This is a psychedelic folk four piece that from Chicago who combine a fin de siècle chamber style similar to Rasputina but stripped of any rock and pop pretensions. Blended with eastern tones and rhythms the result is a spectacular album.
The music is complex and ornate. Frequently the four ladies seem to be playing four different but complementary songs, such as “Sheye” which is hypnotic and primal. At times it threatens to fall apart but the intensity of the piece keeps it together. This breaks into the far more sedate but equally intense “Sort Sands.” Here the eastern influences come to the fore and the music brings to mind images of a desolate and beautiful desert. The vocals are scorching hot and sexy. It reminds me of Dead Can Dance if Dead Can Dance were actually any good. There is also sometimes an almost queasy quality to the music like on “Born in a Room,” it is disorientating and not something I can listen to with a couple of drinks on me.
The first couple of times I listened to Four Winds the Walker I found some of the vocals tough going. At times the ladies (they take turns with singing) sound bored disinterested, such as on “Serum,” the definite low point of the album. Other times the vocals were grating on the ears but once I accepted their vocal styles and realised it wasn’t just bad singing, it clicked with the music nicely. “Imaginary Skin” contains some fantastic surreal lyrics: “So will she go beyond the minds with all their mazes?/ Mazes that lead through finds with all their faces?” Doesn’t look as great on paper granted but believe me, it’s wonderful on disc.
I was recommended to listen to Four Winds the Walker by a friend and next time I see him I owe him a pint. It is an absolute corker of an album. It definitely improves every time I listen to it, there is so much intricacy in the playing and vocals that every time there is a new element revealed or an audio path to follow through the album. It is an album rich in detail that I could immerse myself in for days on end.
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