Multi-instrumentalist Jan Todd‘s fourth album has Frostlake has her once again teaming up with Terry Todd to provide bass tones; but the addition of Andy Peake on piano has imbued the pieces here with a timeless air and a real sense of the soft hush of a dreamworld.
Where the previous albums seemed to be a little more rugged and external, here the soft waft of electric piano, the gentle hush of drums and Jan’s haunting melancholic drift of voice feel more internal. You sense the roaring log fire, the warming toddy, the sensual drift into a liminal place. Cheerful flurries and little textural details prevent things from becoming too settled and Jan’s desire to try a different instrument for each track means there is a constant subtle evolution of the sound.
Once again the list of instruments is as long as my arm, with psaltery, Theremini, waterphone and guzheng taking their places alongside the usual guitar, percussion, electronics and field recordings. This means that her soft enticing voice is given a variety of backdrops against which to wander; a distant strum of guitar along with shakers gives “Now And Then” a faint sense of momentum, while ”Rise And Fall” has a less tenuous grip on reality. It is in danger of evaporating as scrapes of percussion and the waterphone backdrop evoke the feeling of a friend leaving; that final warm hug before they wend their way.
A special mention must be made once again for Terry’s bass playing that underscores all the pieces here with enough structure to prevent them dissipating, but as ever it is the singular vision of Jan that makes it work. You can guarantee that each of the Frostlake albums is a journey, but here on Shattered Stone, it is more of a spiritual journey, the warmth of the delivery and the gentle nature of the songs swelling the heart.
-Mr Olivetti-
