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JO QUAIL is a once in a generation talent. Captivating audiences with little more than a cello and a loop pedal, her prowess at crafting soundscapes with the bare minimum of tools is a sight to behold. She has been welcomed into the rock and metal community with open arms, playing with the likes of MYRKUR, LINGUA IGNOTA, MONO and GOD IS AN ASTRONAUT and taking to the stage at such places as Inferno Festival, ArcTanGent and Hellfest among others. Seventh album Notan – due for release on September 12th via Adderstone Records – is named after the Japanese concept that explores the interplay between light and dark and, later this year, Jo will enter the studio again with a full orchestra for a symphonic piece called Ianus that developed out of this very record. But, if one wishes to journey to the mouth of the river, they must first begin at its source.
Each of the six tracks on Notan is a live take, with no overdubs or fusing of recorded segments. It allows the listener to really appreciate just how beautifully Jo knits her songs together, although perhaps the most authentic moment is A Leaf, And Then A Key – unlike many of her compositions, this has no loops on it and, as such, you can actually hear Jo‘s hands moving up and down her instrument in between notes, such is the production job at play. It adds such an intimacy, an immediate image that she may as well be playing a solo concert to you in your living room.
It’s also a fine contrast to the two tracks before: opener Butterfly Dance is an expression of matriarchal authority, both electric and acoustic cellos dancing and delivering a track that is both beautiful and, in some respects, violent: while the electric takes charge of melody, the acoustic produces what are essentially power chords. Rex, which was released as a single, is an updated version of the song Rex Infractus that appeared on Jo‘s debut album From The Sea a decade-and-a-half-ago. Now with more moving parts, the song has more depth and texture, and accounts for a lusher listening experience – where the original is fragile, this is stronger and more impactful.
Talking of fragility, First Rain is something completely different – a track with no cello at all. Instead, Jo turns her talents to the piano, crafting a song of contemplation, piece and reflection, but playfully changing three notes at the very end to leave an air of mystery. Embrace oozes elegance, an eight-and-a-half minute meditation on interconnectedness and the subtle but unbreakable bonds that weave us together, even when we’re most alone. It floats effortlessly and the deeper, looped note in the second half may bring a more sinister edge, but its inability to disrupt the overall flow is an excellent metaphor about how those bonds will overcome everything.
Closing track Kingfisher takes the listener on a journey that could be seen as the story of the titular bird scouting, finding and catching prey: in two parts, the first builds nicely as Jo loops some notes and sends others through a delay pedal to build a tranquil scene, before a false finish brings the second part in with a slightly harsher tone, perhaps to signal the triumph in the kingfisher’s successful hunt. However, as Jo herself will tell you, Notan is not a black-and-white album; it is there to invite interpretation and comfort, for one to forge their own path and draw parallels unique to them.
No matter what JO QUAIL produces, it is never anything less than a force of beauty and nature. Notan is potentially her greatest album to date, a sumptuous tapestry of innovation and experience where classical and contemporary collide in an ethereal kingdom. Take some time to shut everything away and fall into this album; you’ll thank yourself later.
Rating: 8/10
Notan is set for release on September 12th via AdderStone Records.
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The post ALBUM REVIEW: Notan – Jo Quail appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
