Inspired,
as he details in the liner notes, by everything from concepts
of home to the course of a cross-country bicycling trip, Jefferson
Pitcher creates one of his warmest and, for lack of a better term,
traditional releases on The Residue. A strange description, perhaps,
but for a student of experimental music Pitcher has always had
an ear for direct lyrics and strong, conventional rock instrumentation,
helped by a variety of collaborators including Christian Kiefer.
The opening "The Edges of the Earth" sets the tone --
piano-led, soft, then softly charging playing, an understated
kick that is almost classic rock as soother. From there, The Residue
gently explores variations on the familiar -- a "home"
that he subtly tests as much as celebrates, collaging martial
beats and accordion melodies, moody feedback drones with gentle,
forlorn twang. Pitcher is more than fine in straightforward terms
-- "I Will Save You My Son" is his best lyric on an
album full of good examples, but it's not all he can do. When
the guitars suddenly arc up in volume at a dramatic moment in
"The Sooner You Go," the assembled singers come together
to help drive "Work of Kings" to a stirring conclusion,
and distant melodies introduce the increasingly tense "Eubulides
the Hero," each moment shows fine skill at work beyond strong
songwriting in general. ~ Ned Ragett, All Music Guide
From the Press Release:
Before riding his bicycle across
the United States in the summer of 2004, Jefferson Pitcher’s
band Above the Orange Trees recorded twenty-two songs about the
notion of home. As it turns out, this was the end of the band.
Jefferson was married at the end of the trip and moved to a small
village of 700 people in Ontario, Canada, where the snow fell
and fell and fell. Five years, one son, and four cities later,
The Residue is complete. Half of the songs were cut, and what
remains are the remains of Above the Orange Trees.
Produced and mixed by Ron Guensche, Christian Kiefer, and Jefferson
Pitcher, the record walks the line between the giant, orchestral,
indie-rock Above the Orange Trees was known for and explores a
quieter side of songwriting that happens when people write music
alone. Pitcher is joined on this recording by jazz great, Scott
Amendola on drums, Christian Kiefer on acoustic instruments, Kristina
Forester on piano and organ, and Ron Guensche on bass.
Similar to Above the Orange Trees songs on compilations from Tract
Records, and Words On Music, The Residue is layered with dense
and melodic electric guitars, and Brian Eno laden ambience. The
residue begins with Pitcher singing of his grandfather's death
as the first step in a journey from the familiar. He then examines
the nostalgia inherent in the loss of home and the myriad ways
that we deal with life's changing tide. Themes and influences
from authors like Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Jim Harrison, Jane Urquhart,
and Federico Garcia Lorca all rear their heads in this project
full of literary reference.
The songs grow from a quiet beginning on "The Edges of the
Earth" reminiscent of Damien Rice, moving through bigger
arrangements and Sonic Youth inspired guitar freakouts, until
we reach Pitcher alone with an acoustic guitar on “Perfect
Man,” where he sings “I am offering my secrets for
you to tear down…”. At the end of the collection,
the listener finds themselves contemplating unrequited dreams
in “Boats on a Hill,” with its Sigur Ros-like wall
of guitar ending, and the record finishes with the beautiful and
dreamy lullaby titled, “On a Train in Germany,” which
could easily have been pulled from a lush Cure record.
It is in the quiet and contemplative end of this record, where
Above the Orange Trees say goodbye. We are carried into the other
world on a train drifting and gliding through the German countryside,
a quiet farewell, hinting at earlier work from the band's record
titled I am not in Spain, which garnered comparison to Ennio Morricone
and Calexico. The record ends with Pitcher singing “we will
sleep our lives away,” his voice falling into the guitars.
Pitcher has since gone on to release solo work on Camera Obscura
Records, Standard Recording Company, and Digitalis Recordings,
leaving behind this last document of his work with Above the Orange
Trees.
|
