Steve Von Till – ‘A Life Unto Itself’ - Album Review
2015 is proving the year of the male solo artist from my perspective; Steve Pledger, Mike Vennart, and Duke Garwood, to name but a few, releasing exceptional bodies of work this year. Add to that list, Steve Von Till, with latest album, ‘A Life Unto Itself’. The Neurosis frontman takes the listener to the deepest, darkest of emotional places whilst surrounding the senses with an overwhelmingly intense beauty.
While ‘A Life Unto Itself’ is superficially a sparse acoustic album, Von Till adds swathes of keyboards, strings and even pedal steel to create a densely claustrophobic atmosphere complementing his impassioned lyrics and rasping vocal delivery. ‘In Your Wings’ opening exposure delivers doom based folk tone in and around the picked guitar work, which mixed with strings and J. Kardong’s pedal steel proves utterly compelling.
Title track, ‘A Life Unto Itself’, utilises the pedal steel to even greater effect. It’s haunting sound accompanies throughout, enhancing particularly as Von Till pleads “Bury me in some ancient way, that my life might be worth a few words.” If ever the instrument is used with more extreme purpose, I’ve certainly not heard it.
Nearly half the songs here prove beyond seven minutes, a total of seven tracks racking up three quarters of an hour, yet Von Till is able to hold the attention unwaveringly throughout. Within ‘Night of the Moon’ and ‘Birch Bark Box’, an injection of distortion adds both variety and weight. He uses his metallic background to great effect, extending vocally within the latter, touching the edges of growl before reining back for ‘Chasing Ghosts’. Its simplistic piano is enigmatically comforting before a disconcertingly scratchy viola subliminally invades. ‘Known But Not Named’ brings proceedings to a far too early end, a dystopian chain gang with Von Till at the head, disappearing into a swirling maelstrom of sound.
Even within a career involving some of the most passionately inventive music around, via Neurosis, Tribes of Neurot, Culper Ring and his Harvestman alter ego, ‘A Life Unto Itself’ stands out as yet another pinnacle, a work of unrelentingly emotive ache and yearning, a gritty tome which needs to sit somewhere in your collection.
http://www.vontill.org/
Released Through Neurot Recordings
About the Author
Andy Barnes An avid music fan for far more years than he cares remember, and an avid gig goer since the age of fifteen. Of the three Sonic Bandwagon presenters, Andy exhibits the most varied taste. It’s certainly not uncommon for a diabolically dark piece of Black Metal to be swiftly followed by minimalist electro pop, a laid back piece of ambient jazz or even a full scale hoedown.
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