EWR3–James William Hindle –
Joshong! – Reviews
Plan B
Magazine
A little like Devendra’s ‘Oh Me Oh My…’, this half-hour mini-album of
11-tracks – all but one of them between one and three minutes long – has the
feel of a diary filled tentatively with fragments, sketches, notes-to-self,
recorded at home, with the curtains drawn, complete with the whirr of
tape-heads and the click of the on-off button. With acoustic guitar, banjo,
harp, accordion and chimes Hindle produces a hushed
bedroom-folk, creating tiny, self-contained worlds of bucolic finger-picking,
melancholic micro-ballads and bluegrass Bagpuss
banjo. Best of all, though, is eight-minute instrumental ‘Joshong
Pt.2’, which sounds like a drone-version of The Doors’ ‘The End’ with John
Fahey sitting in for Jim Morrison
Robots and Electronic
Brains Zine
There's a
descending run - you could hardly call it a riff - on 1983, the second track
here, plucked out on a banjo that's magical. The only other sounds are a
tinkling noise, some stretched aaaaahhhs and a
one-two bass, maybe on the same banjo. And James William Hindle singing. It must be late at night. It's
definitely a time for reflection. He's probably alone. He probably doesn't want
to be. And he shouldn't be. This is another beautiful folk record from Early
Winter, limited to 250 hand-made copies.
Terrascope
You’re looking
flustered. You seem to be having doubts about that acoustic singer/songwriter
that you’ve recently discovered. You think he/she might be harbouring M.O.R.
tendencies (shriek!!) and it’s getting on top of you. Well, it’s time to act
quickly before you become the object of derision amongst your friends and
family. In response to this problem, I have devised a simple two-part test to
help you through these times of gnawing self-doubt and sleepless nights.
(a) Are his/her releases filed within close
proximity to creatures such as Kate Melua and James
Blunt? Yes/No
(b) Has he/she performed on the ‘Parkinson’
chat-show? Yes/No
If the answer to
both of these questions is in the affirmative, then the artist under scrutiny
is undoubtedly a prize wet lettuce of rheumy-eyed wimpery
with precious little self-esteem. BUT! All is not lost. Simply take the
contaminated produce to either the nearest landfill
site or, better still, your local charity shop. Feeling better? Good. I know
what can fill that recently vacated gap in your CD collection: James William Hindle, a nouveau folk/pop balladist
with several well-received albums on Badman Records
(of
They fascinate
from the start – part one of the title track, a banjo instrumental with echoes
of Clive Palmer’s legendary ‘Banjoland’ set (now out
on Sunbeam) makes way for the utterly beautiful ‘1983’, no relation to the
‘Electric Ladyland’ cut. With its celestial harp and
choir (samples?) it’s as if Duncan Browne (he of the majestic ‘Give me, Take
You’ LP) has revisited the earth to briefly possess the soul of a willing
disciple. Oh, my....
‘Joshong Pt 2’, at eight minutes the longest track on here,
weighs curling watchspring notes on delicate Indian
scales. A raga that floats a certain Robbie Krieger motif
into the former John Clyde Evans’ loft space. There’s
also some displays of supple fingerpicking in ‘Bleak
House’ and ‘Happy Cat’, the latter’s rag structure transporting a Cheshire cat
grin to the wilds of
While we
continually look overseas for blissful folk-based gorgeousness (Matt Valentine,
In Gowan Ring, Basho Jungans etc), we seem to have an equally rewarding artist
right here under our very noses. Investigate now. (Steve Pescott)