 Erik
Hinds
"Cerebus" CD
Solponticello
Records
Genres: experimental folk, instrumental folk,
instrumentals
Solponticello
195 Three Oaks Drive
Athens GA 30607
Nov 4 - 10 2002 |
Erik
Hinds, whose guitar talents are present in bands as diverse as SS
Puft, The Georgian Contemporary Unit, and Riveter,
has recently turned in Cerebus, a very personal solo album in
which he experiments with an acoustic guitar. Most of the pieces, with
exception to the fifth, are extremely short, yet still manage to serve
as full thoughts as opposed to simple ideas.
"Delene," for example, is a one-and-half minute
composition with a mysterious feeling to it. The subtle bumps and pick
sounds that come with using an acoustic guitar are present, and this
adds a feeling of personality to the piece. "Faith," which
comes right after "Delene," brings in even more
accessibility, with some interesting guitar-picking effects on
display. The track really comes together about midway-through, where
it starts to feel like a small, instrumental folk song.
"Three-Headed Monster," the album's six-minuter, gives Hinds
a bit more time to develop his thoughts, and he uses the track's
length as a canvas, painting a lovely picture with the brushes of his
guitar strings. The result is a composition that incorporates a whole
number of ideas and styles into it, including classical guitar
methods, mild experiments, and even a bit of jazz accentuation.
While solo releases can often be self-pretentious and overly
experimental, Hinds has shown a very nice deviation from this
pattern, instead creating a beautiful, melodic collection of songs
that tide well for at-home listening. Cozy, comfortable, laid-back -
it all applies to Cerebus, a wonderful album that revels in
both accessiblity and musical exploration.
85%
Matt Shimmer [Vitals:
10 tracks; distributed by the
label;
released 2002] |
