Lure
Back in 1997, Lure released one of my favorite recordings, Valramn, on the Swedish Tongang label. That recording was captivating in its densely woven music, and Lure was capable of kicking up a wall of sound that a band like Blowzabella would envy. I thought that Lure had vanished into the mists of obscurity, but years later Prins I Puttalandet beckons, a rusted, broken gate yawning wide on the CD cover. What lies beyond?
Lure do not have to rely on any electronic trickery to invest their songs with assured grace. They layer their sound very carefully so that the emotional impact of the music is all the greater. Take "Swarte Skolena" as an example, where fiddle player Jonas Akerlund and cittern player Esbjorn Hazelius sing in tandem. Pettersson's hurdy-gurdy swells, but never overtakes the song. Here, as elsewhere, Fredrik Bengtsson's double bass is handled with sensitivity, adding a rich dimension to Lure's sound. On "Vagen Hem," Bengtsson seems to coax the band into a waltz before the tune swirls off to follow its muse.
That Lure can hint at such fragility derives from the airy space that encompasses the drones at the core of their sound. Even pieces with as much power as "Finneman" or "Parlan" have a meditative vortex. Lure's music opens you up; you can feel the change of seasons in your heart, and the craft of these four superb players at the top of their game. - Lee Blackstone
Available from cdRoots
|
Comment on this music or the web site.
Write a Letter to the Editor
|
© 2003 RootsWorld. No reproduction of any part of this page or its associated files is permitted without express written permission.