Christine Duncan – voice, Jean Martin – drums and turntables, Justin Haynes – guitars, Bernard Falaise – guitars
Inspired by dramatic/noir themes, the material on this album is the product of improvised collaboration between four musicians. The album’s dramatic feel is well supported thanks to the vocal storytelling/sprachspiel vocals of Christine Duncan, whose style can be compared to that of Montreal voice/sound artist Alexis O’Hara.
The instrumentation of the album is well suited for the effect-inspired treatment of some tracks. Jean Martin’s sound and turntable effects, vocal improvisation, acoustic guitar effects and reverbs all contribute. The instrumentation also easily lends itself to a rock/jazz set-up and, for the most part, the drum-set beat is the most stable element on the recording, giving rhythm to the improvised elements of the group.
Freely improvised spoken vocal parts are purposely banal most of the time, switching easily between daily chatter and blues inspired grooves. It’s good to hear that Duncan can be both hysterically simple and expansive vocally, suggesting that the group’s live performances must inhabit a strong theatrical element.
A pre-recorded sample on the track “Invisible” – of cursing or having an argument in an Eastern European language – is part of one of the most ingenious moments on the album.
At times the album sounds like a rock band, due to the electric guitar and a steady ‘classic’ drum-set rhythm except when the vocalist breaks off into free improvisation, sounding like she is doing Inuit throat singing. While the bass and drums parts set a dark and steady tone throughout the album, turntables bring an outside music source to the mood set by the musicians.
The album features Christine Duncan’s vocal abilities to its utmost, and it is those abilities that make the whole listening experience truly fascinating.
