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Elly Roberts reviews
Nude Records
- Released: June 2008
- Rating: 10/10++
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Daring genre-bending masterpiece. From Berlin.
Get Well Soons mission statement (according to the CD packshot) isthis guarantee “I tried my very best to make this music loveable.”
Mission accomplished! This sumptuously eccentric and eloquent CD is one of thealbums of 2008. In terms of adventure, its in the same frame as the magnificentFlying Club Cup (2007) by Beirut or The Sleepy Jacksons Personality (2006). Other comparisons?
Nick Drake, Bright Eyes and Tom Waits come to mind. Theres a touch of Sigur Rosin there too. This is the musical vision of 25 year old Berlin based KonstatinGropper whos a multi-instrumentalist, philosopher and producer no less. Ok,so the song titles are a bit, er, quirky, but the music is truly wonderful.In many ways its as daring as Rufus Wainwrights Want One and Two,though he hasnt got Rufus exquisite voice.
If youre a real music fan, then this is one youre gonna love to bits.Blending electro, folk, tango and classical overtones, Gropper elects to unleashthis 21st century masterpiece and opus with a simple Prelude featuringxylophone clangs that drift away backed by an organ. Its all delicate stuffand a sublime start that builds midway into whopping crescendo, fading out tothe old xylo.
Cinematic soundscapes and Beirut-like European brass engulf the intro of themonster that is You/Aurora/You/Seaside. Its minimalist in lyrics which juxtaposeperfectly with the dramatic flushes. Things get even better on Christmas In Adventure Parks.After the acoustic strums and ghostly vocal, it picks up a moderate pace andunfolds into a sumptuous ballad. The lyrics are bit cryptic, artistic licencemaybe, but it hints at the warmth that emanates from someones soul andpersona “Save our souls with your golden heart,” he swoons in amonotonous tone.
Theres a short eastern European string arrangement opening dark If This Hat This is a unsettling and menacing song. “Shoot baby! Shoot! Baby pull the trigger!Fire a bullet, an arrow or a poisoned dart, baby! Shoot, baby! Shoot! Free usfrom this pressure! With a rifle or a gun! We cant live forever! It takesjust one second.”
On the back of this we get the divine, but mournful, Help To Prevent Forest Fireswith We Are Safe Inside giving a strong nod to latter day Radioheadsmiserablist template. The eastern Euro flavour zooms back on plodding Your Endless Dream.The mood lightens slightly for Lost In The Mountains. Clunking piano andthumping drums precede a massive burst that returns to base once again, and soit goes all over again until the flushing crescendo. Coda, a short brassedbased drifter, ends a quite remarkable achievement.
File under: Brilliant !
Weblink:youwillgetwellsoon.com /myspace.com/youwillgetwellsoon
The full list of tracks included are :
1. Prelude
2. You/Aurora/You/Seaside
3. Christmas In adventure Packs
4. People Magazine Front Cover
5. If This Hat Is Missing I Have Gone Hunting
6. Help To Prevent Forest Fires
7. I Sold My Hands For Food So Please Feed Me
8. We Are Safe Inside While They Burn Down Our House
9. Born Slippy Nuxx
10. Your Endless Dream
11. Witches ! Witches ! Rest Now In The Fire
12. Ticktack ! Goes My Automatic Heart
13. Lost In The Mountains Of My Heart
14. Coda
Elly Roberts passed away in 2011, but he was a man who was so passionate about all types of music and loved meeting his musical heroes, such as Mick Hucknall at a book signing at the Trafford Centre, Manchester in 2007.
A former teacher and also a music journalist, DJ and radio presenter on local community station Calon FM, plus appearances on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 2, Elly started doing reviews for DVDfever.co.uk in 2004 and he did the majority of the CD and concerts reviews on the website.
I know also that he loved getting away for the summer to Spain and I hope that wherever he is now he is enjoying the hot sunshine and, as one of his friends has said on his Facebook page, that he is interviewing his musical heroes.