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A review of Glass Hammer's new CD, "Live from Middle-earth"

September 02, 2001 at 00:21:05

by Kerry Elizabeth Thompson

http://www.woodbetweentheworlds.net

Glass Hammer's The Middle-earth Album

According to Steve and Fred, The Middle-earth Album was recorded, at least in part, at a concert given by the band in the village of Bree, the Breeland, Middle-earth. And, who am I, a humble fan, to argue with Steve and Fred?

The album has the feel of a cross between a Medieval fair and a folk concert. This is not surprising, given the nature of Middle-earth, which is a pre industrial, bucolic sort of place inhabited by Elves, dwarves, hobbits and, of course, men. The inhabitants take music quite seriously, and made the band welcome, or so the listener gathers. The rowdy but good natured audience comments and joins in the chorus of several songs with gusto. Indeed, this is very much an audience participation type of affair.

"Dwarf and Orc," a comic account of Balin Longbeard's assault on the king of the goblins' cache of beer and "The King's Beer," an encomium to peace and Barleiman Butterbur's famous brew, seem particularly popular, as does "The Ballad of Balin Longbeard." This last will be familiar to longtime GH fans from its appearance on Journey of the Dunadan, the band's first album. Also familiar is "This Fading Age," from On to Evermore.

I was sorry to find that the entire album was not recorded live at the Prancing Pony. However, the several studio tracks maintain the live Folk feel. I don't understand the wizardry of recording, but I know that the studio tracks blend seamlessly with the live tracks..

Several of the studio tracks feature the Glass Hammer girls, Suzy Warren, Felicia Sorenson, and Sarah Snyder. Their voices form interesting textures and contrasts of timber with the usually all male GH vocal presentation. Felicia's rendition of "As I Walk" has a particularly wistful, haunting quality. But, this album belongs to Fred. On the few songs that don't feature his lead vocal, he can be heard in the backing position. As comfortable with a lyrical love song as with a hard driving number, here he proves himself equally at home with Folk style ballads as with Prog.

The band departs from the Medieval/Folk style only once for what is, for my money, the best song of the album. "Sweet Goldberry," a musical interpretation of Tolkien's poem "The Adventures of Tom Bombadil," features the signature GH sound and lead vocals by Walter Moore. Lighthearted yet deeply felt, this song expresses the sustaining love between Tom and Goldberry. Walter's clear, intense presentation with backing vocals by Fred and Steve bring the familiar story vividly to life.

Indeed, each of the songs on the album tells a story though, unusually for GH, the album as a whole does not. This is because it is part of a larger story, one written by Steve. Rangers, Dwarves, Trolls and Maidens or A Halfling's Holiday in Bree tells of how many of these songs came to be written and of a hitherto unknown facet of GH's activities. Though one may enjoy The Middle-earth Album on its own, the story lends context and added interest to this album that looks both back to the band's roots and forward to further growth lyrically, musically, and in the realm of storytelling.

Copyright © 2001 Kerry Elizabeth Thompson and MouseWorks Productions