If you Go Down to the Wood Today

[steepholm]

Chris Wood has a new album out, and I'd like to make two recommendations from it.

First, here's his setting of Housman's poem about Victoria's Golden Jubilee, "1887" - a work that's not as straightforwardly patriotic as may first appear. I mention it here particularly, though, because my brother worked on the setting with him, and accompanies him on the track.

Also, there's "Shallow End", which I heard him perform live a couple of years ago, and loved. It's just as good now.

Comments

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

Yes, he's a composer (and a professor of music at Sussex), but in recent years has also done a lot of work with this band. It was at one of their club nights that I heard Chris Wood play.

[sovay]

Yes, he's a composer (and a professor of music at Sussex), but in recent years has also done a lot of work with this band.

I like the look of them. How is their sound?

It was at one of their club nights that I heard Chris Wood play.

I discovered him via Wood Wilson Carthy, courtesy of nineweaving.

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

How is their sound?

Fundamentally a kind of modern classical/jazz fusion, semi-improvised sound - or at least that's what I'd call it, lacking the right words. But they have a wide variety of guest artists at their club (musicians mostly of course, but also spoken-word artists - e.g. Will Self, Benjamin Zephaniah - and even I think visual artists on occasion), and adapt accordingly.