The Elysian Fields

Today's tune is Land Of You from 2003's Artist's Proof Phase 2 (Enhanced):

We'll wrap up the Vollenweider set with his symphonic novel, which premiered in 2002, but has not (to my knowledge) been released on an album:

While the tune Molly's Jig may (or may not) make an appearance here, this is May Green Be The Grass... from the 1997 album Kryptos:

An Ancient Muse by Loreena McKennett


I think we finally have a worthy successor to The Mask and Mirror. For some reason, I never felt The Book of Secrets lived up to its predecessor, no matter how I wanted it to. Any preferential treatment I show Mask over Muse, though, is only through the sheer familiarity of time. That, and, quite possibly, the guitar lines on The Bonny Swan.

Right from the opening Incantation, it grabs me with the spirt - and instrumentation. All those vocal drones and the viola just sound right. That continues with the next tune - with all manner of bouzouki, oud, and other plucked string instrument goodness.

I suppose that's most of what I'm looking for and listening to - the arrangements of the tunes and of the instrumentation. I particularly like to hear the way she uses instruments that are not hers in a role more prominent than - or equal with - her primary instruments of voice and harp. Although I love her voice, I find my ears drawn more to the band and what it's doing. When I start thinking "That's the kind of ensemble I'd like to put together" and when I start wishing that was my tune, then I'm happy. That happened with several tunes on Mask (most notably the aforementioned Swans), absolutely nothing on Secrets, and all over the place with this album. For the record, the "ownership urge" doesn't happen with every song I admire, and doesn't happen even with most of my favorites - it's a more particular feeling than that.

As a writer, I often recall the key phrase from Eddie and the Cruisers - "words and music, words and music" - and as with the music, I feel the lyrics here have once again drawn me in. I'm still not completely clear as to why the ones on Secrets don't do it for me - even when they're on topics I'm exceedingly interested in.

I know I'm dwelling far too much on this Mask vs. Secrets vs. Muse thing, but it's something I've been dwelling on since I first listened to Secrets. At that point, I didn't have the Muse to bookend the oddity, and, some three quarters of a year after I first heard Muse, I really don't have any deeper explanation as to why; what, exactly, the difference is; and, I have to admit, that's delayed this alleged review long enough.

So if you haven't already heard this, go give it a listen. This is musical excellence.