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BLURRING INTO MOTION

Charlie Cawood

Prog Folk


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Charlie Cawood Blurring into Motion album cover
4.03 | 21 ratings | 2 reviews | 5% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 2019

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Dance of Time (5:03)
2. The Stars Turn (3:59)
3. Falling into Blue (2:36)
4. Abyss of Memory (3:05)
5. The Dark Within (4:37)
6. Blurring into Motion (3:29)
7. From Pure Air (4:05)
8. A Severed Circle (4:35)
9. The False Mirror (3:28)
10. Flicker Out of Being (4:27)
11. Between Two Worlds (4:48)
12. Voice of Space (6:35)

Total Time 50:47

Line-up / Musicians

- Charlie Cawood / acoustic, electric & classical guitars, acoustic bass, bass VI, handclaps, composer, orchestrations, co-producer

With:
- Marjana Semkina / vocals (3,10)
- Alice Barron / violin
- Georgia Hannant / violin
- Maddie Cutter / cello
- Robyn Hemmings / double bass
- Julie Groves / flute, piccolo
- Emily Suzanne Shapiro / clarinet
- Ben Marshall / cor anglais
- Thomas Stone / contrabassoon
- Lucy Brown / French horn
- Nathaniel Dye / trombone
- Maria Moraru / piano, celesta
- Elen Evans / harp
- Beibei Wang / vibraphone
- Catherine Ring / glockenspiel
- Evan Carson / bodhrán, percussion
- Steve Holmes / Minimoog, bass synth

Releases information

Artwork: Mark Buckingham

CD Bad Elephant Music ‎- BEM076 (2019, Europe)

Digital album

Thanks to Raff for the addition
and to projeKct for the last updates
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CHARLIE CAWOOD Blurring into Motion ratings distribution


4.03
(21 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(5%)
5%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(38%)
38%
Good, but non-essential (29%)
29%
Collectors/fans only (29%)
29%
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)
0%

CHARLIE CAWOOD Blurring into Motion reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Reviewer
5 stars Multi-instrumentalist Charlie Cawood is back with his second solo album. I'm pretty sure there isn't a stringed instrument he hasn't been able to master, but here he restricts himself to just different types of acoustic, classical and electrical guitars and various basses, and bringing in a whole host of guests to provide the orchestration. Charlie is a veteran of the London music scene, best known as bassist of critically acclaimed psychedelic octet Knifeworld, and instrumentalist/co-arranger for Emmy-nominated classical choir Mediæval Bæbes. If that isn't enough he is also a member of three other bands, Lost Crowns, My Tricksy Spirit, and Tonochrome. Most of the album is instrumental, but one of the guests involved this time around is iamthemorning's Marjana Semkina, who contributes vocals and lyrics to two tracks.

In many ways this feels far more like a modern classical romantic album than anything else: it is lush, it is beautiful, relaxing, delicate, complex and complicated, but beguiling and inviting all at the same time. It is one of those albums which I just don't want to end as it takes me to a magical mystical place, deep in a forest with the sun coming through the canopy, walking through the leaf clutter with deer and rabbits visible in the near distance while there is a stream babbling and glistening in the dappled sunlight. It makes me want to sit down and rest for a while, just relax and take in the sounds and surroundings, slow the world and just take a minute away from the always connected always "on" mentality. This is music for the soul, with strings, flute, bodhrans, glockenspiels, brass, woodwind, harp and even some MiniMoog when the time is right. It is hard to describe just how filled with joy I am just from playing this, with melodies and counter melodies taking me to a place I never want to leave. At times there is darkness and even some atonal sounds, but it is important to have these contrasts so it is easier to appreciate the sense of wonder when it evaporates.

Written in just three months, although it then took a year to orchestrate, this is a compelling and wondrous piece of work. The title is taken from a quote by writer Russell Hoban, about the blurring together of the moments and thoughts that constitute a life, and here Charlie is taking us to a pastoral world and lifestyle sadly not often found these days. I can happily play this all day, and is essential listening to all those who want to hear something very special indeed.

Review by BrufordFreak
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Classically-influenced instrumental acoustic folk music in the same vein as NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA, Charlie is quite the multi-instrumentalist!

1. "Dance of Time" (5:03) nice, gentle multi-thread weave of guitars, tuned percussion, flutes, and strings. (8.67/10)

2. "The Stars Turn" (3:59) same as the previous song: a gentle weave of the exact same instrument palette. A little more Steve REICHian/NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA construction here. (8.67/10)

3. "Falling Into Blue" (2:36) fast-picked acoustic guitars behind Marjana Semkina singing in her lower registers. Winds, xylophone, and Marjana's background vocals join in the chorus. Strings and tuned percussion remain for the second verse. Again, this could be a quaint little NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA song. (4.25/5)

4. "Abyss of Memory" (3:05) multiple acoustic guitars with piano and vibraphone weave this one at another moderately slow pace. The melody line repeats over and over while myriad other instruments join in and create other layers and harmony threads. Interesting. (8.75/10)

5. "The Dark Within" (4:37) guitar and strings open this one like a WILLIAM ACKERMAN tune. At 0:50 piano and woodwinds join in and it gets beautiful. At 1:30 double bass and percussion and vibes are added. It actually doesn't feel as dark as it feels full of 'disappointment' though it does get a little discordant toward the end. (9/10)

6. "Blurring Into Motion" (3:29) fast-picked acoustic guitars, piano, and soon, flute, start this weave. Strings join in at the end of the first minute (including bass). (8.5/10)

7. "From Pure Air" (4:05) harp and classical guitar open this one. A very gentle, soothing, calming song. (8.75/10)

8. "A Severed Circle" (4:35) another beautiful multi-instrumental weave that once again reminds me of the NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA though also some of Jesy Chiang's CICADA compositions as well. Very nice. A top three song. (9/10)

9. "The False Mirror" (3:28) More of the same; beautiful but basically background music. (8.67/10)

10. "Flicker Out of Being" (4:27) a pleasant song in which Marjana Semkina's beautiful, ethereal voice blends in as if it were another string or wind instrument. A top three song for me. (9.25/10)

11. "Between Two Worlds" (4:48) flute and chor anglais over guitars, vibraphone and piano in another fast shifting NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA-like song. Very nicely constructed tapestry. (8.75/10)

12. "Voice of Space" (6:35) slow and brooding piano, acoustic guitar, harp and vibes with secondary instruments providing chord accents every sixth whole note. Reminds me of many Pat Metheny song openings. Flute and winds take over lead melody over the top while celeste does another line in the middle. Strings eventually join in, thickening the weave. Another top three for me. (9.25/10)

Total time: 50:47

While the music here is beautiful--often calming or even soothing--and the compositions quite intricate and harmonically sophisticate, there is too much a "sameness" of the music and too often a lack of fully engaging melodies.

B+/4.5 stars; wonderful contribution of neo-chamber jazzy folk music of the mostly-acoustic kind; an excellent addition to any prog lover's

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