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Mark Robson – Lines in the Sand www.kangaroomoon.com Mark Robson (mainstay of Kangaroo Moon) requires little introduction to many of you, such is his fame and stature within new age circles. Lines in the Sand is his fifth solo album, and his personal number 14 if you count the nine Kangaroo Moon albums to date. In fact it’s been 20 years since their first album Celtic Dreaming was reviewed here in Kindred Spirit – gosh! I gather the Kangas have something of a new line-up these days – I haven’t see them since those heady days in the 90s when they were touring non-stop for years: summer in the UK, summer in Oz, never seeing a winter. Sounds like a dream to many, but I gather it proved quite unsettling after a while. Apparently all the old members of Kangaroo Moon feature on this new CD, which seems like a nice rejoining for the 20-year cycle. I’ve always got ears for Mark’s work because he is one of the few artists these days who travels on proper instrumental journeys in and around the bits where he sings. So many artists either do songs or instrumentals, whereas, as a nipper, I was initiated into the best mixture of both by bands like (Gabriel’s) Genesis and Caravan (with whom KM have always had, to my ears, a passing resemblance). I just love the depth of feeling and intent that can be engendered when instrumental content isn’t subservient to the whims of singers. Put them in their place I say! But in Mark’s case his voice is exceptional when he does sing. Along with artists like Robert Wyatt and Roy Harper, its characterful cracks, wobbles and imperfections make it all the more intimate and vulnerable. Moody and melancholic, it feels to me as if Mr Robson continues a fine tradition and a rich vein of ‘real music’ – of heart as well as sensitive, intelligent introspection. The Celtic flavours add something of the traditional and ancient, but mixed with the richest and most sonorous of instruments, the piano, there are other ages brought to mind – like drinking absinthe in street cafés with bohemian impressionists during la belle epoche? - Kinski, Jun '07
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All reviews and articles ©2007 Kinski, Kaufman and NewMusicReviews.co.uk |
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