Track list
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Lunaria from the album Whispering Trees released on Arlen records (arlen0055dd)
6th May 2013. Tracklisting: 1 Lunaria 3:49 2 Your Faraway Blues (Rocking The Forest Version) 2:35 3 The Golden Sea 1: 41 4 In The Lost And Found 2:03 5 Arc 4:06 |
LEFT REVIEW FROM THE SUN Newspaper (UK)
Below Review:
Remember when The Vaccines released What Did You Expect… and nearly every song abruptly came to a close after 2 or 3 minutes of aggressive guitar strumming, the silence leaving you in awkward shock because you expected more, and each song felt uncomfortably incomplete? Well, a quick skim over track times initially suggested I would feel the same towards Whispering Trees – but my concern was quickly relieved. Yes, they're short, but never incomplete, perfectly capturing each musical concept with remarkable simplicity and brevity.
Although a quick Google search initially suggested that Plantman is actually a green, 2D fictional super-villain who can control and animate plant life, Matt Randall, Adam Radmall and Bryan Styles are very much 3D, non-fictional, and, together, make up Plantman – the band. But perhaps they have taken some kind of inspiration from the other Plantman's comic book existence – minus the villainous qualities – as Whispering Trees radiates something natural and beatific; each track blossoms and flourishes in its own unique way to create a collective, melodic garden of musical delights. It evokes such a delicate romanticism that it seems perfectly feasible to think they wrote each song beside a forest stream in the moonlight with a pen made of lotus flowers, strumming and drumming on instruments bathed in love and sunlight. In short, it's 18th-century-poeticism-meets-arboreal-rock.
Opener 'Away with the Sun' sets the scenic, forest vibe with a simple, cyclical guitar strum humming beneath Randall's vocals that breathe an extraordinary fragility into the song – in fact, into everysong. They're not quite monotone, but have certainly nestled into a comfortable range that perfectly complements the lyrical mutterings of nostalgia and love in all its forms. 'Spirit or Spell' creates a vocal variety by uniting his vocals with various harmonies that create an atmosphere of ghostly emotional vulnerability, while 'The Bitter Song' verges on being deemed a misleading misnomer. Melodically, it's one of the more upbeat songs on the record, although, as the title suggests, it lyrically laments over a problematic relationship as glockenspiels gleam and trembling guitars weave their way through. 'Stickman' declares that "everyone's a wild child," an idea effectively contrasted by the more gentle refrains, whereas 'You Wear the Crown' depicts a feeling of inadequacy and lost courage when faced with the unattainable.
The second half of the album doesn't imitate the first half, nor does it stray too far from what you've first heard. It's more guitar heavy, swopping stripped back acoustics for jauntier electrics that rhythmically speed up the refrains, and 'Crackles' is a perfectly positioned middle-track that nods towards these subtle changes in the latter half of the record. Despite incorporating hastier riffs, they nevertheless remain composed – owing to Randall's imperturbable singing style – while 'Lunaria' simply makes use of ethereal metaphors of silver threads and abstract memories. As the title suggests, it ebbs and flows tentatively forward, pulled by the droning drums – just as the tides are pulled by the moon. 'Widescreen Heart' returns to the acoustic set up as Randall muses, "I think I love you far too much," whereas 'Vini' is an expressive yet mild release of various sentiments. Closing the album is 'Melodica Forest', which ends things in a similar way to how it began –gracefully, pensively, and tenderly.
Although I have used the word 'simply' various times throughout this review, that's not to say Whispering Trees is in any way boring; it's more that Plantman have brought things back to basics, taking full advantage of their musicianship without insisting upon over-complicated melodies. Randall's perpetually soothing voice creates a comfortable, easy-listening experience, and though they may not have incorporated hundreds of instruments or experimented with a vast amount of genres, as the saying goes, it's quality, not quantity – yet they've somehow managed to walk a self-drawn line that connects the two. So while 15 tracks may at first seem too many, listening is neither a chore nor mundane; they add plenty of variety to and within their own sound. At the core of each song is a quintessentially indie beating heart, distinguished by its poetic insistence that even difficult things can be seen as something beautiful. Or perhaps, to return to an arboreal view, without dirt, no plant could ever grow.
Rating: 7/10 From : http://www.thefourohfive.com/review/article/plantman-whispering-trees\
Below Review:
Remember when The Vaccines released What Did You Expect… and nearly every song abruptly came to a close after 2 or 3 minutes of aggressive guitar strumming, the silence leaving you in awkward shock because you expected more, and each song felt uncomfortably incomplete? Well, a quick skim over track times initially suggested I would feel the same towards Whispering Trees – but my concern was quickly relieved. Yes, they're short, but never incomplete, perfectly capturing each musical concept with remarkable simplicity and brevity.
Although a quick Google search initially suggested that Plantman is actually a green, 2D fictional super-villain who can control and animate plant life, Matt Randall, Adam Radmall and Bryan Styles are very much 3D, non-fictional, and, together, make up Plantman – the band. But perhaps they have taken some kind of inspiration from the other Plantman's comic book existence – minus the villainous qualities – as Whispering Trees radiates something natural and beatific; each track blossoms and flourishes in its own unique way to create a collective, melodic garden of musical delights. It evokes such a delicate romanticism that it seems perfectly feasible to think they wrote each song beside a forest stream in the moonlight with a pen made of lotus flowers, strumming and drumming on instruments bathed in love and sunlight. In short, it's 18th-century-poeticism-meets-arboreal-rock.
Opener 'Away with the Sun' sets the scenic, forest vibe with a simple, cyclical guitar strum humming beneath Randall's vocals that breathe an extraordinary fragility into the song – in fact, into everysong. They're not quite monotone, but have certainly nestled into a comfortable range that perfectly complements the lyrical mutterings of nostalgia and love in all its forms. 'Spirit or Spell' creates a vocal variety by uniting his vocals with various harmonies that create an atmosphere of ghostly emotional vulnerability, while 'The Bitter Song' verges on being deemed a misleading misnomer. Melodically, it's one of the more upbeat songs on the record, although, as the title suggests, it lyrically laments over a problematic relationship as glockenspiels gleam and trembling guitars weave their way through. 'Stickman' declares that "everyone's a wild child," an idea effectively contrasted by the more gentle refrains, whereas 'You Wear the Crown' depicts a feeling of inadequacy and lost courage when faced with the unattainable.
The second half of the album doesn't imitate the first half, nor does it stray too far from what you've first heard. It's more guitar heavy, swopping stripped back acoustics for jauntier electrics that rhythmically speed up the refrains, and 'Crackles' is a perfectly positioned middle-track that nods towards these subtle changes in the latter half of the record. Despite incorporating hastier riffs, they nevertheless remain composed – owing to Randall's imperturbable singing style – while 'Lunaria' simply makes use of ethereal metaphors of silver threads and abstract memories. As the title suggests, it ebbs and flows tentatively forward, pulled by the droning drums – just as the tides are pulled by the moon. 'Widescreen Heart' returns to the acoustic set up as Randall muses, "I think I love you far too much," whereas 'Vini' is an expressive yet mild release of various sentiments. Closing the album is 'Melodica Forest', which ends things in a similar way to how it began –gracefully, pensively, and tenderly.
Although I have used the word 'simply' various times throughout this review, that's not to say Whispering Trees is in any way boring; it's more that Plantman have brought things back to basics, taking full advantage of their musicianship without insisting upon over-complicated melodies. Randall's perpetually soothing voice creates a comfortable, easy-listening experience, and though they may not have incorporated hundreds of instruments or experimented with a vast amount of genres, as the saying goes, it's quality, not quantity – yet they've somehow managed to walk a self-drawn line that connects the two. So while 15 tracks may at first seem too many, listening is neither a chore nor mundane; they add plenty of variety to and within their own sound. At the core of each song is a quintessentially indie beating heart, distinguished by its poetic insistence that even difficult things can be seen as something beautiful. Or perhaps, to return to an arboreal view, without dirt, no plant could ever grow.
Rating: 7/10 From : http://www.thefourohfive.com/review/article/plantman-whispering-trees\
The guardian newspaper (UK) feature. http://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/dec/19/new-band-plantmanMaking Field Mice sound like Modest Mouse … Plantman's Matt Randall
Hometown: Southend.
The lineup: Matt Randall, Adam Radmall, Bryan Styles.
The background: Plantman the 2D character is a fictional supervillain from the world of Marvel Comics who, armed with his "vege-ray", is capable of controlling and animating plant life. Whereas Plantman the 3D entity is a three-piece band from Southend, mainly based around singer, songwriter and guitarist Matt Randall, who has no superpowers but can sing in that blank way that indie boys have since Lou Reed, and can play guitar in that iridescent way that only Vini Reilly of Durutti Column can, suggesting the fretboard has been lit up by ghostly plasma – there is even a track on Plantman's forthcoming album Whispering Trees called Vini that we're guessing is named after the Mancunian purveyor of luminous pattern-painting.
So Randall has an alter ego. He also has a past, as a member of indie band Beatglider. And Whispering Trees isn't the first Plantman release, although the previous one, 2010's Closer to the Snow, was a handmade CDR affair, albeit one that sold out of its initial run. But this is Randall's first major statement, and he has hardly stinted with it: there are 15 tracks on Whispering Trees, even if they are, musically speaking, mainly variations on a theme, all trebly guitars that appear to have been dipped in sunlight and wan melodies that appear to have been composed on the cold grey morning after being dumped. Opener Away with the Sun sets the gentle tone – it's sort of country-MOR, or like one of those Americana boys who are invariably called Josh. Stickman filters the monotone delivery of Lou's nihilism through the romanticism of Go-Betweens' Grant McLennan. We couldn't help noticing the drums on this one because they seem to have been played by a five-year-old, not necessarily a criticism. The title track is very Sarah or Shinkansen, those quintessential indie labels of the late-80s and early-90s, from that age when "indie" meant a quiet pursuit of modest musicianly values, ahead of its transformation into the triumphalist brashness of the Roses/Oasis era. Crackles, too, is defiantly un-Oasis-like – if it recalls any Creation band, it's Felt: in terms of mood and aesthetic it's more Forever Breathes the Lonely Word than it is Cigarettes and Alcohol. Imagine if the Velvet Underground were from the Home Counties and had never heard of heroin. It's a mild, polite take on New York drone-rock. The track Vini is like Sweet Jane played by students on the way to the refectory. On Doves Tail, Randall sings, "In the dove's tail lies a sting/In the real world you don't win." How indie is that couplet? Rihanna would never sing it. Lunaria is the standout here, guitar and shoulders above the rest. It may be winter outside, as Love Unlimited once had it, but in Plantman's heart it's always spring and Randall's fancy is turning to thoughts of love and its power to debilitate. On Old Ghosts he ruminates, "I sit and wonder at the moon on the water." Well, of course he does. Fey, defeatist, pseudo-poetic – what's not to like?
The buzz: "Lying in open ground somewhere between New Order and the Go-Betweens."
The truth: They make Field Mice sound like Modest Mouse.
Most likely to: Sound stark.
Least likely to: Kill Tony Stark.
What to buy: Whispering Trees is released by Arlen on 14 January.
File next to: Lloyd Cole, Field Mice, Go-Betweens, Durutti Column.
Hometown: Southend.
The lineup: Matt Randall, Adam Radmall, Bryan Styles.
The background: Plantman the 2D character is a fictional supervillain from the world of Marvel Comics who, armed with his "vege-ray", is capable of controlling and animating plant life. Whereas Plantman the 3D entity is a three-piece band from Southend, mainly based around singer, songwriter and guitarist Matt Randall, who has no superpowers but can sing in that blank way that indie boys have since Lou Reed, and can play guitar in that iridescent way that only Vini Reilly of Durutti Column can, suggesting the fretboard has been lit up by ghostly plasma – there is even a track on Plantman's forthcoming album Whispering Trees called Vini that we're guessing is named after the Mancunian purveyor of luminous pattern-painting.
So Randall has an alter ego. He also has a past, as a member of indie band Beatglider. And Whispering Trees isn't the first Plantman release, although the previous one, 2010's Closer to the Snow, was a handmade CDR affair, albeit one that sold out of its initial run. But this is Randall's first major statement, and he has hardly stinted with it: there are 15 tracks on Whispering Trees, even if they are, musically speaking, mainly variations on a theme, all trebly guitars that appear to have been dipped in sunlight and wan melodies that appear to have been composed on the cold grey morning after being dumped. Opener Away with the Sun sets the gentle tone – it's sort of country-MOR, or like one of those Americana boys who are invariably called Josh. Stickman filters the monotone delivery of Lou's nihilism through the romanticism of Go-Betweens' Grant McLennan. We couldn't help noticing the drums on this one because they seem to have been played by a five-year-old, not necessarily a criticism. The title track is very Sarah or Shinkansen, those quintessential indie labels of the late-80s and early-90s, from that age when "indie" meant a quiet pursuit of modest musicianly values, ahead of its transformation into the triumphalist brashness of the Roses/Oasis era. Crackles, too, is defiantly un-Oasis-like – if it recalls any Creation band, it's Felt: in terms of mood and aesthetic it's more Forever Breathes the Lonely Word than it is Cigarettes and Alcohol. Imagine if the Velvet Underground were from the Home Counties and had never heard of heroin. It's a mild, polite take on New York drone-rock. The track Vini is like Sweet Jane played by students on the way to the refectory. On Doves Tail, Randall sings, "In the dove's tail lies a sting/In the real world you don't win." How indie is that couplet? Rihanna would never sing it. Lunaria is the standout here, guitar and shoulders above the rest. It may be winter outside, as Love Unlimited once had it, but in Plantman's heart it's always spring and Randall's fancy is turning to thoughts of love and its power to debilitate. On Old Ghosts he ruminates, "I sit and wonder at the moon on the water." Well, of course he does. Fey, defeatist, pseudo-poetic – what's not to like?
The buzz: "Lying in open ground somewhere between New Order and the Go-Betweens."
The truth: They make Field Mice sound like Modest Mouse.
Most likely to: Sound stark.
Least likely to: Kill Tony Stark.
What to buy: Whispering Trees is released by Arlen on 14 January.
File next to: Lloyd Cole, Field Mice, Go-Betweens, Durutti Column.