on it.