Catrin Finch Seckou Keita - Echo - New CD

Format: CD Label: bendigedig Cat. No. BENDI9

Released:

ECHO celebrates the tenth anniversary of an extraordinary partnership between two virtuosos whose previous releases include 2018’s album SOAR and their 2013 debut Clychau Dibon. ECHO marks the third part of this remarkable trilogy. The harp and kora share centuries of history, and Catrin and Seckou create a unique dialogue in a musical alliance of rare empathy, inspired by differences and similarities. Their atmospheric magic crosses genre boundaries, from folk and world music to classical and contemporary as their fingers flow like opposing tributaries into a single river of sound. ECHO is the tender triumph of an extraordinary musical partnership that combines harp and kora, the modern and traditional, different cultures and common humanity.

ECHO is released in the same as its predecessors SOAR and Clychau Dibon; presented as a beautiful 40-page Digibook with sleeve notes written by journalist and writer Andy Morgan.

It only gets darker from there. Specifically, to “The Fear Never Leaves You,” in which a soldier returned from battle attempts, unsuccessfully, to find respite from the bloody images that clog his mind. The musical backdrop, meanwhile, is smooth and supple, all pulsing toms, warm keys, gently-plucked guitar notes and hushed background vocals – an intentional juxtaposition. “I like the idea of having a seductive surface where the listener gets sucked in by a fairly pleasant melody,” Thompson explains. “But then, there are hidden sharks in the water.”

if you’re looking for some of that patented Thompson guitar dazzle? Look pretty much anywhere on Ship To Shore. But maybe linger just a bit on “Maybe,” a sharp, snappy ditty that sees our protagonist losing his mind over the girl of his dreams... or nightmares. As the song reaches its fervid climax, Thompson’s guitar goes as haywire as the poor guy’s brain, spitting hot licks, playful note bursts and madcap phrases across the sonic spectrum.