Exposé Online banner

Rhys Marsh — Sentiment
(Autumnsongs AR018CD, 2014, CD)

by Jon Davis, 2015-01-06:

Sentiment Cover art Norwegian musician Rhys Marsh presents a set of music both like and unlike the band Kaukasus, of which he is a member. As for similarities, there is Marsh's voice itself, which is generally melodic and somewhat breathy, reminiscent of Tim Bowness, though he has a much stronger low register, and drops down into bass territory on occasion. The main difference is that the the space-rock detours are absent, along with woodwind instruments. The tracks are of modest length, with only one slipping over six minutes, and therefore center more on the singing. The guitar work, both electric and acoustic is solid and superbly recorded, but it is probably keyboards that do more to define the sound. If Mellotrons can choke horses, surely this album has enough of them to do it. Both string and flute sounds are used on nearly every track, along with electric piano and other instruments, none of which are noticeably digital in nature, though I wouldn't rule them out. Sentiment is a prime example of applying such vintage sounds in a modern context. The general vibe is not unlike Porcupine Tree without any appreciable metal elements. Tempos and moods vary from track to track so, while the overall effort is very cohesive, it doesn't descend into tedious sameness. On the whole, this is a fine release that should find fans among many prog fans, provided they're not allergic to Mellotrons.

by Henry Schneider, 2014-12-22:

This is a release that I am having difficulty getting into. Most of the songs are a melancholic bluesy/jazzy form of progressive rock, at times like latter day King Crimson. Something keeps telling me to draw a comparison to Sting and The Police as well, though I could be way off base. The instrumental sections are great, but given that these are songs, Rhys’ vocals and lyrics do not provide enough space to fully develop his musical and compositional ideas for my tastes. He does use a generous amount of Mellotron throughout similar to Fripp on “The Court of the Crimson King.” There is also a dash of Porcupine Tree and Tim Bowness applied here and there. This may be one of those releases where repeated listenings will aid in appreciating the music, as well as experiencing it when you are in different moods. Kind of like listening to early Leonard Cohen, if you weren’t already depressed, you were after listening to him sing. It was not until the final track “Give Me (What You Need)” that I finally heard something that grabbed my attention. This is the first real upbeat song on the disc. At any rate, Sentiment is the first full solo album release by this young Norwegian singer songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer.

Filed under: New releases , 2014 releases

Related artist(s): Rhys Marsh

More info

Latest news

2018-11-02
Charles O'Meara (C.W. Vrtacek) RIP – A true musical original has left us. Charles O'Meara, who recorded under the name C.W. Vrtacek, was a wild-card musical talent, ranging from complex progressive rock to introspective modern compositions, with stops at many places inbetween. » Read more

2018-10-17
Eurock Documentary Seeks Funding – We've been fans and fellow travelers with Archie Patterson and his Eurock project on the journey to discover great music. After many years of promoting and trying to spread the word,a new phase is beginning: a documentary film. Things like this don't just happen, and money does not magically appear to make it happen, so it's up to the fans to get it done. » Read more

2018-09-29
Marty Balin RIP – One of the architects of the 60s psychedelic sound of San Francisco has died at the age of 76. Marty Balin was a singer, songwriter, and guitarist who was one of the founders of Jefferson Airplane. After the split of the original Airplane, Balin went on to form the highly successful Jefferson Starship. » Read more

2018-09-25
Help the Psychic Equalizer Avoid Extinction – Last year we reviewed the debut album by Psychic Equalizer, a musical project of Hugo Selles. He's now working on the ambitious follow-up to that release, and is seeking funding from listeners around the world. » Read more

2018-09-05
Krautrock Documentary Seeks Funding – The next installment of the Progressive Warriors documentary series will focus on the vast body of music that falls under the banner of "krautrock." As most of our readers will know, previous films have tackled RIO and the Canterbury scene, as well as what we might call "mainstream" prog rock. » Read more

More news

Previously in Exposé...

Ash Ra Tempel - The Best of the Private Tapes – Ash Ra Tempel is one of the core founder bands of the German space rock movement along with Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream. But the group has suffered from less stateside notoriety than those previous...  (1999) » Read more

The Holy Modal Rounders - Bird Song - Live 1971 – Sometime in 1971, the Holy Modal Rounders, having recently expanded to a seven-piece, visited WLIR and recorded a set of songs, including their contribution to the Easy Rider soundtrack (“Bird...  (2005) » Read more

Various Artists - Psychedelic Underground 11 - 15 – Beginning with its first year of operations, Garden of Delights has released a yearly limited edition Psychedelic Underground sampler containing the best track from each of their 9 reissues for that...  (2011) » Read more

Rasha - Let Me Be – Go to your favorite record store, to the world music (or international as some of them call it) section and look for Africa. Most of them will have a fair number of CDs, usually separated by country...  (2001) » Read more

Lynne - Witchwood – With the exception of a few guest guitar spots and several samples from Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom sound effect library, all of the music on Witchwood is played by Bjørn Arild Lynne....  (1997) » Read more

Random review

Listen & discover

Killin' it in Tromsø, Vederkast style

More recommendations

Print issues