CD: Josephine Foster - Faithful Fairy Harmony | reviews, news & interviews
CD: Josephine Foster - Faithful Fairy Harmony
CD: Josephine Foster - Faithful Fairy Harmony
Country-folk auteur tunes in to the ether
Faithful Fairy Harmony is in the tradition of The Beatles’ White Album, Todd Rundgren’s A Wizard, a True Star and The Clash’s London Calling, all double albums because an outpouring of songs couldn’t be stemmed. Also like these, Josephine Foster’s 18-track double-set plays with listener expectations.
It’s that voice which immediately characterises Faithful Fairy Harmony. Foster has frequently reconfigured her singing and this time round she’s a keening Appalachian wraith – draw a line between John Jacob Niles and Ed Askew, lower the pitch a little, and that’s almost it. On the lullaby-esque “Eternity”, it’s as if she’s singing from beyond the grave with a voice which wavers and wobbles like a flickering flame. On album opener “Soothsayer Song”, she channels one of the ghosts accompanying the angel in the sleeve image.
The instrumentation and a deft, hazy production suggest this music was plucked from the air in the way Electronic Voice Phenomenon captures etheric dialogue. The pedal steel, an autoharp, cello, echoing piano and roller-rink organ co-mingle to further the sense of asymmetry. Two songs stand out: “Lord of Love”, which is even more affecting than Winding Sheet Mark Lanegan, and the sublime “The Peak of Paradise”.
This beautiful and oblique song cycle seems to be about birth and a subsequent ecstatic ascension to heaven. With Faithful Fairy Harmony, Foster has become the Twilight Zone Emmylou Harris. Or Jandek were he channelling early Jean Ritchie. This is the work of an auteur at the peak of her powers.
rating
Explore topics
Share this article
The future of Arts Journalism
You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!
We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d
And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
Add comment