The UK guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Andy Cartwright, who performs under the moniker Seabuckthorn, will return on June 1st with the release of the LP A House With Too Much Fire due out via Bookmaker Records/La Cordillère. The upcoming 10-track effort finds Cartwright relocated to the Southern Alps with the mountainous terrain and expansive landscape infusing his music with wide-ranging ambiance. The guitarist’s masterful use of finger-picking, slide, and bowed technique is further supported by his inclusion of instruments like banjo, clarinet, percussion, and synthesizer on the release. Recorded in late 2017, “with the wood burner always in use,” the musician reports that most of the album parts were done in one take giving his music a spontaneous and improvised feel–though, always informed by his innately expressive ability for sonic storytelling.
Discussing his track “Inner,” currently available for streaming via Seabuckthorn’s Bandcamp page, Cartwright had this to say:
“Inner – An optimistic trance, a regular tribal rhythm & spacial drones give the electric lead guitar a freedom to roam. I wanted one of the early songs on the album to be light, beginning the journey on a high before leading the listener to more transcendental & challenging terrains later on.”
Indeed, with the warm timbered drone of synthesizer and lulling percussion to draw you in, on “Inner” Cartwright’s finger-picked guitar figures trill and bend only to rise like luminescent embers from a crackling fire. The effect is entrancing, slowing the mind’s flow into a stately focus where only drone and melody are left to work their spell-binding force.
If “Inner” offers “an optimistic trance,” “Submerged Past” summons darkened shadows seemingly inhabited by more mysterious entities. Darkly hued in midnight blue, here Cartwright’s expressive guitar work seems to awaken haunted memories. With deftly picked guitar notes to tell the story, his layered timbers meld into a rich patchwork of tones. By the track’s midpoint, a gentle percussion slowly marks time to create a propulsive flow and with the bubbling twang of banjo sifting thru Seabuckthorn’s eclectic mix of styles, “Submerged Past” adds a ghostly presence to the night air.
A House With Too Much Fire is currently available for pre-order via Bandcamp, and if “Inner” and “Submerged Past” are any indication, you’ll likely find this LP on our list of Favorite Albums from 2018!
