Reviews ...

Eve Songs is the first Blue Lily Commission album since Eastern Evening from 2005, 
so I couldn't resist diving into it first. The CD consists of 4 tracks, all in the 14-19 minute 
range, so you know there's going to be some serious exploration. "Amman" opens the 
set and really took me by surprise, featuring Middle Eastern Kosmiche with a slice of 
saucy cabaret. The melody conjures up images of Marlene Dietrich doing a dancehall 
number, but the string instruments, along with the synth waves and electronics, are 
keeping things psychedelically in space. Different keyboards and ethnic string 
instruments take turns with their own style of delivering the main theme. The whole 
thing culminates in a heady concertina, WWII era Germany clashing with the Arabian 
bazaar, everybody's chewing Qat and all the instruments playing the melody are 
melting and mutating in my brain. This is a tough one to describe but I love it. 
Definitely different from anything I've heard from either Blue Lily Commission or Mooch.

We're deep in Indian influenced space on "Bangalore Dub". A meandering droning sitar 
is punctuated by flashing and often freaked out alien electronic waves, angelic choral 
voices, gorgeous meditative melodies, cosmic call-to-prayer horns, and, of course, 
a deep Dub groove. Multiple keyboard and synth parts, some injecting a bit of an 
Ozric Tentacles feel, keep the melodic theme and atmosphere constantly on the 
move, adding variety and complexity, but the whole thing flooooooows so nicely. 

"Crescent" is next and starts off with assertive spiritual horns, backed by an electronic, 
partly droning, bass like wave that I could feel flowing through my body. Then the music 
does an about-face and launches into a theme similar to the cabaret style I described 
on "Amman", though it's also got salsa type rhythms, as if to replace Marlene Dietrich 
with Carmen Miranda. But the Middle Eastern influences are stronger on this piece 
so if Miranda and her fruit salad headdress are present then she's been kidnapped 
and performing in a harem now. I really dig the groove this music has, and with all the 
spacey atmospherics and some Tangerine Dream like keyboards added in this is quite 
the stylistic melting pot. Finally, we've got "Dharamsala Dub", with its flowing droning 
sitar, cosmic electronics, spaced out flute/horn, and the expected Dub groove. 
Middle Eastern chanting and killer swirling effects propel it all into space, for an ethnic 
tinged space rock voyage that just swept me away. There are multiple contributing 
elements, and again I hear bits of the Ozrics, but overall this is like an 
ethnic/psychedelic/space rock/cosmic Dub journey across India and Arabia.

Wow, Eve Songs really bowled me over. It's tough to describe and is probably some 
of the most challenging music I've heard from Stephen Palmer yet. There's so much 
happening, so many pieces put together in interesting ways, there's no way you'll 
soak it all in without multiple listens. HIGHEST recommendation.

Jerry Kranitz / Aural Innovations


I had high expectations for the album, because Eastern Evening had
been my favorite of all the Rubbish Record releases. Eastern Evening
had 8 tracks, compared to just 4 here, but I've always been a fan of
extended pieces of music.

Eastern Evening was something of a grower on me, I always felt there
was some type of synergy between the elements of each track, where the
whole sounded more complex than the sum of it's parts.

I hear this again in Eve Songs, especially in the two middle eastern
style tracks. I also think the sound is more complex than before.
There are an incalculable number of sounds and instruments on each
track, interacting with each other and maintaining a great deal of
interest.

The dub tracks are great, but I've been much more excited by the
middle eastern style tunes which I cannot recommend too highly. Both
of these tracks take a melody and build and build, before breaking
down, to build again with different instrumentation. There is a huge
mixture of acoustic and electronic sounds in every track, but if
anything, I would say there has been a swing towards the acoustic type
sounds since Eastern Evening.

If anybody on the list hasn't bought a copy yet, what are you waiting
for? I cannot think of anybody more acomplished in this type of music
than Steve now, at times this album absolutely blows me away!

Matt Smith