Thursday 19 November 2009

Prog-résiste Magazine No. 58 (Belgium)


The following review of "Edge Of The Dark" has recently appeared in the Belgian "Prog-résiste" magazine.

It looks a pretty good piece, but I'll be really grateful if someone can help with a translation into English.


BEAU
Edge of the Dark
Angel Air – 69’36 – UK 09
Folkrock

Angel Air redécouvre et complète la discographie d’un songwriter anglais méconnu en publiant 18 titres inédits (chutes de studio, mais aussi de label - la fermeture des portes de Dandelion enterrant pendant des années les bandes du 3ème album - ou de promotion - une mutation avec déménagement soustrayant les masters du 4ème album à la publication). Alors qu’il use ses médiators au sein d’un groupe de bals (The Raiders) de la region de Leeds, Christopher John Trevor Midgley alias Beau découvre la voix brute et la guitare impérieuse de Leadbelly, musicien folk de Louisiane, ainsi que la délicieuse simplicité des chansons de Tom Paxton et l’engagement politique de Phil Ochs. Il s’achète une 12 cordes, du genre de celles qui transfigurent la vie d’un honnête musicien, et écrit, écrit (150 morceaux en 2 ans!), passe live à la radio et à la télé et est signé, avec son 1er single 1917 Revolution - que la légende dit avoir inspiré le Horse With No Name d’America - pour la 1ère publication du nouveau label de John Peel. Deux albums s’en suivront - Beau en ’69 et Creation en ’71 - et l’arrêt de Dandelion amènera Beau au difficile choix entre une carrière de musician-avec-un-album-dans-les-mains-mais-pas-de-maison-de-production ou d’employé-gagnant-de-quoi-manger-tous-les-jours, de surcroît fraîchement promu. Beau choisit et High Mass, prévu sous le nom de John Trevor (pour avaliser l’évolution vers une musique plus tranchée, où la 12 cordes, même si elle tient toujours le 1er rôle, n’est plus seule), ne vit jamais le jour. De même que Twelve Strings To The Beau, don’t Edge of the Dark contient également 5 titres. Cinq autres compositions sont tirées de sessions d’enregistrements «à la maison», réalisées entre ’78 et ’82, les 3 dernières, ultérieures, ayant plus un statut de démos. La musique de Beau est parfois touchante (The Mirror), gracieuse (The Last Ballet), mélancolique (My Star), savoureuse (Cartoon), acharnée (The Commodore), au message politique («Si j’écris une chanson, je ne brise pas une vitrine», explique Beau, dont les thèmes tournent autour des «choses qui le fâchent»), aux accointances à rechercher, notamment, du côté de Bob Dylan (Why Do You Laugh? ou Goodbye), de Leonard Cohen (St Elizabeth Of Hungary) ou de John Cooper Clarke (High Mass), toujours portée par le couple voix/guitare, rarement agrémentée d’empirisme sonore (Birds, à la production... étonnante). Attachante exhumation d’archives.

Bernard Vincken



EDIT: (26/11/09)

Thanks to Pete, Judith, Zena, Derek and Denise for the following translation of the "Prog-résiste" review:


Angel Air has re-discovered and added to the discography of an underrated English songwriter by publishing 18 previously unreleased numbers (unreleased because of the collapse of the studio and also the label – the closing of Dandelion’s doors burying for years the tapes of the 3rd album – and because of promotion – a change of job after moving house preventing the masters of the 4th album from being released). When he was performing in a dance band (The Raiders) from Leeds, Christopher John Trevor Midgley alias Beau discovered the raw voice and urgent guitar of Louisiana folk musician Leadbelly, as well as the delightful simplicity of Tom Paxton’s songs and the political engagement of Phil Ochs. He bought a 12 string, the type which would change the life of a decent musician, and wrote and wrote (150 pieces in 2 years!), performed live on radio and TV, and was signed up, with his 1st single 1917 Revolution – which legend says inspired America’s Horse With No Name – as the 1st release of John Peel’s new label. Two albums followed – Beau in ’69 and Creation in ’71 – and then the end of Dandelion led Beau to make a difficult choice between a career of “musician with an album in hand but no production company” or that of someone recently promoted and earning a regular salary. Beau made his choice and High Mass, planned for release under the name of John Trevor (in recognition of his evolution into a more defined musical style where the 12 string, even though it always played a major role, was not alone), never saw the light of day. The same with Twelve Strings To The Beau, from which the Edge of the Dark also contains 5 songs. Five other compositions are taken from home recording sessions, laid down between ’78 and ’82, the last three, done later, having more the status of demos. Beau’s music is sometimes moving (the Mirror), graceful (The Last Ballet), melancholic (My Star), tasty (Cartoon), relentless (The Commodore), with a political message (“if I write a song I don’t have to break a window,” explains Beau, whose themes centre on “things that make him angry”), and there are influences to be discerned, notably of Bob Dylan (Why do you Laugh? or Goodbye), of Leonard Cohen (St Elizabeth of Hungary), or of John Cooper Clarke (High Mass), always carried by the coupling of voice and guitar, rarely ornamented with empirical sound (Birds, an astonishing production). A fascinating exhumation from the archives.

Thanks Bernard!




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