Kathleen YearwoodCountry of origin:Canada Type of music generally:Beautiful, fierce experimental contemporary folk with occasional traditional songs and a Celtic flavour in her early work and later an industrial flavour. Status:Most recent releases, This Guitar Is Wrecked Part 1 and This Guitar Is Wrecked Part 2 (2017) See also:Wikipedia's Kathleen Yearwood page Comparisons:Hard to say who she's like because she's so very like herself. Imagine if Diamanda Galas mixed traditional and contemporary folk and experimental music and had a slightly more conventional soprano but still used it the same way. Covers/own material:Mostly own—occasional versions of traditional songs and Dog Logic is mostly covers General comments:Kathleen Yearwood has a powerful voice and writes songs that equal that power. Always forthright, occasionally didactic, in her later lyrics she is one of the best lyricists I've ever run across—poetic and pointed, impressionist and concrete, both. She mixes industrial noise with traditional songs, sound clips of cows and breaking glass with her stunningly beautiful songs. Not for the faint of heart. (Neile) Comments about live performance:Kathleen Yearwood is just as much of a powerhouse live as she is on disc, and that's saying a lot. Her vocals are amazing. Don't miss her if she plays anywhere near you. (Neile) Recommended first album:Book of Hate is the first I heard and is still my favourite. Recordings:
dead branches make a noiseRelease info:1990—Voice of the Turtle—003/Subterranean (cassette only) Availability:Unknown Ecto priority:Highly recommended for those looking for something strong and demanding Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—guitars, chanter, voices Guest artists:Ken Hare—percussion Produced by:Bryan Becker, Cameron Noyes and K Yearwood Comments:What an amazing collection of songs, both musically and in the power of their delivery and message. Yes, the political songs are didactic, and if I read the lyrics alone I would be annoyed by their hectoring tone—but the delivery is so stunning when I listen I'm not annoyed but fascinated. The music makes them transcendent. Wow. These are some of the most haunting, compelling tunes I have ever heard. Book of HateRelease info:1994—Voice of the Turtle/Subterranean Records—SUB 73-2 Availability:Unknown Ecto priority:Very high for those looking for something strong and demanding Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, hard, crucified guitar, typewriter, garbage, panes of glass, clapping, field recordings Guest artists:Reg Elder—bass, bowed bass, vocals, electric guitar Produced by:Dave Mockford and Kathleen Yearwood Comments:This is so brilliant it pains me. She's angry, but her songs still have beauty. There's hate on this disc, and yet there's a sense of redemption, too, and she's angry at the right things. Also an unusual sense of maturity. One of those discs that messes with my emotions every time I hear it. Little Misery BirdsRelease info:1997—Voice of the Turtle/Subterranean Records Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Very high for those looking for something strong and demanding Comments:Following where Book of Hate left off, this collection demands attention from the listener as it takes her from haunting melodies to more experimental soundscapes. It is her most experimental and least melodic thus far—farther out and farther from folk than most of her music—but it still draws me in. It's powerful and beautiful and desperate and engaging at the same time. It's a must for anyone who likes music from the edge of experience. Note that the cd version is shorter than the tape by two songs. (Neile) Dog LogicRelease info:2000—Voice of the Turtle Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Highly recommended Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—vocals, guitars, violins, bass, noises, bird recordings, frog recordings, dog recordings, celeste, harpsichord, pip organs Guest artists:Kyp Harness—vocals Comments:Some personal observations about the album: The work is a mixture of poems written by Steven Ruhl, Kyp Harness, Steven J. Bernstein, Kathleen Yearwood and others. Kathleen uses a wide range of vocal techniques to say the least. Several cuts, such as "Wake Me Up (When We Get There)" and "Somebodies Looking For Their Voice" reminded me of how beautiful Kathleen's voice can be. It's surprisingly pop sounding. If she keeps that up, you may see her on MTV someday...just kidding, she has too much integrity to for that. She does some spoken word pieces accompanied by a variety of sounds, noises and dogs sometimes. Other songs are operatic sounding and may require a trip to the liner notes to decipher...I'm not there yet. If you're familiar with Kathleen's work, you'll understand this is not easy listening music, it takes listener participation and a little effort. I like it a lot and feel it's her best work to date. (jsutton@rahul.net) OrdealRelease info:2003—self-released CDR Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Recommended for those ready for it Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—guitar, vocals Guest artists:P.K.—drums, vocals Produced by:Andrew Robins Comments:Kathleen Yearwood's website calls this the most grinding band she ever put together, and it certainly is grinding and deliberately difficult music. When my head is in the right space for this, it's an interesting listening experience, but yes, grinding. The first track will tell you right away if you are ready for this ordeal—a powerful song. "Sublimaze", an instrumental, is actually quite lovely. The Leonard Cohen cover, "Dress Rehearsal Rag" is better for me if I don't think of it as a cover but as entirely its own thing. The growling vocals are just too over-the-top for me (which means that I'm not very fond of "Totality", either. After a rough start, where Kathleen seems to be trying to make a higher version of the previous growling vocals, "Job Curses the Day of his Birth" turns fascinating. The high vocals wind and trill around each other, then the guitar grounds and grinds it—long instrumental stretches, more vocals, drums, drums & guitar, then an amazing/difficult electric guitar & high-vocal section...the track totals 22 minutes. The final track, "A Living Dog is Better Than a Dead Lion" starts with high vocals and then moves to noise. This one is even less for the faint of heart than her previous recordings. (Neile) Great Songs To Empty RoomsRelease info:2006—self-released CDR Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Highly recommended Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—electric guitar, voice, snare drum, flies, piano, harp, kettle, orchestrial direction Guest artists:Reg Elder—semi-acoustic bass, vocals Produced by:Kathleen Yearwood and Andrew Robins Comments:This album is back to songs and the flavour of Dog Logic and Book of Hate. She has me from the beginning of "Entre Paris Et St Denis"—it's a traditional song, and her version is gorgeous and wrenching. The songs here are amazing and there are brief tracks of sounds between each song. I love this. Harsh and compelling. Ends with birdsong. What more is there to say? (Neile) A La Claire FantomeRelease info:2013 Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Recommended Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—vocals, guitar Guest artists:Scott White—contrabass, violin Comments:A further step along Kathleen Yearwood's path. A tough, urgent, and poignant song collection. Includes a setting of a letter by Métis leader and politician, Louis Riel, and a version of "St. Paul's Infirmary." Uniquely Kathleen Yearwood. (Neile) Hunt The CircleRelease info:2014 Availability:See Kathleen Yearwood's Bandcamp page Ecto priority:Recommended only for Kathleen Yearwood and/or metal/noise fans Group members:Kathleen Yearwood—guitar, vocals Guest artists:Ken Read—trombone Comments:Lengthy, cacaphonous, meditations in sound. Not for the faint of heart, and alas not for me, though I love the vocal twining section in "99 Names of Dog." (Neile) Further info:Email voxtortue @ resist . ca |
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