Jimmy Page, Robert Plant - Walking Into Clarksdale
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Free Music Notes for Walking Into Clarksdale
Free Music Review: Beauty and the Beast
Hit: 4 Stars
The first thing you notice about the record is the way it has been recorded. It is certainly not a slick, polished, radio-friendly production, and in a sense is perhaps an audiophile's nightmare. Frequencies sometimes sound indistinct, and many of the vocal takes are recorded very dry, whilst the instrumentation is enhanced by merely room ambience, rather than excessive use of plug-ins, digital reverbs, compressors, EQs and the like. In reality though, it is this dynamic and organic approach to cutting tracks that the record benefits from. Frequently the band swing from passages so quiet and gentle you fancy you can almost hear Plant breathing into his mic, to powerfully loose sections in which Page is often inspired to produce fretwork that is magnificently understated, beautifully executed and very moving. The rhythm section combine to subtly underpin the melodic passages and drive the harder sections with a dynamic aggression; they've never sounded better, and Page and Plant have never been more ably supported. Throughout the recording Page makes subtle use of effects to enhance his guitar playing - a touch of tremolo here, a dash of tape echo there - and it sounds as though most his overdrive comes from careful use of his guitar's volume control rather than pedals or rack effects; once again it's this natural approach to playing that makes it rank amongst his best on record.
The songs themselves are amongst the finest that Page and Plant have written together. Plant's lyrics are straightforward and resonate with an honesty that is refreshing and rewarding to listen to time and again. His more poetic side is beautifully balanced, for the most part not drifting into pastiche. The melodies are interesting, and often a song will traverse several moods with musical twists and turns along the way, never becoming formulaic. What they do require is time and effort - time to actually sit, listen and enjoy. There are one or two exceptions - Burning Up, House of Love and Sons of Freedom sound to me as though a few riff driven rockers were urgently needed and had they been consigned to the b-sides collection, I wouldn't be complaining.
A reviewer below questions Albini's involvement and suggests his presence is hardly felt. In so saying, he has completely missed the point of Steve Albini and good producers in general. Albini was not brought to the sessions to make Page and Plant sound like Nirvana, (for which we are all no doubt, very thankful), but what he has done is what every good producer strives to do - get the best out of the band and onto tape. If a record sounds like a producer has left their muddy footprints all over it, then it becomes the producer's record, not the band's. This is the sound of a band playing together in a room, and Albini has captured it well.
I understand why some people haven't taken to it. It doesn't have the immediacy of some of their earlier recorded output, nor the weight and urgency. It is understated and reflective, and that's exactly what I love about it, and what many, it seems, hate about it. Well, that's OK, I guess, each to their own! But, overall, in my opinion, this is an excellent record, expertly performed, beautifully recorded and well worth the money.
Free Music Review: Surprisingly good
Hit: 4 Stars
I was pretty fearful about first hearing this album, since I really hated most post-Zeppelin releases, but was excited to hear this as it was engineered by Steve Albini, a recordist who I had always wished was around to help make a Led Zep reunion album.
Albini is very adept at recreating a Zeppelin-like sound for the album, and it's no wonder he was chosen as engineer, despite his dark horse status -- the drums and guitars sound terrific, and there are many details of Robert Plant's voice that were not captured on his earlier solo efforts. Jimmy Page shows off a great arsenal of different guitar sounds, and while he plays no really blistering solos, the work bears his unmistakable signature, expertly recorded to boot. The mixes have almost 3-D depth, and when turned up loud they will kick you right in the guts.
The songs here must be applauded simply for not trying to make it sound like they are young again. These are middle-aged men, with a stock of tunes that tend to favor ballads (with loud bridges, of course); the lyrics often seem to reflect on loss and aging, rather than describing elves, fairies, and cavorting with Los Angeles groupies. They sound older, but all the wiser. On "Blue Train", there is obvious and very affecting sincerity in such lines as "love's true flame dies without the warmth of your sun," -- something that would sound ridiculous coming from a younger band, but here Plant gives it an earnest quality that makes it totally believable.
It's not a perfect record. The single, "Most High", loses me after a few minutes, and the title track lacks focus even though it's based on a pretty good guitar riff. But "Shining In the Light" sounds very new and refreshing, as well "When the World Was Young," which could have sounded quite at-home on an album like "Presence".
This album won't change your life, but more or less, it rocks. Sometimes, conviction is all you need, and there's plenty of it here.
Free Music Review: Brilliant, but could've been more ambitious and exploratory
Hit: 4 Stars
Frankly speaking, I was a little disappointed as I expected something as enchanting and esoteric as NO QUARTER.No doubt all the songs are beautiful, simple pure heartfelt rockn'roll..no pretensions and no excuses. But don't we have the right to expect a little more musical innovation from them?I guess the simplicity of all these songs is a conscious attempt from their part , maybe it's a form of artistic maturity that's way beyond my comprehension.....
In themselves, the songs are great. Page has always been a master of creating shades of ambience using his guitar sound...the guitar playing in this album is almost expressionistic, the center of musical gravity for all the songs. Some of the reviewers have commented that Plant sounds old, but I find him amazingly young in this album. Surely there is no libidinous wailing of 'Whole lotta love' or brutal war cry of 'Immigrant's Song',but he sounds refreshingly honest and in places ethereal. His emotive singing is crystal clear, his faith in his own romantic fantasy world is untouched by even a shadow of doubt. Do we see a reincarnation of Bilbo Baggins' spirit here ?
The moroccan-karnataki musical influence is still there, but subtle and less louder than NO QUARTER. The musical arrangement is superb,not a single note wasted. The album could've sounded better with more creative inputs from the rhythm section. In places, Michael Lee sounds totally uninspired. Though all the songs are great..I'll rate 'Most High','Walking into Clarksdale' and 'Shining My Light' as the top three.
Though the album is not exactly a great musical tour de force, it showcase somes honest statements from a pair of awesomely creative minds who also happened to have defined rockn'roll in thier own terms. We live in bitter times and are guided by fallen angels, what else can we ask for ?
Free Music Review: Darker, Atmospheric, Great!
Hit: 4 Stars
First, imagine this has nothing to do with led Zeppelin. Imagine this is a new band, you pop in the CD what do you think? You KNOW there is nothing else coming out right now that sounds at all like this. That alone makes it stand out in the cookie cutter music world of today but wait, there's more.
In bringing the thought of Zep back into this review let me use the Zep sound not as a direct comparison but as 1 part of what I think is an interesting mix that is descriptive of this release:
Stir in one part Zep, some atmosphere from a Mazzy Star Album (Among my Swan?) and something darker....like the mood of a Sisters of Mercy album with edges of influence from Lenard Cohen.
Strange mix? You bet!
This is an album about mood and atmosphere. Page has an amazing guitar tone, my favorite of his so far, very rich and THICK but the playing is subtle compared to a bunch of out-front blues/rock leads that you might expect. This album has a darker aged feel to it. It's simple but with layers. This has the effect of having more to give on each additional listen.
I would think of myself as a casual Zep fan with Houses of the Holy being my favorite album but I am very impressed with this CD> Anyone like Roger Waters "Amused to Death"? The voice here has that kind of weathered feel to it, very dramatic.
Now, none of my comparisons are of the sound but the feel, atmosphere and mood of the CD which is where I think this is a very different listen than what you might expect.
This CD is grey it's rain, but in a beautiful way. It's excellent. Take a listen.
Free Music Review: Legends Survive Trip to Clarksdale -- Pictures at Eleven
Hit: 4 Stars
When I first heard Jimmy and Robert were producing original material together for the first time since the break-up of the mighty Led Zeppelin, I winced. After all, we've seen the old-rockers-try-again formula before, and it usually doesn't work. But Plant and Page avoid that pitfall with a meticulously crafted album that shows they still care. Radio hit "Most High" takes the long-standing interest in Middle Eastern sounds to new heights, while "Please Read the Letter" and the title track experiment with very cool arrangements and innovative structures. "When the World Was Young" is one of the more vibrant and complete tracks. "Upon a Golden Horse" and "Burning Up" rock, though Robert's voice shows a little wear here and there. Most Zeppelin moment: The first touch of the guitar shortly into "Blue Train" - my favorite track -- is unmistakable Page, and the ensuing effort could be "Tea for One" Part II. Second Zep moment: "Shine in the Light" sounds like a cross between "Friends" and "Poor Tom," yet stands beautifully on its own. Overall this is not Led Zeppelin, but of course it could never be. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts though, and like Plant's own first solo effort, "Pictures at Eleven," this CD is not a classic but it's quite solid. I'd put "Clarksdale" above anything Page has done post-Zep, and right up their with Robert's best solo jaunts.