Timber Timbre is the pseudonym for a Canadian folk project involving Mika Posen, Simon Trottier and Taylor Kirk. This is their fourth full length album, though the first two were independently released. 'Creep on Creepin' On' is very much a follow-up to their 2009 self-titled release, which I thoroughly enjoyed, even though it was slightly drone-y. The sound hasn't changed much, though I would say they have refined their style to create, I must say, a wonderful record.
Much like Big Blood's 'Dark Country Magic', this album stays in the realms of dark folk and psychedelic rock, with Taylor Kirk's deep, and eerily strange vocals matched with haunting piano plinks and solemn woodwind. Although the vocals are deep, the instruments do remain at a higher pitch a lot of the time. This creates a innocence that shrouds the true meaning of the songs. Lyrically, this is a very dark album, talking of his post-relationship trauma, with songs talking about his depression, drug-taking and bad, bad rituals.
The lyrics are not the only thing going for this record though. The feel and atmosphere surrounding this album is fantastic. The contrasting pitch between vocals and instruments gives a very dark, uncertain quality to the sound of this album, and even the album art suggests a cult-like emptiness. I was never really bored while listening to this ten track album either. There are songs that have no singing, and there are songs that do. Every song also has that magical quality by which they feel together as an album but different individually, which makes for not only an interesting record, but a brilliant one too.
Some songs are still a little off, such as 'Woman' but with the magnificance of the rest of the album, this can be easily overlooked. The song mentioned is a little confusing and just a little boring, and another track: 'Swamp Magic' tries to be atmospheric but instead comes across as though Timber Timbre lost interest. Little quibbles though, I must stress.
The instrumentation from all artists involved is astounding, and the vocals are different in a good way, from anything I've heard before. A somber and haunting record about loss and trauma, this is near perfect, from Taylor's voice, dusted in reverb, to the tiny details in the eerie piano and violin contributions. If you are currently bored with whatever you're listening to, give this an earful and I promise, you won't be disappointed! Currently one of my favourite records of 2011, I can't stress enough my love for this album.
Much like Big Blood's 'Dark Country Magic', this album stays in the realms of dark folk and psychedelic rock, with Taylor Kirk's deep, and eerily strange vocals matched with haunting piano plinks and solemn woodwind. Although the vocals are deep, the instruments do remain at a higher pitch a lot of the time. This creates a innocence that shrouds the true meaning of the songs. Lyrically, this is a very dark album, talking of his post-relationship trauma, with songs talking about his depression, drug-taking and bad, bad rituals.
The lyrics are not the only thing going for this record though. The feel and atmosphere surrounding this album is fantastic. The contrasting pitch between vocals and instruments gives a very dark, uncertain quality to the sound of this album, and even the album art suggests a cult-like emptiness. I was never really bored while listening to this ten track album either. There are songs that have no singing, and there are songs that do. Every song also has that magical quality by which they feel together as an album but different individually, which makes for not only an interesting record, but a brilliant one too.
Some songs are still a little off, such as 'Woman' but with the magnificance of the rest of the album, this can be easily overlooked. The song mentioned is a little confusing and just a little boring, and another track: 'Swamp Magic' tries to be atmospheric but instead comes across as though Timber Timbre lost interest. Little quibbles though, I must stress.
The instrumentation from all artists involved is astounding, and the vocals are different in a good way, from anything I've heard before. A somber and haunting record about loss and trauma, this is near perfect, from Taylor's voice, dusted in reverb, to the tiny details in the eerie piano and violin contributions. If you are currently bored with whatever you're listening to, give this an earful and I promise, you won't be disappointed! Currently one of my favourite records of 2011, I can't stress enough my love for this album.
