Album Review
Natalie MacMaster - In My Hands
Rounder Records
Jeff:
Darren:
Purchase The Album
Introduction:
This is the first appearance of a new feature that will be taking place from time to time in our review section. We're calling it the double take reviews. In this feature both Darren and myself will grab a copy of the same album, listen to it, and then write separate reviews without discussing it with each other. Then we post the results for you to read. The advantage? You get two opinions at once and can make an even better buying decision. Let's get on with the reviews!
In My Hands is easily the most inventive album of the year. Never before have I heard an artist be quite this daring. Natalie MacMaster is one of Cape Breton's most accomplished fiddle players. Her mastery of Celtic music (Celtic music is a very close cousin of country music) is evident here. But that's not the most intriguing aspect of this album. The way she blends all different music styles seamlessly into her music is what will leave you in awe.
The album opens with the funky title track "In My Hands". I fell in love with this song the first time I heard it and just had to get my hands on a copy of the album. The half-spoken lyrics come from Natalie herself and I can't wait to see her utilize her vocals in upcoming efforts. The song has a strong pop groove, but that should fit right in with the current country release (while I don't have a problem with the pop movement in country music if it turns out good tunes, I have created the term "poptry" for most of the awful stuff it has been creating).
After that inventive first track, Natalie falls into the traditional flavored "Welcome to the Trossachs". If you forced me to pick a favorite track, I would reluctantly pick this one. Solely because all the songs are so damn good, I feel it would be doing Natalie a great injustice to pick one song above the rest. The song starts out mild and over the course of it's 7 plus minutes turns into a driving, foot-tapping number. Just try to keep yourself from tapping a foot, or moving around. It won't happen.
"Olympic Reel" is a high energy display of MacMaster's talents. She makes that fiddle wail and you can't help but listen through a few times in awe of her talent. In "Flamenco Fling" Natalie trades her fiddle riffs with acoustic guitar and horn parts all wrapped into a Latin influenced sound. It's amazing that MacMaster can convincingly play so many different styles of music. Alison Krauss provides the vocals of the beautiful "Get Me Through December".
I've never been a fan of instrumental music. It's always struck me as incredibly boring. Natalie MacMaster has changed that. Her energetic, inventive fiddle playing has turned me into an addict. I've got to get my hands on the rest of her material, which I plan to do as quickly as possible. This album has been in my stereo and car stereo since I bought it and has rarely come out. It's a joy to hear music that is truly something special. It proves to music fans that there are some talented people out there making music. It also gives us hope that maybe an end to the boring, copy-cat sounds that we find on most albums might someday end.
If you consider yourself a music fan then you can't be without this record. In My Hands has hurled itself right into my top 5 albums of the year, and quite possibly the past 10. Natalie MacMaster is an incredible talent and her music speaks for itself. Now if you'll excuse me, the album is calling.
Album Review by Jeff Krasky
If there was ever an artist that put her heart and soul into her music, it's Natalie MacMaster. Her latest release, “In My Hands” is filled with a presence, a life force if you will, that has made this one of the finest CD’s ever to come into my collection. Natalie has long been known as one of the best Cape Breton style fiddlers around, and this disc showcases why.
I’ve long complained that some of the best artists around do not get the airplay, or the credit that they deserve. Natalie is certainly one of those artists. If it weren’t for a segment on CNBC, I would have never been introduced to this artist and her music. Purely by accident one night I was flipping the channels when I saw a very attractive young blonde woman being interviewed, so of course I stopped channel surfing for a second to see who she was. All it took was a few short clips of her playing her music, and I was hooked. She was beautiful, a talented fiddle player and also an Irish step dancer, so obviously I had to go out and buy the CD!
One of the things that makes this disc so good is the fact that Natalie seamlessly brings together traditional and modern sounds, as well as drawing from a variety of different musical styles. The title track may shock some traditionalists, with it’s lush musical landscapes and modern instrumentation that could easily be found on a lot of New Age or Alternative discs. The track also marks the first time that Natalie lends her voice to one of her songs, and I really look forward to hearing more of this on her future releases.
The only other song on the disc that contains a vocal is “Get Me Through December” where Alison Krauss lends her voice to this beautiful ballad about a woman looking for the faith and spirit to love again. The amazing thing about the rest of the tracks on this disc is that they bring as much emotion, without the luxury of using words to express them. For example, the beautifully played lonesome fiddle sound of “Blue Bonnets Over The Border” cuts directly into your soul with a sense of loss and sadness that has to be felt to properly explain it.
“Flamenco Fling” will make you want to get up and dance with its mixture of Natalie’s fiddle playing and the flamenco guitars and horns. “Space Ceilidh” brings together a modern drumbeat and electrical samples that sound at times like something directly out of Walt Disney World’s Main Street Electrical Parade, a purely magical tune.
Country fiddle virtuoso Mark O’Conner joins Natalie on a version of his own “Olympic Reel” and let me just say the results are phenomenal. I’ve long been a fan of Mark O’Conner, and this track simply bring together two of the best fiddle players in the world. It simply does not get any better than this! “In My Hands” is an album that will mesmerize you as you listen to it. It is rare for me to find a disc that will take you so well through a wide range of human emotions. To me, the best music has always had a very cinematic, larger than life feel to it, and this disc is like the soundtrack to our lives, taking us from our highs to our lows and back again. As the title track says, “through your voice I hear your stories, and in these hands they become my own. And the old times and old memories, called to life beneath my bow.” That pretty much sums up Natalie MacMaster’s music, as her bow and fiddle can speak volumes and volumes while the songwriter’s in Nashville say the same thing over and over again. Editors Note: Darren and myself are helpless music addicts. Our specialty might be country music but our love for music doesn't stop there. We both listen to a wide spectrum of musical styles. Once in awhile we come across a gem like In Your Hands and feel the need to share our experience with everyone. Celtic music is a close cousin to country music and when you listen to this album you'll notice that a number of the tracks sound more country than anything being released out of Nashville these days. We felt it was a perfect fit. We hope you enjoy it.
Album Review by Darren O'Neill
The WOC Rating Scale |
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The album stands above the rest. This is a record that every country music fan needs to have in their collection. This album is better than the average release. A strong record with some flaws that keep it from reaching that 5 star level. This album is an average country release. Doesn't posses qualities that make it stand out among all the other albums out there. A weak record that lacks solid songs or good vocal performances. Sample before you buy. This record is a bargin-bin reject that just isn't worth the time or the money. Completely misses the mark. |