Pullman
Turnstyles And Junkpiles
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Pullman
Turnstyles And Junkpiles
Thrill Jockey, 1998
RiYL: John Fahey, Will Ackerman's In Search Of The Turtle's Navel, Aerial M, Rex's C, Loftus |
Pullman, a collaborative instrumental project between Brown, Tortoise's Doug McCombs, Come's Chris Brokaw and Rex's Curtis Harvey, does just that on its Thrill Jockey release Turnstyles And Junkpiles. This time around, we're treated to song titles. But we still don't know who plays what instruments on the album's 14 tracks, other than the songs that a band member wrote or performed on his own. Whoever is playing what, these acoustic guitar instrumentals, recorded directly to two-track in Brown's Chicago loft with little editing or effects, flow fluidly from track to track.
Brown made no bones about nicking an Allman Brothers riff for the leadoff track on the Directions In Music album. Likewise, on Turnstyles And Junkpiles, Brown and his bandmates display an eclectic array of influences.
The most prominent is that of recently rediscovered guitarist John Fahey, whose influence looms over nearly every track here, particularly the warm, fingerpicked drone of Harvey's "Two Parts Water."
The second, and more surprising, is that of Windham Hill Records veterans Will Ackerman and Alex DeGrassi. Their deliberate, beautiful melodies and rich textures are evoked on "Gravenhurst" (with special guest David Pajo) and Brown's soft, 60-second "Sunday Morning Traffic," a perfect soundtrack for an A.M. spent in lovely dreams. Album closer "With Hands" and "In A Box, Under The Bed" bridge the aforementioned Ackerman/DeGrassi trademarks with the repetition and fret sensibilities found on Jim O'Rourke's Bad Timing record.
Brokaw's strummy, spooky "Beacon & Kent" sounds like a Loftus out-take, not surprising considering Brown and Harvey are both in the band (along with members of Red Red Meat and June Of 44). The slow-building "Deer Hill," accented by barely audible tape loops and echo, aches for the lyrics of Nick Drake, while the playful "Barefoot" takes its text from both Ry Cooder and the late Brazilian virtuoso Bola Sete.
Pullman's members play this music expertly, intertwining bits of melody into complete soundscapes. "Tall Grass" is made whole by three separate riffs, while opener "To Hold Down A Shadow" affords equal time to each individual guitar and Brokaw's banjo.
Highly recommended to fans of releases on Fahey's Revenant label or early Windham Hill solo guitar records, Turnstyles And Junkpiles is a contemplative, musically honest tribute to some of the acoustic guitar's most important innovators. The fact that is was produced by four musicians on the outskirts of conventional rock music makes it even more satisfying.
JONATHAN COHEN | Jonathan Cohen co-created Nude As The News with his Indiana University mates Troy Carpenter and Ben French. When not traversing the globe for business and pleasure, he holds down the fort as a senior editor for Billboard in New York. Stop him and he just may ask, "what for lunch?"