TRACK LIST:
1. Overture 2:46
2. A Sea Shanty 4:53
3. Don't Shoot the Albatross 2:44
4. Horsa From Beyond the Grave 6:18
5. Wishing Well 5:58
6. You Better Shut Your Mouth 4:13
7. Never Tell on Me 6:08
8. The Long Goodbye 7:53
LINE UP:
Lucie V - vocals, violin
Danny Chang - guitars, keyboards
Chris Egan - reeds, woodwinds, synths
Rik Loveridge - Hammond, synths, guitars
Phil Warren - bass
James Hall - drums
Prolusion.
UK band The Kentish Spires formed sometime around 2016, with the core of the band made up of friends and musicians with a past going back a number of years. After finalizing the band line-up they recorded and released their debut album "The Last Harvest" in 2018. "Sprezzatura" is the band's sophomore production, and was released through UK label White Knight Records in 2019.
Analysis.
I understand that The Kentish Spires is among the bands that regard the English Canterbury tradition as something of a key inspiration for the material they create, and based on the material on this album it would seem that they are most fond of the more jazz-oriented escapades from that scene as this is a production that I'd file as a jazzrock production myself.
The songs tend to be groove-oriented, with a fine flow and a nice array and use of reeds to provide instrument surges and overlays of the kind one would expect to encounter in a jazzrock-oriented band. The band do include a few creations with more of a folk-music orientation though, and we also have creations that may possibly be better described as having a bit of an acoustic rock foundation before segueing over to other territories. And with reference to the Canterbury traditions, we do have quite a few songs that switch over to more of a progressive rock expression to a lesser or greater degree too, with these passages often having a bit of a darker tone and undercurrent to them.
The compositions on this album tend to have more of a subtle, careful and charming attitude to them, with few instances of stark contrasts and the dramatic effects generally kept to a minimum. The few exceptions stand out a bit due to being exceptions, with the darker and dirtier vibes of 'You Better Shut Your Mouth' as one of the standout tracks for me personally, where I love the guitar tone used almost as much as the bass motif. The gentle acoustic opening segueing over to jazzrock and then a more symphonic progressive rock oriented landscape on 'Never Tell on You' is another album highlight for me. A part of the reason for why this song stands out for me is due to the vocals, which in this case has been done just about right. On the rest of the non-instrumental songs this aspect is a bit more of a hit or a miss feature for me, with the latter often being the case.
Vocals and vocal style is of course a matter of subjective taste. Some have a preference for power, some for melody, some for harmonies. One person loves the lighter parts of the register, some prefer the lower. Hence this aspect is and will always be an opinion, and not a fact. But for my taste in music, the choice of tone, timbre and intensity, as well as the often liberal use of vibrato, becomes a detrimental feature on several occasions throughout the album. The effect for me as a listener being that the vocals sound slightly off compared to the lead or support motif of a song, the power used being too much or not quite enough, and the vibrato being applied a bit too much to suit the purpose of a song. None of them are major detrimental features individually, but the sum of the smaller parts adds up to a detrimental presence for me and my specific taste in music. Not in a major manner, but to the extent that it does lessen my overall experience as a listener somewhat, at least for some of the songs.
Conclusion.
Those with a taste for a charming variety of jazzrock with folk music and progressive rock inclusions, as well as those generally curious about bands inspired by and exploring the Canterbury tradition of progressive rock, The Kentish Spires have created a warm, playful and charming example of that with "Sprezzatura". A distinct lead vocal presence will make this album perhaps a bit more of an acquired taste, but for those who like and enjoy also that specific aspect of the music this is an album that will be quite the rewarding experience I surmise.
Progmessor: January 2023
The Rating Room
