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Review by Bill Binkelman There are extensive liner notes to this album that detail something called the "Section Divine" and its relationship to harmony, balance and beauty and how this music was composed in conjunction with this philosophy/science in order to maximize its effectiveness as a recording to instill peace and serenity. Well, I don't know about any of that, although I'm open-minded enough to admit that there are realms of understanding and plenty of things unseen in the world that can affect us. However, as a music reviewer, my main task is to tell you whether I liked an album and why or why not, and also to describe it to some degree so you know what you're letting yourself in for if you purchase it. That much I CAN do, certainly. Golden Harmony is a homage/throwback to classic new age music from the mid to late '80s and early '90s, when synthesizers (especially strings) played flowing "sweet" melodies, in major tonalities, and the mood of the music was peaceful, mildly dramatic, and slow-paced. That's what you get on the ten tracks on this CD: flowing melodies that unwind at a deliberate pace, with no rhythms to speak of, played on an assortment of electronic keyboards, as well as various wind instruments (flute, oboe, soprano sax, English horn). The two main artists are Tommy Lord and Tommy Kasa (hence their name, "Kasa-Lord"). Lord plays piano and keyboards and Kasa, I believe, plays acoustic guitar and perhaps keyboards. All wind instruments are handled by guest artists. Let me start out by relating that when I played a track form this album on my radio show (track 2 "Forest") someone called up and raved about the song, an event which hardly ever happens. So, that's one endorsement. Also, the music on this CD is expertly recorded and produced. I wasn't expecting that much professionalism, frankly, because the look of the CD is somewhat amateurish (in my opinion). However, placement of the instruments in the soundfield, clarity of the mix, and the overall quality of the keyboards/synths is as high as you're likely to hear on anything but the very best new age recordings. Things start off placidly on "The Horizon" with gentle guitar, soothing washes of synths, softly lilting flute and delicately plucked harp. "Forest" materializes amid soprano sax, shimmering synths (nicely delayed/echoed), harp arpeggios, and gently undulating washes. The title track features acoustic guitar on the lead amidst haunting keyboards and sparse piano, evoking a pastoral walking-through-the-woods feeling (the only "cadence" or rhythm on the recording comes from any rhythm inherent in the strings, whether it's guitar, harp, or synth). "View From a Hill" has wooden flute in it so there may be some similarity to Native American fusion music for some listeners, as the multi-tracked/echoed lead flute wafts gracefully around low-key synths which gradually build in intensity as the track progresses. Plucked harp is introduced later but only as accompaniment to the flute which is still on the lead. The song gets fuller as more background coloring is added before the finish. "A Mysterious Morning" begins as a hazy vision of delicate harp, soprano sax, and soft synth washes. While the term "Mysterious" is in the title, there is no darkness here, only a gradual unfolding from barely light to softly aglow as the "fog burns off" when more instrumentation is subtly added. By now, you should have a good idea of what to expect on Golden Harmony. While I wish I wasn't always reaching for these two artists for comparisons' sake, the two musicians who (once again) leap to mind while listening to this album are Robert Haig Coxon (e.g. his Cristal Silence series, especially volume III, The Inner Voyage) and Ray Lynch at his most sedate and lyrical (in other words, not the Ray Lynch of "Celestial Soda Pop" but rather the Lynch of "Drifted in a Deeper Land"). I can't offer any testament to Lars Eric Unestahl's theories on Section Divine music, but I solidly recommend Golden Harmony to new age music fans who miss "the good old days" of the genre. It's as solid a collection of warm relaxing nostalgic compositions as you're likely to hear in quite a while. |
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