Abney Park

[freydis]

Between Tragedy in 2005 and Horizons in 2008, Abney Park has gone through a bit of a direction change in sound and topical focus, but both albums are a rich construction of sound and word, mood and theme.

The Death of Tragedy combines very mood-heavy electronic sound with musical elements both Eastern and Western; at once, you’ve suddenly stumbled into some strange and exotic bazaar. With songs on the album that are both thematic and anthemic, there is material here to please both the club goer, and the iPod and cigarettes types. I’ve always been a fan of thickly textured sound, and Abney Park does delight with layers of different sounds and instruments, adding to the dark and exotic ambience of the album. On this album, the overall sound and style is wonderfully consistant and well established.

Lost Horizons is the first album they have done with both feet firmly in the Steampunk theme, evoking images of airships, dashing rescues, mad science, and piracy. The sound pushes further into an almost electronic-world music-folk rock fusion, allowing that the dark bazaar still exists, but perhaps in another time altogether. The sound is still rich and full in this album, but not quite like they’ve finished exploring where they want to go with it. I can hardly wait to see where they end up with their next album.

Perhaps a full compliment of live percussion? Woodwind instruments? The grind of guitar with the power of these additional elements like the violin, as Abney Park employs, make a sound for both today, and the post apocalyptic future most steampunkers envision. As Steampunk style develops, I’m certain so will the band’s innovation. In some aspects, they may lead the way.

[freydis]

Also..... Finally started posting stuff on the blog on my new domain, jljamieson.net. It needs some serious image work. All suggestions are welcome. Offers of help are even better. ;P But anyway.... put one piece of fiction, and the review you see above. Go look, and tell me what you think?