I'm glad I live in a universe with classical music. I'm joyful that ours is a world with something called "indie rock." And I'm exhilarated that I inhabit a country which burped out psychedelic jamming years ago.
Why? Because of the existence of those things, Champion Birdwatchers are able to come up with their sprawling, almost improvisational mess of guitar, drums, percussion, bass, cello, and flute. It's barely cohesive one minute, gelling into a soft '70s kickback vibe the next. Beautiful melodies drifting here and there. Acid-tripping without the acid. The tone and vocals often remind one strongly of Jeremy Enigk, but Champion Birdwatchers are much weirder, with tribal percussion, spoken word, and psychedelic swirling sounds. The songs don't stand out on their own much at all; this is an album you listen to for the vibe. You have to be in the mood.
Like another possible distant comparison--Poor Old Lu--they draw much from C.S. Lewis and have a true coffeehouse philosophical poetic bent to them, adding extra layers of rich meaning simply by the way they print the lyrics in the sleeve:
deep
calls to ("hold my hand," He says
deep "hold your breath,
in the roar
of
your
waterfalls we are going under")
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
over me thank you
i've burned for your peace
(from "The arrival")
I really can't complain about The Inconsolable Longing, except to say I'm hoping on their next album they come down to earth a bit and work with slightly more conventional song structures, while still infusing them with the same psychedelia, poetry, and grooviness. There's a bit too much loitering about and not enough focus. This is super stuff, but another album just like it would definitely be overkill. I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with.
4 tocks
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #75Reviewed by Brian Vincent McGovernOoh, hear the rich woodgrain in that cello, underlying where a passionate vocal floats, and random rock guitar sounds have their way with the mixing board. Always a fantasy-laden story, calling on some CS Lewis/Eric Campuzano tendencies, this record seems to be a continuation in the previous record's musings. "Overswept" is basically a song in Hebrew, and is said to be II Kings 18:6. Every second…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Joe RockstrohReviews are subject to opinion more than anything else, and many a CD has been overblown or blown up all because of the reviewer's opinion. Now, I'm not saying that this is a great album, but the truth is if you understand it, then you will love it. Champion Birdwatchers' sound could be called a hybrid of several others, combining the full guitars of Bloomsday, the emotional tension of Tool, and…Similar sounding releases
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