Progarchives, the progressive rock ultimate discography

KINTSUGI

John Holden

Neo-Prog


From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

John Holden Kintsugi album cover
4.08 | 27 ratings | 3 reviews | 22% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

Write a review

Buy JOHN HOLDEN Music
from Progarchives.com partners
Studio Album, released in 2022

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Achilles (10:48)
2. Ringing the Changes (3:43)
3. Kintsugi (7:04)
4. Flying Train (5:33)
5. Xenos (5:43)
6. Against the Tide (5:27)
7. Peggy's Cove (4:21)
8. Building Heaven (11:34)

Total Time 54:13

Line-up / Musicians

- John Holden / guitars, bass, keyboards, orchestration

With:
- Peter Jones / vocals
- Joe Payne / vocals
- Sally Minnear / vocals
- Dave Bainbridge / keyboards
- Henry Rogers / drums
- Vikram Shankar / piano, keyboards
- Jean Pageau / vocals
and more

Releases information

Label: Plane Groovy (Vinyl)
Format: Vinyl, CD, Digital
September 30, 2022 (CD, Digital)

Thanks to mbzr48 for the addition
and to tszirmay for the last updates
Edit this entry

Buy JOHN HOLDEN Kintsugi Music



JOHN HOLDEN Kintsugi ratings distribution


4.08
(27 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(22%)
22%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(22%)
22%
Good, but non-essential (41%)
41%
Collectors/fans only (15%)
15%
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)
0%

JOHN HOLDEN Kintsugi reviews


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

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by tszirmay
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars John Holden is a British composer, arranger, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist who has an uncanny relationship with the progressive rock community, in that he can clearly enlist some top shelf fellow artists of the highest calibre to collaborate with him on his musical quests. His three previous albums, Circles in Time, Rise and Fall and the debut Capture Light, have made quite the impact as they have been universally acclaimed for consistently raising the bar with superlative efforts, undoubtedly crowned by this 4th album Kintsugi. Some of my favourite players are here, from the incredible Dave Bainbridge and Michel St-Pere on guitars, the illustrious Frank van Essen on viola and violin, my current drummer of choice Henry Rogers, talented keyboardist Vikram Shankar as well as a slew of first-rate vocalists, such as Sally Minnear, Iain Hornal, Joe Payne, Peter Jones, and Jean Pageau. There are a few key storylines that seem almost directed at me, namely history, culture, and fate.

So, the stage is set for another exhilarating progressive musical adventure that seeks only to inspire one to overt escapism, and "to fire the imagination". No prisoners are taken on the tragic and exceptionally epic "Achilles" as the first notes instill all the bombast and pageantry associated since time immemorial with Homer's Illiad, the most famous of all Greek mythology warriors, whose heel was the only vulnerable part of his body. Within mere seconds, the listener is transported to some fabled space, where acoustic guitar, rippling piano, vocals chants combine to set up the sorrowful vocals from Joe Payne as the glorious hero's story unfolds. Rogers enters the fray, elevating the symphonics with delicacy and subtlety. Holden rips off a few blistering thunderbolts as if Zeus himself was behind him, the second volley heavier, grittier as it dances along with the slippery synths. Just like his storied life, all tragic ebb and conquering flow, the victorious mood wanders from mountain to valley, towards a destiny with the Gods.

In contrast, the soothing pastoral ballad, "Ringing the Changes", has piano and Sally Minnear's lovely vocals to admire, a very typical English folk song that is both endearing and effortless. The bells ring indeed. A perfect intermezzo before the title track kicks in, Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with fillings highlighted instead of being "camouflaged", respectfully restoring what was once broken, a clear metaphor for spiritual healing or renewal. One of the busiest musicians in prog handles the vocals with his usual impressive timbre, Peter Jones certainly understands emotion and his voice conveys it to perfection. Majestic, soaring effortlessly and ultimately a classic, the terrific electric guitar solo is sheer mastery, as Van Essen adds his orchestral ornamentation to the arrangement.

The chugging "Flying Train" refers to the landmark elevated suspension railway with hanging cars built in 1901 in the German town of Wuppertal, considered even today as a technological marvel. This is an instrumental affair that unites a variety of moody textures, dense orchestral atmospherics, train effects (bass and drums) as well as soft flute and ornate piano. A soundtrack for a monorail! Truly wunderbar stuff!

Culture : "Xenos" has to do with xenophobia (and not another chapter of Greek Mythology !), as our global world struggles to come to terms with identity, acceptance and societal needs to adapt in a more binary sense. This is a subject matter that hits home with me as I went to an international school in Switzerland whose motto was "Be proud of your heritage but respect those of others. Iain Hornal (ELO, 10cc) handles the microphone here, in a breezy, spacious musical context, perhaps aiming to a more conciliatory tone. Peter Jones' lustrous voice reappears for one more suave performance on "Against the Tide", a more conventional prog-pop song that is accessible, laden with solid playing , a rolling bass line in particular and a fiery sax solo courtesy of the lead vocalist. The mood is reminiscent of Ace's smoky hit single "How Long" (Paul Carrack was the singer), snapping fingers not withstanding

Fate: "Peggy's Cove" has a profound meaning for me, as I missed Swissair flight 111 that crashed off this Unesco Heritage sight on September 2, 1998. I had cancelled my seat the day before? Suddenly, my life was in overtime mode (or bonus tracks if you want) and altered everything?. It is a beautiful, windswept, picture postcard type of place, with a memorial to those who perished there, did not see my name there when I visited years later but one of a schoolmate of 30 years previous. There is no such thing as random or coincidence. The track here is a fitting personal remembrance, a Celtic-tinged ditty sung by Minnear with the necessary grace and serenity. Gulp!

History again: The longest track, "Building Heaven" is the grand finale and a most appropriate one indeed. Acoustic guitar, piano and strings prepare the banquet table for the feast to begin. The construction of this piece defines why prog can have such a foundational effect on the listener, it is clever, crafty, intricate, persuasive, and more often than not, drop dead beautiful. The city of Coventry was razed by a Luftwaffe bombing raid that even gave birth to a verb in the French language (Coventriser), a tragedy made worse only because it came out much later that the British government knew of the impending raid of 300 hundred bombers via its decoding of Ultra, the Nazi Enigma cypher but did not know the exact target for that night. The track is a solemn rendition of faith and fate, as both male and female vocalists espouse the virtues of defiant courage, resolute determination, and the will to rebuilding lives from the ashes. The mournful tone is pungent and obstinate , just like the resistance to the arial enemy. The sizzling guitar work from master musician Dave Bainbridge is simply outstanding, as I have been a huge fan of his since the Iona days, all the way up to his stunning solo work as well as with Lifesigns.

Sandwiched by two epic historical pieces, this work really consecrates John Holden as a force to be reckoned with, a passionate and consummate artist whose vision should continue to shine with more works of this stature. With a little help from (my) friends.

5 golden repair kits

Review by BrufordFreak
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars Another impeccably-realized collection of uniquely-perspective sonic adventures from one of England's most uniquely reverential voices.

1. "Achilles" (10:48) a gorgeous song in which That Joe Payne puts on exhibit the most restrained and mature vocal performance that I've heard from him to date--a performance that is so perfect for this music and subject as to be so emotionally powerful! At the end of the seventh minute, the music shifts in direction into something much heavier, much more in-your-face, for a brief minute until rejoining the atmospheric, almost New Age keyboard-based motif of the opening two sections. Incredible multi-layered and multi-faceted vocal performance by Joe Payne. (18.667/20)

2. "Ringing the Changes" (3:43) light-hearted music over which Sally Minnear sings. There is almost a Christmas carol feel to this, though the song subject seems much more quotidian--like a Victorian poem of everyday life. Captures a time and style not our own impeccably. (9/10)

3. "Kintsugi" (7:04) one forgets how similar Dave Longdon's voice was to that of Peter Jones until one hears a song like this: so similar to a Big Big Train song, a fair BBT train song at that. (12.75/15)

4. "Flying Train" (5:33) a nice instrumental that opens with a voice sample from a man speaking in German. Apparently it's a song commemorating the prediction of flying trains. (8.667/10)

5. "Xenos (5:43) another very pretty little BBT-like song. (8.75/10)

6. "Against the Tide" (5:27) a little jazz-pop song that sounds like Al Jarreau, Ambrosia's David Pack, or Phil Collins should be singing. (8.667/10)

7. "Peggy's Cove" (4:21) after a mood-setting Celtic opening, a more African-rhythm establishes a musical feel more akin to something by Peter Gabriel, Sally Minnear's lilting little voice soon establishes the fact that we're singing about a legendary person who may (or may not) have survived a shipwreck that happened long ago in Nova Scotia. Cute and catchy little sea ditty! (8.75/10)

8. "Building Heaven" (11:34) opens with a very classical theatric orchestral feel before Sally Minnear's (purposefully?) youthful voice starts singing in a "Who Will Buy?" kind of style (and setting). Flutes and 12-string guitars help fill the gentle, pastoral feel as Sally introduces a story of war and tribulation that is intended as a tribute to illustrate the professed mission of Jesus of Nazareth. The song goes instrumental for about five minutes, from the four-minute mark and its air raid sirens and distant bomb explosions to the gentle guitar and keyboard arpeggio-supported point at which Dave Bainbridge's soaring electric guitar announces the arrival of a chorus and choral weave of Peter Jones, Joe Payne, and Sally Minnear singing praises of Christ's mission to "Build Heaven." Interesting but ultimately packing far less of a punch than I think might have been intended. Methinks this could have been built into something much more grand, more expanded and multi-faceted. (17.25/20)

Total Time 54:13

I have, from the beginning of John's presence in Prog World, often felt a very strong background in religious music to John's style of composition and sound construction--as if he is writing from a background or perspective of someone who has come from or lives in a monastic or religious life. On this, his fourth studio album, I fear John has fallen into the Big Big Train/Galahad pattern of historical worship.

B/four stars; a very nice excursion through some very pleasant songs realised with the utmost care and perfection-- songs that sometimes fall a bit short of "prog expectations". Still, a very nice addition to any prog lover's music collection--one that will probably deliver little gems and subtleties for many listens.

Latest members reviews

4 stars JOHN HOLDEN is this English multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer who creates typed pastoral progressive sounds; he manages to bring in beautiful people for a condensed rock, folk, jazz, hard, flamenco and classical, he who has composed and kept an emotional link with the progressive sinc ... (read more)

Report this review (#2847266) | Posted by alainPP | Sunday, October 23, 2022 | Review Permanlink

Post a review of JOHN HOLDEN "Kintsugi"

You must be a forum member to post a review, please register here if you are not.

MEMBERS LOGIN ZONE

As a registered member (register here if not), you can post rating/reviews (& edit later), comments reviews and submit new albums.

You are not logged, please complete authentication before continuing (use forum credentials).

Forum user
Forum password

Copyright Prog Archives, All rights reserved. | Legal Notice | Privacy Policy | Advertise | RSS + syndications

Other sites in the MAC network: JazzMusicArchives.com — jazz music reviews and archives | MetalMusicArchives.com — metal music reviews and archives

Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.