Detailed review of John McSherry’s latest CD: Soma.

Mar 12, 2010 | Uncategorized | 2 comments

Let me first say, I really loved this CD. Of course, my comments here are subjective and kind of critical unfortunately. But, non the less, I love John’s playing, and I think this CD is definitly going into my favorites collection.

Track 1. Wow! I love this slow air. It’s just really simple. It shows off the range of the pipes. Everything is also so balanced. I’ll agree with others who have commented on this CD online. It’s a really bold and daring way of starting a CD. But he not only pulls it off but I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts off a fad!

Track 2. Starts off with Hmm. Is that a bazoky? It’s accompanying the pipes. Of course, it goes together really well. But, it’s building up to the big finish for so long I’m left waiting for it. And in the second tune, I get some of it. It’s like a tease! He knows listeners are waiting for it. So, he leaves it just for another second longer just to build up the suspense. I’m loving the harmonies by the whistle in this. It’s really mixed too. A good use of stereo. Fiddle is in my left ear, plucking on the strings is also in my left, the bodhran is kind of centred, chords are in my right along with the pipes and the whistle is kind of in my right.

Track 3. All I could think of when I heard this track at the start was, I’ve heard these tunes a lot before. Michael McGoldrick has played them, Lunasa has too. And, I’d assume that considering Lunasa played them he’d steer clear. Just because there are so many similarities between the arrangements. And, after all, he was their piper for years until Niall Valldy stepped in. The tunes are played flawlessly. Again, like track 2, he leaves us waiting for the other instruments to join in. His drones and regulators sound fantastic. I have to also say that the bridge from the second to the third tune is really nice. Also, in the third tune, the chords on the guitar are nice and minimalistic but still carry the rhythm nicely. Oh, you know what I really love about this track though? The whistle continues on at the end with the harmony but it’s written so well that the harmony sounds like it could be a tune all on its own!

Track 4. Well, wow! I’m kind of impressed. That is on an A whistle I heard people say? It couldn’t be! Is it? It sounds too low to be a low A whistle. The air is nice. Not my personal taste, but it’s still very ……. nice.

Track 5. Now, that started with a bang. That’s a bit more like it. I don’t think his whistle playing packs as much as his pipe playing. He’s no doubt a fantastic player but I rather him on the pipes. The tune he’s picked here though is fantastic. I love the choppy rhythm. Oh wow. Is that drums I hear? And the pipes too! Now, this is what I want to hear! It just gives a little more punch to the music and varies the arrangement a little. In saying all that, I still like a tune to be a tune. What the fuck is that at the end of the track? It sounds like a broken record with some drunk dood blowing random notes on a whistle in the background! Sorry, I’m crewel. I know.

Track 6. Now, that sounds happy! The guitar sounds fantastic, the piping is tight, it’s punchy, not too complicated, and it’s intimate! I love tracks like this because it really gives the musician room to breathe and play around a little bit. I’m waiting for the inevitable bang where the other musicians come in but it doesn’t get there when I expect. I love that he’s kept me hanging again. He changes from a jig to a really nice real. The drones are prominent again and the guitar resumes its nice rhythmic seat right beside the melody. The third tune still has a smell of Lunasa from it. The way the fiddle joins him just one bar before the tune starts and the basy tones of the piano. It all sounds really like a Lunasa arrangement. Again, it’s not surprising. There are links and actually, it’s fantastic to see what he does with it.

Track 7. Nice skilled guitar playing. That’s not a guitar though. Sounds a bit like a bazoky. Nice rhythm and the whistle carry it off nicely. Like the bridge between the tunes in this track. It’s very ambient. The second part of the second tune makes me want to grab an instrument right away. Lovely progression and it all sits together really well.

Track 8. Wow. Another slow air? This is unusual. I’m liking it though. This is his CD. It’s his taste. It’s nice to see what he’s picking. Really nice use of reverb on it too. It’s not constant. In saying that, I’ve heard him play live with at first light. He puts a lot of thought into the sound of his slow airs. I should post a link to one of his videos some time. He lets the amplification work for him. It’s impressive.

Track 9. Nice start to it. I love the crans on the whistle. I can see why he picked it. But, I can’t help wondering why he didn’t play this on the pipes? It would have given the tune a bit more body. The second tune delivers on what is now a common theme in this CD. It’s tempo changes, we’ve been joined by the fiddle, and the guitar is relaxed into its fantastic rhythmic playing. We’re getting a little bit of electric guitar here too but it’s really subtle. Great use of stereo. During the third tune, things get a little plainer but the pipes come in. I think I would have personally liked to hear the pipes come in with the regulators in the background. The energy of the tune has dissipated a little bit because of it. Maybe though this was planned as in the fourth tune, we’re getting really cool strong bassy piano playing with strings bruing up a storm. The fiddle and pipes are going mad at it too. So, the energy is well and truly back. I love when the guitar and piano jell so well together.

Track 10. Yep, you’ve guessed it. The whistle takes us in. But wait! It’s different. No guitar. We’ve piano instead. It’s subtle and it’s in the background. In my oh so humble opinion, the stereo on this track is a little over done. The whistle is on my left and the piano is on my right. It’s making me dizzy. There should be a little bit of cross over there to even things out. John McSherry does for tempo changes what Simon Cowel does for key changes. a temp change no longer becomes all that much of a difference when it’s done in almost every track. I suppose, it could be said that the airs bring things back to basics just enough to allow him some room to do this but I wonder, do people agree with me that it’s a little over done. In saying that, I love the tune, I love the whistle harmony. It’s mixed so that it feels like the whistle is floating above the rest of the music. Really nicely done.

And, that’s the end.
That’s all folks.

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