cover art by Ryan Brady

The level of catharsis and convalescence in Fiona Dickinson’s music is astonishing.  You can feel her voice pushing back the demons as she digs deep into a growl, and then angelically welcome in the healing process with the voice of tranquility.  While the subject matter and mood of her songs may carry a wistful and woebegone spirit, this is incredibly warm and inviting sonance that lives and breathes to understand and rebuild once the exorcism is complete.

Her 2011 debut, Duende, set to be released on Strutt Records on Friday, January 14 at (lo and behold!) The Strutt, is a collection of dark folk pieces that pack a riveting emotional punch.  The production, handled by Dickinson and Andy Catlin, wisely places her voice and acoustic guitar at the foreground of a multitude of other sounds, including violin and backing vocals from Samantha Cooper on several cuts and a cornucopia of instrumentation from Dickinson and Catlin throughout, though almost no percussion.  In keeping the majority of the tracks focused on the waves of her guitar/vocal interplay, the creators have ensured that solo performances will not pale in comparison to the record.  Still, the ornamentation provided is quite effective.

We are ushered into the disquieted land with a brief ambient “Intro” that segues into “My Lovely Friend”, a gorgeous number that finds its narrator in dire straits.  A choir of voices provided by a group of Dickinson’s friends adds an extra touch of meltdown intensity.
“Quiet With Others,” a lyrical oddity on the album as there are no self-references, displays the amount of feeling Dickinson can squeeze out of simplicity, using the main chord changes as several different hooks, some vocal, some instrumental, within the same song while not seeming repetitive.  The chorus, where Dickinson and Cooper harmonize the words “He croaked,” is a vocal eruption that is absolutely chilling in its strength.

The unhinged infidelity of “Stone Me” is one of the more stripped down, raw Fiona efforts found on this recording, with Catlin contributing some tasty guitar and organ.  The eerie terror of “Recalling Dreams,” where Dickinson’s voice sounds as if it’s on the verge of collapsing in ominous howling, is followed by the subdued “Sticks” where Samantha Cooper’s violin wraps around Dickinson’s guitar in a haunting interplay of sparse instrumentation.

The lyrical content grows even heavier and direct with the next few cuts.  “The Wall” includes the passage: “I heard a couple making love in the room next door/ The way she moaned reminded me of me a year ago/ When I loved a boy so dearly and we turned our beds into homes/Now that sound had no meaning so I pressed my ear into the wall”.  Highly effective ambient electronics and chaotic stringery on a cello further the frustration and longing innate to the piece.  Perhaps the most primal moment of the album occurs in “Do As I Please” where Dickinson begs “I said to her/ Please don’t do it/ Please don’t do those things to me/ And she said to me/ Yes, I’ll do it/ Yes, I’ll do as I please”.  These lines, authentically distraught, were recorded with Dickinson facing away from the mic, adding an almost-other dimension quality, like a lost soul trying to break through.  Ghostly voices swirling to and fro in the mix along with Catlin’s suspense/thriller piano arpeggios, layer upon layer of violin and cello swelling toward the end, and a shrieking vocal track recorded with Fiona’s head placed in a bathroom sink, put this track into a whole new category.

The mood lightens at this point. “Just Sleep,” a waltz of drunken, socially awkward indulgence, even includes a playful, comforting old-timey bridge. “Winter’s Coming” closes the show in glorious, across-the-plains optimism, even in the necessary departures we
must face in life.

Curiously, the two definitions found for the album title, Duende, are 1. a goblin, demon, spirit  2. charm, magnetism, soul.  Funny how Fiona Dickinson has achieved the latter by fighting off the former.

The entirety of ‘Duende’ can be heard in advance at: http://fionadickinson.bandcamp.com/

To be released Friday, January 14, 2011 at The Strutt in Kalamazoo, Michigan

Fiona Dickinson: Voice, Guitar, Cello, Violin, Bass, Piano, Flute, Bells, Percussion
Andy Catlin: Keyboard, Guitar, Piano, Reed Organ, Clarinet, Percussion
Samantha Cooper: Voice, Violin
Patrick Carroll: Guitar
Choir: Graham A. Parsons, Mike Savina, Patrick Carroll, Gitis Ezekiel Baggs, Adam Danis, Bennett Young and Drew Tyner

All songs written by Fiona Dickinson
Produced by Andy Catlin and Fiona Dickinson
Recorded by Andy Catlin at Strutt Records (Kzoo) and Chain O’ Lakes Campground (Bellaire, MI)
Mixed by Ben Lau, Andy Catlin and Fiona Dickinson
Mastered by Mark Larmee
Layout by John Stiger
Front cover by Ryan Brady ryanbradyillustration.blogspot.com
Struttrecords.com