ARTiST: William D. Drake
TiTLE: Yew's Paw
LABEL: SheBear
GENRE: Indie
TiME: 41:27 min
SiZE: 46,3 MB
BiTRATE: VBRkbps
RiP DATE: Feb-12-2007
RELEASE DATE: Feb-12-2007
WEBSiTE: n/a
Track List:
01. Yew's Paw 03:36
02. Pipistrelle 05:12
03. Sylvie's Proof 02:24
04. Glassy I 01:44
05. Louisville 04:55
06. At The End Of The Harbour Wall 02:12
07. Todonkin 03:26
08. "short And Sweet Like A Donkey's Gallop." 00:18
09. Stone Carnation 02:37
10. Ubi Sum 07:02
11. Within My Skull 02:45
12. The Kissing Song 03:56
13. Ralspark 01:20
Release Notes:
Not long ago a modern solo piano album was as rare
as a post rock album without long drawn out quiet
bits, but seemingly in the space of a few months we
were greeted with a whole shower of records from
musicians ditching the comforts of over-production
in favour of the sound of the trusty ivories. That
tradition has continued thankfully and this latest
from William D. Drake shows that today's artists
have no fear now of releasing something as stark and
open to criticism as a solo piano album. The
ex-Cardiacs member is clearly a gifted pianist too,
and rather than the subtle and pensive
micro-compositions of Goldmund, the prepared piano
rumblings of Hauschka or the lush Gallic smokiness
of Sylvain Chauveau, Drake goes down the brave road
of contemporary jazz and old silent movie pastiche.
This works to a point, and Drake's confidence drips
from every note, givng the record a real sense of
place and purpose, but I think there's definitely
something lacking - maybe the atmosphere he tries to
create would come over better with more production?
The thing with a solo piano record is that there's a
lot to prove using such little means, and while
Drake manages to evoke a mood, it seems to stop
without entirely completing its purpose. 'Yew's Paw'
would without a doubt be a fitting accompaniment to
a European silent movie in all its mischievous
glory, but don't think you'll be getting any
popcorn!