House and Land is the duo of vocalists-multi-instrumentalists Sally Anne Morgan and Sarah Louise Henson. On their eponymous debut, they undertake an immersive trip into the traditions of Appalachia and invigorate the journey with elements of experimentalism. The whole is magnificent, and those with a love of Morgan’s fiddling in the Black Twig Pickers should not delay in getting acquainted with this one. It’s out now on vinyl, compact disc, and digital from the indefatigable Thrill Jockey of Chicago.
A lot of the time, when folks attempt to give trad/ old forms a jolt of the New, the results connect like rough surgery, and even if the addition makes it successfully “inside” the root form, the stitching is still visible. Often, this is by design and sounds just snappy, but it’s not what House and Land are up to; on this striking first effort Morgan and Henson make no attempts at disguise, but what they’ve achieved is accurately assessed as an organic blend or hybrid rather than splicing or grafting.
A fusion? On this record Morgan plays fiddle, shruti box, and banjo while Henson plays the 12-string guitar, shruti box, and bouzouki. The use of instruments associated with Greece and India might suggest a sort of meeting ground with World Music, but that’s only true in that House and Land approach Appalachia as a living, breathing music of the World rather than as a knickknack on the shelf in Aunt Sally’s consignment shop.
This shouldn’t imply that Morgan and Henson lack deep knowledge of the region’s long history, it’s just that their combined skill, immediately felt in the crisp mountain ache of opener “Wandering Boy,” spans far beyond studious replication towards the regions of contemporary vitality, a scenario evidenced by the subtle instrumental flowering in the latter portion of the track.
It should be noted that both members of House and Land sing here, and for many the duo’s voices will be the album’s most endearing trait. This is no slight to their instrumental talents: the remarkable a cappella harmony of “Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah” is preceded by an equally stunning passage of solo fiddle.
In “False True Lover,” banjo, guitar and Morgan’s voice are weaved to gorgeous effect, and up to this point, House and Land hits upon an Appalachian, and by extension Brit folk, depth of feeling (Shirley Collins’ recording of “The False True Love” helped title her ’59 LP for Folkways). The experimental/ drone aspects mentioned above become overt in “Listen to the Roll.”
Through fiddle, shruti box, and voice, Morgan and Henson attain a sound that’s comparable to the work of Henry Flynt, specifically his You Are My Everlovin’ / Celestial Power, but with the crucial difference that Flynt is focused upon extendedness (both sides of that slash break the 44-minute mark) while House and Land is consistently about songs (“Listen to the Roll” ends at three).
Through the ominous repetition of a guitar figure, string cascades, fleet fiddling, and Thom Nguyen’s superbly attentive percussion, “The Day is Past and Gone” weds a multifaced structure to Henson’s beautifully expressive singing to emphasize this commitment to song. Culminating in a gripping instrumental crescendo, it’s arguably House and Land’s highlight.
As this highly assured album never falters, the qualifier is necessary. The incremental blossoming of “Home Over Yonder” is simply a glorious thing to hear, and likewise the a cappella refrain “Johnny,” which is sure to capture those previously cited lovers of mountain harmony. But for richness of mood, it’s hard to top “Rich Old Jade”; imbued with the shruti box, which possesses drone qualities akin to a harmonium (therefore reinforcing the Britishness), and the bouzouki, herein reminiscent of a mandolin or dulcimer, the tune’s economy, and particularly Morgan’s poignant voice, elevates it to the sublime.
When old-timey stuff isn’t straining to be amiable, it’s often categorized as severe, but “Rich Old Jade” is quite accessible (in a different era, I can imagine it released as a single) without sacrificing depth. Resting in the penultimate spot, “Feather Dove” can perhaps take a backseat to the disc’s bolder gestures, but listening to it in isolation affirms that it’s a gem.
It’s also strategically positioned as a lead-in to “Unquiet Grave,” wherein House and Land gather the elements defining their debut: traditional song-form, vocal harmony, hill drone, and sheer verve, and produce a grand finale lacking in any audible strain. Hopefully, House and Land is just the end of a beginning; the seed was planted after Henson opened for the Black Twig Pickers, and along with that unit, this LP makes clear that some of the finest in pathfinding old-time style continues to be based smackdab in Appalachia.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
A
