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Mellow Candle - Swaddling Songs CD (album) cover

SWADDLING SONGS

Mellow Candle

 

Prog Folk

3.88 | 87 ratings

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Matti
Prog Reviewer
4 stars The original LP flopped at the time but has later been prized up to 500 pounds among collectors, informs the leaflet about this folk- rock classic. (The CD appeared as late as in 1994 and I had the opportunity to borrow this from library, as usual.) How unfair can music biz be! A band as talented and music as nice as this is ignored? I believe one even doesn't have to be a FOLK-rock enthusiast to like this, quite the opposite, listening to this today can MAKE one interested in that genre and era.

It may be said that this Irish quintet didn't bring anything clearly new; genre's major acts Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span, and several lesser bands such as Trees, had started some years before. Mellow Candle, however, were just slightly more psychedelic, and they composed all songs by themselves (instead of Trad.). I find this album more interesting than what I've heard from the mentioned bands. The playing is sharp and intricate - piano, acoustic and electric guitar, bass and drums - and the harmonic vocals of ladies Alison and Clodagh are absolutely lovely. (Here and there I came to think of the women of ABBA - and this is NO bad thing, whatever opinion you may have on ABBA's music.) Musically the tracks can be roughly divided into ethearal beauties and edgier uptempo songs, both handled equally well, though maybe the latter ones offer more-of-the-same towards the end of the album. The wonderful opener 'Heaven Heath' is a mellow and rich song in between, with a medieval-like feel. 'Reverend Sisters' is a fantastic number of the female duet and piano.

Singer-pianist Clodagh Simonds, the writer of the majority of songs, has later worked with Andy Warhol and Robert Fripp, and drummer William Murray has played for Mike oldfield and Richard & Linda Thompson, but otherwise they disappeared without a trace. For Prog Folk lovers this is a MUST. Not quite 5 stars but pretty close...

Matti | 4/5 |

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