Post by Zapp Brannigan on Mar 3, 2011 2:52:07 GMT -5
www.lifessweetbreath.com/reviews/albums/41-seeds.html
Hey Rosetta! - Seeds
[Sonic Records, 2011]
87%
Canadian band Hey Rosetta! has found its stride. Three albums into their career, the sextet from Newfoundland has created a sound that is as uniquely layered as they come. Formed in 2005 and fronted by singer and guitarist Tim Baker, Hey Rosetta! has taken the layered sounds of contemporary bands such as Arcade Fire and made it theirs. Intertwining the sounds until they form an almost intricate dance that at first seems overwhelming, the listener is drawn deeper into each track. Every song has a story to tell, as the album’s title Seeds suggests and Baker states: "the songs are seeds...they’re these little things—four and five minute things—but they have the ability to grow in your brain and be far more meaningful than just what they are."
Each song takes on a life of its own; they grow and morph as they take on life. We as the listener grow with them, change and mature. Every song ends differently than it begins as does every life. Baker’s unique, almost sharp, vocals keep pace beautifully and manage to convey the spirit of the creation (as one may hesitate in calling them songs) that he is breathing life into. Kinley Dowling’s violin is the real star of Seeds as he leads the instrumentation in a game of tag, soaring above and running beyond as a child with boundless energy may goad his parents into a chase. With every song progressing within itself, Hey Rosetta’s musicians never miss a beat. The layers connect and create perfect harmony as each story grows and changes. For some, these changes may present a challenge in connecting with any one song but if you are ready for a trip, it is one that will fill you with joy.
The title track of the album is also the start of an expedition. “Seeds” tells of a journeys beginning and really puts on display the band proficiency in the layered sound. The mandolin meets percussion and vocal in a tapestry so beautiful, it draws in the listener. “Yer Spring” features Dowling’s violin in peak form, incorporating some Arabian styling and a build like the blooming of a dogwood in the songs titular season. Then there comes “New Sum (Nous Sommes)” which is an incredible showpiece of each musician. With swells of violin and cello met by riffs of guitar and bass, all is held together by a beat played steadily and with passion by drummer Phil Maloney and Tim Baker’s lyrics paint a vivid picture of the strings that connect us all. But every journey has an end and every life faces eternity. With “Yer Fall,” Baker shows a slower, more meaningful and determined pacing. Each syllable and note is played deliberately, stubbornly clinging to the life it contains. “Parson Brown” is an exercise in defiance, persistently dogging its journey with a build in the end that is a harsh push on life that leaves the listener breathless. But, in the end, “Bandages” is a tale of acceptance. The last chapter in an adventure that fills the album, it embraces its experience and acknowledges the wounds of life and trudges toward the unknown with head held high and a smile splayed across the listener’s face.
Hey Rosetta!’s journey may seem scattered, layered, and feature unconnected and independent stories, but Seeds ultimately proves otherwise. The stories created through each grow with the listener and pull genuine emotion to the surface. To those willing to commit to the ride, they will emerge from the other side breathless and feeling satisfied with the life they just lived through.
-Eamon Frawley, March 3, 2011
Hey Rosetta! - Seeds
[Sonic Records, 2011]
87%
Canadian band Hey Rosetta! has found its stride. Three albums into their career, the sextet from Newfoundland has created a sound that is as uniquely layered as they come. Formed in 2005 and fronted by singer and guitarist Tim Baker, Hey Rosetta! has taken the layered sounds of contemporary bands such as Arcade Fire and made it theirs. Intertwining the sounds until they form an almost intricate dance that at first seems overwhelming, the listener is drawn deeper into each track. Every song has a story to tell, as the album’s title Seeds suggests and Baker states: "the songs are seeds...they’re these little things—four and five minute things—but they have the ability to grow in your brain and be far more meaningful than just what they are."
Each song takes on a life of its own; they grow and morph as they take on life. We as the listener grow with them, change and mature. Every song ends differently than it begins as does every life. Baker’s unique, almost sharp, vocals keep pace beautifully and manage to convey the spirit of the creation (as one may hesitate in calling them songs) that he is breathing life into. Kinley Dowling’s violin is the real star of Seeds as he leads the instrumentation in a game of tag, soaring above and running beyond as a child with boundless energy may goad his parents into a chase. With every song progressing within itself, Hey Rosetta’s musicians never miss a beat. The layers connect and create perfect harmony as each story grows and changes. For some, these changes may present a challenge in connecting with any one song but if you are ready for a trip, it is one that will fill you with joy.
The title track of the album is also the start of an expedition. “Seeds” tells of a journeys beginning and really puts on display the band proficiency in the layered sound. The mandolin meets percussion and vocal in a tapestry so beautiful, it draws in the listener. “Yer Spring” features Dowling’s violin in peak form, incorporating some Arabian styling and a build like the blooming of a dogwood in the songs titular season. Then there comes “New Sum (Nous Sommes)” which is an incredible showpiece of each musician. With swells of violin and cello met by riffs of guitar and bass, all is held together by a beat played steadily and with passion by drummer Phil Maloney and Tim Baker’s lyrics paint a vivid picture of the strings that connect us all. But every journey has an end and every life faces eternity. With “Yer Fall,” Baker shows a slower, more meaningful and determined pacing. Each syllable and note is played deliberately, stubbornly clinging to the life it contains. “Parson Brown” is an exercise in defiance, persistently dogging its journey with a build in the end that is a harsh push on life that leaves the listener breathless. But, in the end, “Bandages” is a tale of acceptance. The last chapter in an adventure that fills the album, it embraces its experience and acknowledges the wounds of life and trudges toward the unknown with head held high and a smile splayed across the listener’s face.
Hey Rosetta!’s journey may seem scattered, layered, and feature unconnected and independent stories, but Seeds ultimately proves otherwise. The stories created through each grow with the listener and pull genuine emotion to the surface. To those willing to commit to the ride, they will emerge from the other side breathless and feeling satisfied with the life they just lived through.
-Eamon Frawley, March 3, 2011