Music Review: The Duhks - Migrations
One Two Three Four, Run to the store! The Duhks have a new album and it's a sweet one!
That's right. I put in an order at Amazon on the week of its release in September and got it the first week of this month. I was a little impatient that it would take so long. But, I have to say, it really was worth the wait.
When I first got their self titled debut earlier this year which was released last year, I quickly fell in love with it, and so when I heard that they had a new album coming out this year, I both was really excited and had a little of trepidation. The trepidation was because I wasn't sure if they'd pull off such an excellent album as their debut, because as is often the case, followups aren't always as great, sometimes due to a producer change and a different vision that that producer has. Vision changes can be good, but they can also be disastrous. Well, in this case, there is a producer change this time around, but thankfully the vision stayed the same. The only thing that has really changed is the slicker production. Slicker production doesn't always work as sometimes it takes away from energy and art of the songs, but here, it works as all that was really done was give the songs more of a velvety feeling if that makes any sense. There is more bass to the songs this time around to make them stand out more.
So, how does this one compare to their self titled debut? It's actually quite a really standout album. I'm not sure if it will ever nudge the self titled debut out of my favourite spot, but there are some really stellar tracks on this album, and I would have to say which album is my favourite that came out this year, I'd easily pick this one. In fact, If anyone asks me what Canadian culture is like, I'd hand them a copy of this album and say that this pretty much sums it up.
Canadian culture is quite a mix, and a mix that we aren't afraid to show and it shows a lot in our music. In this album, you have a cook pot of Métis, French-Canadian, Acadian, and even some Cajun and Zydeco which the title of the album seems to imply (If one has any doubt, Cajun is a degeneration of Canadian while Zydeco is a degeneration of the french Les Haricot, which is the french for green beans, all deriving from Lousiana).
Many stand out tracks on the album, including a cover of Tracy Chapman's Mountain O' Things, a celtic song called Three Fishers sung by the beautifully voiced Tania Elizabeth, and Who Will Take My Place? about an Irish patriot, which is probably my favourite on the album as it's beautiful and poignant.
Starting with this review, I'll be posting the lyrics to the song that catches me most on an album, and that one happens to be Who Will Take My Place.Who Will Take My Place?
Written by Dan Frechette
If they shoot me down to shut me down
Who will take my place?
If they bring an army into this town
Who will take my place?
if they rule this land and silence me
When I'm laid out with injury
When my words won't matter much anymore
Who will take my place?
Revolution, you are not my own
Who will take my place?
There are flowers painted on those stones
Who will take my place?
When the silence of oppression dies
Overheard beyond the battle cries
Are the words of final compromise
Who will take my place?
When the dogs of war are on the land
Who will take my place?
When you forfeit life to take a stand
Who will take my place?
When the dreamers fear the simplest thoughts
When the bloodshed takes all that you've got
When this world's an empty, creaking floor
Who will take my place?
If they rule this land and silence me
When I'm laid out with injury
When my words won't matter anymore
Who will take my place?
Who will take my place?
Again, I repeat, One Two Three Four, Run to the store! The Duhks have a new album and it's a sweet one!
Album: The Duhks - Migrations
Label: Sugarhill Records
Release Date: September 13th, 2006
Bonus Material?: No
Site: www.duhks.com
Myspace page: www.myspace.com/theduhks
Um, I can't run out and buy it? Though I do love that song..is it available here?
ReplyDeleteI sent it to you :P
ReplyDeleteI looked for it to download but couldn't find it.
ReplyDeleteWill look for the cd next time I am at the cd store maybe sunday!
Hey Wormy,
ReplyDeleteThought you might be interested in a new artist... well new to me anyways LOL
"“I found my heart with this album,” claims Mary Knickle of her new release, Weave (Sea Fire Musik, 2006). Comprised of twelve original songs full of journeys, hope and loss, the work is brought together by a unifying passion and one remarkable voice.
Growing up in a family of musicians and storytellers, Knickle was drawn to the art of both from an early age. Following a childhood of performing at parties and family functions, she began to work to develop both of these skills into her own work. Through taking songwriting classes and studying music at Acadia University in Wolfville, NS, she started creating a unique sound that represented her.
“I grew up listening to Celtic music,” says Knickle. “It was around my twenties that I started writing songs. It was like I instantly found a piece of me that was missing”.
This realization gave her the push she needed. Knickle soon began performing her new songs, quickly finding an audience through both her engaging performances and heartfelt writing. It was also at this time that she recorded her debut album, On the Wind and the Sea (1991). Following up on the positive reception to her initial work, she soon moved on to work on her sophomore effort, Who Will Take The Throne? (1992) at CBC’s Studio H in Halifax, NS.
Still, the always aspiring Lunenburg native felt she hadn’t completely realized the sound she knew she was looking for.
“It was soon after those sessions that I found a band,” states Knickle. “It was just a perfect group of musicians for me. I wrote a whole batch of new songs and we played them together for the next eight years.” Made up of Laurence Stevenson on fiddle and Don Moore on guitar, it was the work the band did together during this period that would go on to make up Weave…eventually.
Due to the overwhelming demand on her as self-sustaining musician, Knickle decided to take a break from the industry in 1998. It was during this period that her life took a dramatic shift. After returning from a pilgrimage to India, she got married and soon after had her first daughter.
Seven years passed and Knickle began to feel her desire to perform once again. Quickly arranging a cast of musicians, she organized the sessions that would lead to the creation of Weave.
Immediately apparent on the album is Knickle’s strong connection to the sea. As narratives twist and bend, it’s the constant element that pulls everything together. After starting with the traditional sound of “Weave the Yarn,” the album delivers the combo of “Cross the Land (intro:)” and “Fire in My Heels”. casting the work’s mood and tone from the start. Songs such as “Brideship” and “The Grail” further develop Weave’s depth, offering unique topics delivered through a first person perspective that highlight Knickle’s gift for storytelling. With eight of the album’s songs recorded in just six hours, they have the unifying feeling of being created in one inspired session.
“I’ve been playing these songs for ten years,” she claims. “I know it’s solid, it’s the sound I was always looking for.”
Now, with her heart woven into the tracks of this album, Knickle looks forward to sharing her music once again."
http://www.rhapsody.com/maryknickle/weave