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RARE WEATHER Album Reviews
Jeremiah Sutherland, of Bullfrog Music, writes:
Jack O' The Clock brings an offbeat sort of energy to the imagined intersection of American folk songwriting and experimental music. I say "imagined" because it's not clear to me that there is any sort of commonality between the two. This group gives the effort a good shot however.
The group's sound is a mix of concert-hall sensibility, meandering musicality and junk shop scouring. The arrangements are a mish mash of instruments that don't necessarily have a lot to do with each other. We're talkin' psaltery, banjo, and bassoon, with a background of electric bass and assorted cooking utensils as percussion. It's possible there's a kitchen sink in there as well.
As Laurie Anderson said in one of her performances, "Get ready for difficult listening". The music is certainly not danceable and I can't say the melodies are easy to follow. Listening to Art music is usually an exercise in humbling oneself before the great composer. On this recording, the sound is accessible and not at all full of itself. There are enough traces of standard compositional techniques to keep the listener grounded in the here and now.
Given the mechanical repetition of a lot of the sounds, it would be easy to put these guys into the same category as the electronica types. What's different is that the sounds are all produced by found items and there is something human and grounded about the result. JOTC also have a plan (except when they're improvising) of where they want the music to go.
The lyrics and singing raise this recording to another level. The voices are frequently used to create dissonance with the instrumental line and this is unusual in a pop recording. It's a shame that the singing is not clearer as it would be nice to hear the words. This might be the fault of the recording and mastering efforts.
***
"T.O. Snob," of Snob's Reviews, Toronto, writes:
Rare Weather is the new self-released album from Oakland-based indie folksters Jack O' The Clock.
This 5-piece band uses ambient noises and earthy sounds to create their folk music. The result is a desolate, wintry version of twangy folk.
Spiking the songs with an eclectic array of traditional Americana instruments gives the tracks depth. Besides the normal guitar/bass/drums arrangement, Jack O' The Clock gives us dulcimer, banjo, flute, violins, saw, bassoon, recorder, trombone, accordion, and half a dozen other instruments, each played with aplomb.
The songs do tend to be long, only two of them clock in at under six minutes. That makes the songs sluggish and taxing on the listener.
If you are a fan of musicianship, you will get quite a lot out of Jack O' The Clock. If you are a fan of pop music, you may want to take a pass on this one.
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