New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light | ||||
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Ben Frost, Colin Stetson | ||||
Colin Stetson chronology | ||||
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New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light is the fourth studio album by Canada-based saxophonist Colin Stetson, released by Constellation Records in 2013. It is the final part of a trilogy of albums that also encompasses New History Warfare Vol. 1 (2007) and New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges (2011).
Stetson, whose contributions to the album were recorded live without
Background and recording
Stetson's original concept for the New History Warfare trilogy was largely skeletal, and developed as the albums were recorded. New History Warfare Vol. 1 was released in 2008 and had a narrative concept of a story of people who had been living at sea for generations. New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges, released in 2011, told the story of one of these people finally arriving on land. New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light expanded on this, with Stetson stating that "it’s a war story. It’s finding your way to this shining beacon on the mountaintop,"[1] and that it "deals with death and love."[2]
Stetson's playing technique includes
Stetson's parts on Vol. 3 were performed and recorded live without
Musical content
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light contains eleven tracks with a total running time of fifty-two minutes. Ten tracks were written by Stetson, with three of these featuring additional writing from Justin Vernon. The track "What are They Doing in Heaven Today?" is a cover version of a gospel song written by Charles Albert Tindley in 1901 and recorded by Washington Phillips in 1928.
Stetson has stated that the songs are "based in traditional American song,"[3] and the music was described by AllMusic reviewer Fred Thomas as containing "elements of jazz, modern composition, and... aspects of repetition and textural drone found in certain branches of electronic music and noise."[8] Fact called the album "a rich, multi-layered sonic world" and noted that the presence of Vernon's vocals meant that "Stetson’s approach feels considerably poppier this time around."[9]
In his review for Drowned in Sound, Alexander Tudor observed the album's "abrasiveness, brute force, and determination to push the instrument to its limits," describing a "relentless pummelling of metal in motion; often aggressive or chaotic, but using scales to evoke a sense of discipline" while noting that Stetson was "equally at home with classical minimalism."[13] Exclaim! reviewer Vincent Pollard noted how Vol. 3 "organically and coherently blends Stetson's avant-garde playing and dark, complex themes with accessible and compelling compositions,"[14] while MusicOMH commented that Stetson was "finding guttural, fuzzy, violent sounds from his saxophone... but also finding a disarming warmth where necessary."[12] In his review for No Ripcord, Stephen Wragg stated that "there’s such a polyphonic richness to these recordings that it sounds, at times, like five people are present" and noted that the techniques employed in the recording of the album "creates this heady, vertiginous rush – adrenaline-inducing in its deftness; and that’s an effect that strikes me as incredibly difficult to recreate in music."[15] Spin's Richard Gehr suggested that the music was "densely multiphonic, often claustrophobic, and reeks of fear and flight" but that it "offers at least a slight sense of salvation," and concluded that the final album in the trilogy was "music of the moment, a work of granular epiphanies that accrete, finally, into a magnificent whole."[16]
Release
At the announcement of the album in January 2013, the track "High Above a Grey Green Sea" was made available for streaming on the Constellation Records SoundCloud website.[7] In March, four more tracks from the album ("And in Truth", "Hunted", "Who the Waves Are Roaring For" and "Part of Me Apart From You") were able to be streamed following their premiere on the Belgian radio station Radio Scorpio.[17] A short film made to accompany the tracks "In Mirrors" and "And in Truth" was released on 5 April 2013, directed by Kurtis Hough, Dan Huiting and Tabb Firchau.[18]
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light was released on 29 April 2013 in Europe and the following day in North America. The album was released on compact disc, 180g vinyl and digital download.[19] Following the release of the album, a promotional video was made for the track "Who the Waves Are Roaring For", created by videographers Isaac Gale and David Jensen.[20]
In July 2013, New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize,[21] which was Stetson's second nomination for the award after Vol. 2: Judges in 2011.[22]
Reception
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Pitchfork Media | 8.1/10[10] |
Spin | 8/10[16] |
Tom Hull – on the Web | A−[24] |
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews and ratings from mainstream critics, the album has received a metascore of 81, based on 18 reviews.[23]
A favorable review from
Jazz critic Tom Hull said there is "nothing else quite like it", highlighting the eerie quality provided by Vernon's overdubbed vocals and the live, versatile playing of Stetson: "[He] plays everything from alto down but favors the big bass sax, and makes extensive use of circular breathing, which gives his tones resonance and a warbly rhythm".[24]
Track listing
All songs written by Colin Stetson except where noted.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "And in Truth" | Colin Stetson, Justin Vernon | 1:34 |
2. | "Hunted" | 5:51 | |
3. | "High Above a Grey Green Sea" | 4:26 | |
4. | "In Mirrors" | 1:26 | |
5. | "Brute" | Stetson, Vernon | 2:55 |
6. | "Among the Sef (Righteous II)" | 4:36 | |
7. | "Who the Waves Are Roaring For (Hunted II)" | Stetson, Vernon | 4:08 |
8. | "To See More Light" | 15:09 | |
9. | "What Are They Doing in Heaven Today?" | Washington Phillips | 3:36 |
10. | "This Bed of Shattered Bone" | 2:09 | |
11. | "Part of Me Apart From You" | 5:51 |
Personnel
- Performers
- Colin Stetson – alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, bass saxophone, vocals, production
- Justin Vernon – vocals
- Recording personnel
- Mell Dettmer – mastering
- Ben Frost– mixing, production
- Jon Ottosen – mixing
- Vid Cousins – recording
- Marcus Paquin– recording
- BJ Burton – recording
- Brian Joseph – recording
- Mark Lawson – engineering, recording
- Additional personnel
- Tracy Maurice – artwork, design
- Matt Moroz – artwork, design
References
- Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- ^ Bolles, Dan (1 May 2013). "An Interview with Saxophonist Colin Stetson". Seven Days. Da Capo Publishing. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Spoto, Alex (22 January 2013). "Colin Stetson Talks 'New History Warfare' Album Featuring Justin Vernon". Spin. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- ^ Finlayson, Angus (23 April 2013). "Free jazz, war stories and The X Factor: FACT meets the remarkable Colin Stetson". Fact. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
- ^ Nugent, John (24 April 2013). "Sax Prodigy: Colin Stetson on Completing a Trilogy". The Skinny. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- ^ Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
- ^ Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Finlayson, Angus (26 April 2013). "New History Warfare Vol. III: To See More Light". Fact. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- ^ Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- ^ Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
- ^ a b c d Paton, Daniel (7 May 2013). "Colin Stetson — New History Warfare Vol 3: To See More Light | Albums | musicOMH". musicOMH. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Tudor, Alexander (23 April 2013). "Colin Stetson — New History Warfare Vol. 3 : To See More Light / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 15 August 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Pollard, Vincent (26 April 2013). "Colin Stetson — New History Warfare Vol 3: To See More Light • Improv & Avant-Garde Reviews • exclaim.ca". Exclaim!. Ian Danzig. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Wragg, Stephen (29 May 2013). "Colin Stetson: New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light — Music Review — No Ripcord". No Ripcord. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ^ a b c Gehr, Richard (29 April 2013). "Colin Stetson, 'New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light' Review". Spin. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
- ^ "CST092 COLIN STETSON: New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light | Constellation Records". Constellation Records. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ^ Oloizia, Jeff (21 June 2013). "Music Video Premiere | The Latest from the Saxophonist Colin Stetson, Featuring Justin Vernon of Bon Iver". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- ^ Lobenfeld, Claire (16 July 2013). "Polaris Music Prize Short List 2013 Revealed — Stereogum". Stereogum. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- IPC Media. 7 July 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- ^ CBS Interactive. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
- ^ a b Hull, Tom (29 May 2013). "Rhapsody Streamnotes". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
- Young, Rob (April 2013). "Colin Stetson — New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light". The Wire(349): 57.
External links
- New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light at Discogs (list of releases)