D M Stith: Heavy Ghost

DVDfever.co.uk – D M Stith: Heavy Ghost CD reviewElly Roberts reviews

D M Stith: Heavy Ghost
Distributed by
Asthmatic Kitty Records

  • Released: March 2009
  • Rating: 10/10++
  • Vote and comment on this album:View Comments

Want Two’s equivalent. Almost.

A few years ago, Rufus Wainwright released his magnificent opus Want Two. Not since then have I heard anything to match it – Heavy Ghost comes, very, very close to it.

We’re told that Jeff Buckley, Sufjan Stevens (label owner) and Antony Heggarty are his comrades / influences. Doubtful. They’d never match this.It’s more like his pianist mum, opera singing sisters and ex-church choir director dad that have provided inspiration.

You only have to listen to one song to confirm that – Morning Glory Cloud which is absolutely stunning.Of all the albums reviewed this year, this is the most fascinating.It’s all done by one-man-band David Stith from Buffalo USA.

If you’re expecting a quick-pop fix, forget it. What you get here is totally beguiling and often spellbinding, though initially, it doesn’t come easily. It’s time to sit down and listen, with headphones preferably.Heavy Ghost is for real musos who can appreciate the wealth of immaculately crafted songwriting, with its quirky bits.


Things don’t start off to well. Isaac’s Song is awful. Morbid and heavy piano play, wailing, drums splattering don’t bode well at all. There again this is Heavy Ghost After all.Thankfully out of the way, we stumble on the majestic Pity Dance. This is tasty stuff. Impressive backups, melodic guitar wails and rustic vocals kick-start the album. It’s as if Rufus Wainwright has given Dave a nudge, a big nudge at that. The piano playing is out of this world – unbelievable, honestly.

African beats and rhythms carry the glorious Creekmouth. If Pity Dance was dynamic, then this is an all out percussive monster with all manner of instrumentation dropped in. Sensational at full volume. The ghosts are having some real fun here I can tell you.Such are the profound soundscapes; it could be the soundtrack to heaven, or other worldly experiences. There are moments when it becomes a tad unnerving too, like the (appropriately titled) Spirit Parade revealing its menacing cacophony, that spills over initially, into BMB, though it is saved by those glorious heavenly backups.

It gets better. Thanksgiving Moon is a trip up to the stars, with all manner of instrumentation tinkling in a sort of celestial state.Classical strings open Fire Of Birds. They come back to help out, swirling and disappearing along the way.

Further evidence of Stith’s influences (mum, dad, sisters, remember?) are borne out in two successive, magnificently crafted pieces – GMS and Braid Of Voices, that’ll blow you up to the stars, or wherever ghosts hang out.

The verdict – Sensational.

Weblinks:asthmatickitty.com /dmstith.com /myspace.com/dmstith


The full list of tracks included are :

1. Isaac’s Song
2. Pity Dance
3. Creekmouth
4. Pigs
5. Spirit Parade
6. BMB
7. Thanksgiving Moon
8. Fire Of Birds
9. Morning Glory Cloud
10. GMS
11. Braid Of Voices
12. Wig
View the discussion thread.blog comments powered by Disqus= 0) {query += ‘url’ + i + ‘=’ + encodeURIComponent(links[i].href) + ‘&’;}}document.write(”);})();//]]]]>]]>

[Up to the top of this page]


Loading…