Description

A kaleidoscopic collection of folk, jazz and pop

Name: Spencer Cullum - Spencer Cullum''s Coin Collection 2 (CD)
SKU: WEEC661739
Availability: InStock
Rating: 5 (173 reviews)

Although …Coin Collection”s modus operandi was ”a very quintessential English folk record, but with really good Nashville players”, Cullum says of Coin Collection 2 that ”I wanted to be different. I wanted to try and pull away from wearing my influences on my sleeve… I was trying to pick out ideas that were new to me. You can never escape your musical influences but I wanted them to be more hidden sub-consciously than upfront.”

Much in the same way that the album doesn”t wear its influences lightly but rather is steeped in them and toys with them, Cullum brought in a host of guests to turn…Coin Collection 2 loose from being a purely solo effort. Yuma Abe provides fractured, low-register chorus vocals that accentuate the ever-so-slightly mournful air to ”Kingdom Weather”, while Dana Gavanski provides beautiful harmony lines in ”What A Waste Of An Echo”. Despite the number of collaborators and players (also including Rich Ruth, Erin Rae, and Caitlin Rose) things never seem too crowded or brimming with too many ideas. Instead Cullum marshalls each moving party expertly.

Another reason …Coin Collection 2 feels so seamless is down to how quickly it was recorded. The album was tracked in two days (in Nashville, naturally), then vocals and strings were added afterwards.

Indeed, due to Cullum”s languid Romford burr (pitched somewhere between Robert Wyatt and Ray Davies), it only becomes clear when listening closely that some of the lyrics deal with weighty themes like dementia and violence. Cullum says that ”I sat for a long time with the songs and wanted to find my own identity”, and …Coin Collection 2 suggests you do the same.