Graham Bowers Review

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Hi, my name is Arthur Hughes, one area of my work covers writing music reviews. 

I was recently asked to review the works of Graham Bowers for a major data base house to coincide with the release of his music on the major download stores. Prior to this request I had no idea of who he was and had certainly never heard his music; after listening to the four CDs that were sent to me, I trawled through the search engines to see if I could find more information on him, as I couldn’t believe that the quality, originality, maturity and production of the music that I had listened to could have been produced by someone who I, or the many colleagues I asked, had never heard of.  It was whilst surfing that I came across this forum (and several others) and read the posts relative to Bowers, and as a measure of how much I rate this man’s music I decided to join and post this introduction and a short review of his first published work ‘Of Mary’s Blood’. His website is www.red-wharf.com.

“Of Mary’s Blood” was Bowers’ first release, and for me was a milestone in terms of a listening experience. From the very first note played and continuing throughout the work the instrumentation spoke in a different language to the norm, each instrument played in an unorthodox fashion, and in such a way so as to produce a definitive sound that signified and oozed personality and character. The dense layering of these ‘sounds’ creating an unworldly ambience, where everything is both remarkably confused and yet indefinably clear at the same time! The work, although a continuous track, is divided into three sections; ‘Always is, Always was, Always shall be’, reflecting and succinctly describing this phenomenon. It is an impossibility to predict what is coming next in the musical progression, and even after several listens I am still taken by surprise, there is a continuing restless, relentless intensity driving the work, transforming the listening experience into a spell-binding journey which is bizarrely both static and progressive. Bowers seems to effortlessly achieve and portray through his music, a form of ’balancing act’, shifting and compensating mood swings, drawing in, holding and repulsing the listener with a skill and awareness to human sensitivities not normally found in the realms of modern avant garde contemporary music.

“A musical and pictorial expression of the physical forms of spiritual fragilities and strengths” so says the sleeve note; a very apt description for the musical journey and the highly individual semi-abstract figurative images that are laid out in a linear fashion of the folding booklet. The fascinating artwork, like the music leaves one uncomfortably aware that (see the immortal Bob Dylan line from ‘Ballad of a Thin Man’) “…something is happening here, but we don’t know what it is; do we Mr Jones”

Arthur Hughes 

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Arthur Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Newbie Joined: June 18 2006 Location: Yemen Status: Offline Points: 2	Topic: Graham Bowers Review Posted: June 18 2006 at 18:20
	Hi, my name is Arthur Hughes, one area of my work covers writing music reviews. I was recently asked to review the works of Graham Bowers for a major data base house to coincide with the release of his music on the major download stores. Prior to this request I had no idea of who he was and had certainly never heard his music; after listening to the four CDs that were sent to me, I trawled through the search engines to see if I could find more information on him, as I couldn’t believe that the quality, originality, maturity and production of the music that I had listened to could have been produced by someone who I, or the many colleagues I asked, had never heard of. It was whilst surfing that I came across this forum (and several others) and read the posts relative to Bowers, and as a measure of how much I rate this man’s music I decided to join and post this introduction and a short review of his first published work ‘Of Mary’s Blood’. His website is www.red-wharf.com. “Of Mary’s Blood” was Bowers’ first release, and for me was a milestone in terms of a listening experience. From the very first note played and continuing throughout the work the instrumentation spoke in a different language to the norm, each instrument played in an unorthodox fashion, and in such a way so as to produce a definitive sound that signified and oozed personality and character. The dense layering of these ‘sounds’ creating an unworldly ambience, where everything is both remarkably confused and yet indefinably clear at the same time! The work, although a continuous track, is divided into three sections; ‘Always is, Always was, Always shall be’, reflecting and succinctly describing this phenomenon. It is an impossibility to predict what is coming next in the musical progression, and even after several listens I am still taken by surprise, there is a continuing restless, relentless intensity driving the work, transforming the listening experience into a spell-binding journey which is bizarrely both static and progressive. Bowers seems to effortlessly achieve and portray through his music, a form of ’balancing act’, shifting and compensating mood swings, drawing in, holding and repulsing the listener with a skill and awareness to human sensitivities not normally found in the realms of modern avant garde contemporary music. “A musical and pictorial expression of the physical forms of spiritual fragilities and strengths” so says the sleeve note; a very apt description for the musical journey and the highly individual semi-abstract figurative images that are laid out in a linear fashion of the folding booklet. The fascinating artwork, like the music leaves one uncomfortably aware that (see the immortal Bob Dylan line from ‘Ballad of a Thin Man’) “…something is happening here, but we don’t know what it is; do we Mr Jones” Arthur Hughes

Rocktopus Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: March 02 2006 Location: Norway Status: Offline Points: 4202	Posted: June 19 2006 at 08:36
	Welcome to the archives Arthur. I'm listening to the excerpts on the Red Wharf webiste. The closest in sound and atmosphere I can think of is the soundscapes of Tangerine Dream, the OHM years ('70-73. Check out Zeit). And several others in the Progressive Electronic and Belgian Chamber Prog genres. Graham Bowers is a bit more abstract than most of them. Sometimes he reminds me of John Cage. These modernist, horrorlike soundscapes (made in the mid the 90's?) don't strike me as extremely original or unique. That doesn't mean I don't find them interesting. Not sure if this is of any interest to you.
	Over land and under ashes In the sunlight, see - it flashes Find a fly and eat his eye But don't believe in me Don't believe in me Don't believe in me

Arthur Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Newbie Joined: June 18 2006 Location: Yemen Status: Offline Points: 2	Posted: June 20 2006 at 04:25
	Rocktopus, thank you for your 'Welcome' message. Your comments are certainly valid, but one of the reasons that I have resisted in making comparisons to others in all of my reviews of Bowers' work, is that when one has the opportunity to listen to any of his works as a 'whole', they most definitely are much more than the 'physical sum of its parts'. I attempted to get this across in my review, and yes, I would agree that if one listens, as you have done, to the excerpts on his website, they are not in isolation particularly 'original or unique', and my reference to 'originality' was made in the context of my response to the overall musical listening experience. As per my post, whilst researching to find out more about Bowers, I came across the following article, which you might find interesting http://www.tokafi.com/15questions/15-questions-to-graham-bowers/view I wrote four reviews of his work, here is the second, it could be (in your words) "Not sure if this is of any interest to you", but it might. “Transgression” is Bowers’ second release, and it was after buying this and reading the press release which accompanied it, that I was informed that there was to be a third release entitled “Eternal Ghosts” and that the three works were to form a ”Trilogy”. This information was quite useful, as when I first listened, the expectations that I would be hearing a similar format of musical sounds and arrangements to “Of Mary’s Blood” were quite shockingly dashed aside. Although the work is a masterpiece within its’ own right, its’ central position within the other two works adds yet another dimension to it. The approach to the use of the instruments and their positions within the arrangements is completely different, or is it? it certainly appeared so on the first listening, but less so, now that I am more familiar with the way Bowers works. The intensity of the ambience at any given moment in time is more focused, which in many areas of the work became so potent that a feeling of discomfort is undeniably felt along with a nagging urge to look around to check that one is still alone. The power of the build up and the insatiable climatic resolution of the opening 10 minutes is absolutely unique in my listening experience, leaving me rather nervous as to what might happen next. Quite unexpectedly, it is a long sinuous, twisting, heavily layered vocal chant, at times guttural, at times sweet, but at all times saturated with an overpowering sadness, with the exception of the final phrase that has overtones of optimism. The following chaotic section has all the hall marks of Commedia del Arte, encompassing all the pathos and patheticness of mankind’s naivety and fragility. It makes reference to the final section of “Of Mary’s Blood”, but pushes this reference nearer and nearer to the ‘edge’ in a cacophony of nonsense, which then, just as dreams shift in their unpredictable way, becomes overlaid with an unusually beautiful melodic motif that wanders off into a multiplicity of layered sounds that hark back to “Of Mary’s Blood”. The finale of the work is yet another surprise, a fractured, incredibly powerful piece of dis-jointed ‘hard-rock’, where rhythms counter, cross, and unify and musical phrases never quite resolve until one glorious moment, which for me, and maybe others is held for too short a time, but that is what Bowers’ music is about, as the text in the booklet states “Change by the exercise of will through choice, necessity and coercion” All in all an excellent and classic album that illustrates that Graham Bowers is much more than a ‘one album wonder’