The Wide, Wide River

Bill Callahan～Bonnie Prince Billy好き必聴!
北欧の実力派アーティストJames Yorkstonによるフォーキーかつ温もりのある傑作がここに誕生...
Peter, Bjorn & JohnのPeter Morenも参加!

2001年から本格的に音楽活動を始動、Four Tet、Alexis Taylor(Hot Chip)らとのコラボレーションでも知られるスコットランド出身のJames YorkstonとThe Second Hand Orchestraのリーダーで、スウェーデン出身のKarl-Jonas Winqvistの2人が長年交友関係にあったことから実現した今回のプロジェクト、James Yorkston and The Second Hand Orchestra。
Peter Moren(Peter, Bjorn & John)、Cecilia Osterholm (スウェーデンの民族楽器ニッケルハルパ)、Emma Nordenstam(ピアノ&チェロ)、Ulrika Gyllenberg(ヴァイオリン)など、Winqvistが集めた一流のミュージシャンたちと3日間かけてスウェーデンでレコーディングとミックスが行われた。
制作はJames Yorkstonの曲を中心に即興で行われているが、温かく、崇高なものであると同時に、彼のソングライティング、コラボレーション、そして指揮者としてのスキルを際立たせている。
また、このレコードには過去の愛、年齢を重ねること、そして今は亡き友人たちのことも含まれているという。

Multi-faceted troubadour James Yorkston has explored many dimensions during his two decades of work. In addition to his numerous albums of eclectic folk music, the Scottish singer/songwriter has made a trio of records as part of the earthy U.K.-Indian trio Yorkston/Thorne/Khan and authored several books of both fiction and memoir. His previous solo outing, 2019s The Route to the Harmonium, followed the lineage of sprawling self-exploration that has been a hallmark particularly of his later work. It was also recorded at Yorkstons home studio and performed almost entirely on his own. While its successor, The Wide Wide River, is collaborative to its core, it nonetheless feels like a continuation of his recent style, albeit pleasantly shaded by a new cast of players. Credited to James Yorkston & the Secondhand Orchestra, the project stems from the singers longtime friendship with Swedish musician Karl-Jonas Winqvist, who, over a smattering of sessions in Stockholm, paired Yorkston with his own stable of musicians. Spontaneity has always been an element of Yorkstons style, but the loose group-mind feel captured here yields appealingly fresh and intimate results. Against his half-spoken musings, a celestial array of jangling guitars, strings, and flutes play out, lifting the music up in a Scottish-Scandinavian communion of burgeoning friendship. The buoyant Struggle is a clear highlight with its airy harmonies and warming refrain. The sweetly ramshackle There Is No Upside captures the acoustic indie pop spirit of early Belle and Sebastian and the sprightly mysticism of the Waterboys Fishermans Blues in equal measure. No one could accuse Yorkston of being overly polished, but its that in-between state of chance and composition where his music is best served. The chorus of A Very Old Fashioned Blues is a perfect example of this when the Second Handers tune into his frequency, layering in their gorgeous harmonies with the kind of quickly conjured effervescence that tends to wear off after too much rehearsal. Simply putting a group of barely-familiars in a room together doesnt necessarily guarantee collaborative magic, but Yorkston & the Secondhand Orchestra complement each others strengths well on this richly satisfying matchup. ~ Timothy Monger