Held By Trees - Solace (Album Review)
‘Solace’, the debut record from Held By Trees, is a new instrumental project featuring a string of well-known names from the UK and further afield. The man at the heart of Held By Trees is David Joseph, a producer and multi-instrumentalist with aspirations to put together an album that harked back to the seminal recordings of Mark Hollis and producer Tim Friese-Green in Talk Talk and celebrate the natural world.
In recent years few bands have been revered to the extent of Talk Talk. The band started with a string of pop hits in the 80s before expanding their musical palate and becoming hugely influential to many artists that fall into and around the ‘art-rock/post-rock’ genre, such as Radiohead and St Vincent. Hollis and Talk Talk developed their sound via a more improvisational approach to their later recordings. Joseph has utilized this template on ‘Solace’ with impressive results.
Joseph’s mix of spontaneous compositions, various rhythmic and chord progressions, and field recordings made near his West Country home would form the bedrock of ‘Solace’. He then invited a string of musicians to add to the recordings by improvising their parts. Among those contributing to the tracks were Talk Talk session veterans; guitarist Robbie McIntosh (Paul McCartney, The Pretenders, John Mayer), drummer/percussionist Martin Ditcham (Chris Rea, The Waterboys, Nik Kershaw), bassist Simon Edwards (Michael Jackson, Billy Bragg, Fairground Attraction) and musicians who had worked on Mark Hollis’ solo material; pianist Lawrence Pendrous, and flautist/Clarinettist Andy Panayi. Joseph must have a way with words/an impressive contacts book as he was also able to coax Phill Brown and Denis Blackham out of retirement to mix and master the record. If this cast list wasn’t impressive enough; Joseph was able to call on Tim Renwick (Guitar - Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Eric Clapton), Mike Smith (Sax - Blur, Damon Albarn, Gorillaz), David Knopfler (Guitar - Dire Straits), Gary Alesbrook (Trumpet - Noel Gallagher, Kasabian, Super Furry Animals), Eric Bibb (acoustic guitar), Dutch rising-star, Just, and ambient composer, Unknown Replica to also contribute to ‘Solace’.
All of this would be, and is, impressive on paper, but it would all fall flat if the music failed the listening test. I’m pleased to report that ‘Solace’ works on every level. The idea of field recordings often leaves me cold, but the swell of strings on the opening track ‘Next To Silence’ perfectly complements the sounds of birds chirping, while a single note piano aids in drawing the listener into the natural world. ‘In The Trees’ picks up the pace ever so slightly as Robbie McIntosh’s gentle guitar figures play off a rather lovely woodwind contribution from Andy Panayi over a solid, unhurried drum track. The opening two pieces set the scene beautifully. If you prefer your music to be more forceful, then the meandering, ambient tones of David Joseph's work might not be for you, but I’d still urge you to give it a listen.
I’ll readily admit that tracks such as ‘An Approach’ (effectively a drone with a door slamming at the end) might leave the casual listener a little confused but, at its best, ‘Solace’ is a lovely, inviting record. One such example is the quite gorgeous ‘The Tree Of Life’ featuring guitarist Tim Renwick, aided and abetted by Gary Alesbrook’s trumpet and Simon Edwards’ warm bass notes. The prominence of guitars on the record certainly brings to mind the latter-day David Gilmour led, Pink Floyd. ‘The Tree Of Life’ begins a three-track arc that concludes the album. McIntosh’s ringing guitar tones form the minimalist core of ‘Mysterium’, sharing guitar duties with David Knopfler and Eric Bibb. ‘The New Earth’ completes the ‘Solace’ experience reaching a quiet crescendo via McIntosh's escalating guitar lines and a terrific sax contribution from Mike Smith. This trio of tracks is making it increasingly difficult for me to file away my ‘Solace’ CD and play something else.
‘Solace’ is a relaxed, quiet storm of a record and could prove a gateway album into the world of ambient music, ‘post-rock’ and the works of Mark Hollis. It's also worth noting that, for every album sold, Play It Green will plant a tree in the Held By Trees forest in Madagascar. So, by purchasing the album, you will get to hear good music, and you will also be doing your bit for the planet. A definite win-win.
It’s also worth noting that Held By Trees is not a studio bound project and they’ve announced live shows for later this year:
OCTOBER 2022 / HELD BY TREES LIVE
Weds 26th
LONDON Half Moon Putney
https://tickets.halfmoon.co.uk/events/2022-10-26-held-by-trees-half-moon-putney
Fri 28th
BOURNEMOUTH St. Luke's Church
https://bit.ly/3G7xeHD
Sat 29th
BRISTOL Dareshack
https://www.hdfst.uk/E75344
One of the positive aspects of running Red Guitar Music is that you encounter all manner of different musical genres that you wouldn’t necessarily find on your own. The RGM Inbox is positively overflowing with the good, the bad and, yes, the ugly (although something we find unlistenable is probably the best thing in the world to someone). One example that falls squarely in the good category of pleasant surprises is The Happy Couple, discovered on a recent visit to London’s Green Note, where the duo opened for Dimple Discs labelmate Kelsey Michael.