Review:

on 2011-07-31 CharlesMartel Said:

It is not easy to describe this album, or its creator. He may go by the name of Duke Special because Peter Wilson sounds a bit run-of-the-mill but that is not a term you would use to describe "Songs from the Deep Forest". Wilson may look like some sort of Goth who hasn't washed for a month, but his musical style lies somewhere between the Decemberists and the Guillemots. He himself describes himself as hobo-chic, and that I suppose is as good a term as any. This album surely deserves giving it some repeated listens because it just gets better and better each time.

When there are so many good singer-songwriters around, he may be competing in a crowded marketplace, but there are certain things which stand out right from the start and which set this album apart from some of its contemporaries. The first is that the warmth of the Northern Irish brogue comes through on many of the tracks. There are moments when he is duyn; he sings of a cluyn; and aspires to climb the Eiffel Tayr. This is not mockery on my part. All too often the distinctive sounds of regional accents are smoothed (or smothered) over in singing and especially in production and it is welcoming to see that his does not fall victim to the same trend here. The accent has the advantage of providing some interesting rhymes too - who else but an Ulsterman could rhyme clown with Frankenstein?

Then there are the songs themselves. Strong lyrics and sometimes weird themes combine to produce a mixture of the familiar and disconcerting which always keeps the listener off balance. And the music complements the lyrics perfectly, with a mixture of traditional and modern instruments, piano-led compositions, and the use of woodwinds and violas to provide warmth and texture. On "Brixton Leaves" we meet Rose who spins some dervish mother to an accompaniment of a plaintiff oboe, ragtime piano and what sounds suspiciously like tap dancing. On "This Could Be My Last Day" he sings of a long dead love affair. My favourite track is the opener, "Wake up Scarlett", with a lyric which seems to suggest that he has murdered Scarlett in some act of crazed passion. Yet guilt is not the theme of the song as the music seems remarkably cheerful and upbeat for what could be a very macabre theme, of post-coital murder perhaps, depending on how you look at it.

His influences seem to stretch from the traditional folk music of his native Ulster to the modern  Freewheel sounds like the sort of soaring, uplifting track Chris Martin would love to be able to write but hasn't got a hope in hell of achieving. On the other hand, "Slip of a Girl" is a cover of an Amazing Pilots' number, given a rather distinctive makeover which turns it into a light yet energetic love song.

To describe this album as eccentric is probably as good a starting point as you'll get. But don't give up on it. When I first listened to it I couldnt understand what there was to enjoy. But I persevered. And I suggest anyone who has a liking for the interplay of good quality lyrics with a music which can span the breadth of sound hunts this album down and gives it a serious listen over some time. It will grow on you. It grew on me. And now I look forward to listening to it with ever increasing anticipation.
Rating: 8/10