Republic of Letters

Echolyn’s New Video: On We Blur

Progressive Rock legends Echolyn share video for “On We Blur”
from TimeSilentRadio vii Two albums, TimeSilentRadio II &TimeSilentRadio vii, are both out now
Progressive Rock legends Echolyn released their two critically acclaimed new albums TimeSilentRadio vii & TimeSilentRadio II earlier this year on March 7, 2025 ~ coincidentally on the 30th Anniversary of their 1995 Sony/Epic Records release As The World.  The band recently shared a performance video for “Water In Our Hands, part 6” from #TRSII, and are now pleased to share another new video from #TSRvii for the track “On We Blur,” premiering today on The Prog Report.The band shared this about the track:“The lyrics to “On We Blur” deal with bad bosses and upper management and how their lack of leadership and communication, coupled with zero signs of empathy towards others, can turn a great staff of workers into a really bad one. Sometimes you try pushing through the dark days, but eventually even that becomes way too much to handle. Working angry and bitter is not healthy for anyone. “All the voices tell me to ignore it, but my own won’t let it be; the air don’t care whose lungs it’s filling, so on we blur…” It’s an upbeat, in-your-face, contemporary track that features echolyn’s classic multi-part vocal harmonies, clever and intricate instrumental counterpoint, and infectious melodies you’ll be humming for days.You can watch the video for “On We Blur” here:
https://youtu.be/oBgsNxjRehA
Rave reviews for both albums continue to roll in, with online music resources like Progressive Music Planet saying “echolyn have outdone themselves with not one but two amazing albums. Prog rock fans need to hear both of these albums. TimeSilentRadio vii features 7 classic wonderfully melodic tracks that harken back to the band’s rich history…while TimeSilentRadio II has two epic songs that rank with any classic prog-rock epics from the 70s. If you need proof that prog is alive and well, echolyn has the evidence.”Both new #TSR albums can be purchased on CD thru the band’s website echolyn.com (stateside in the US) and via multiple European & Japanese distributors overseas, or via digital download at echolyn.bandcamp.comTimeSilentRadio vii tracklist:1.Radio Waves
2.Silent Years
3.Cul-de-Sacs and Tunnels
4.Boulders on Hills
5.Our Brilliant Next
6.On We Blur
7.Tiny StarTimeSilentRadio II tracklist:1.Time Has No Place
2.Water in Our Hands
Recent album reviews by fans also continue to sing the praises of both TSR albums: “Music that echoes with some of the most beautiful, profound, and deeply contemplative emotions that exist within the human soul. When all that’s left is time, we reflect upon the past as we work through traumas and live for a beautiful tomorrow.” (Andy Ryan) “echolyn have been in my life since the 1990’s when I was blown away by ‘as the world.’ Ever since then they have continued to put out thoughtful, creative music but on these latest albums it’s like a rich gravy that has been reducing over a low flame. I am simply blown away by the taste, restraint, musicality and heart in this collection of songs. ‘Water in Our Hands’ is a fitting finale to an epic achievement.” (Jon Dahms) and “The two TSR albums are my favorite new music in 2025. The lyrics are great and the band is tight. I have recommended the albums to many of my friends, particularly musicians.” (Jim Peacock) 
Echolyn is: 
Brett Kull – guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals
Ray Weston – lead vocals, bass, backing vocals
Chris Buzby – keyboards, backing vocals
Jordan Perlson – drums & percussion, backing vocals
ECHOLYN online:
BANDCAMP
WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM
X
LITERATURE

Dickens’ Bleak House: One of His Best

Almost thirty years ago, I picked up Charles Dickens’ first novel, The Pickwick Papers, more out of curiosity than anything, and immediately fell in love with it. I went ahead and spent the better part of a year reading all of his novels in the order of publication. Since then, I’ve reread Pickwick and his final complete novel, Our Mutual Friend, but not any others. I know that Bleak House often tops people’s lists of The Best Dickens Novels, and when I first read it, I thought it was very good, but not one of his best. I decided to give it another chance, and, once again, I find that I have a much greater appreciation for a book now that I am older.

You can read the rest of my review here.

Music

Lifesigns Live In The Netherlands: Instantly Classic Prog

The British group, Lifesigns, released a 2-disc live album recorded in the Netherlands back in 2023. Brad and Tad have a conversation about why this is a fantastic live album and why Lifesigns is a fantastic group.

Tad: Brad, I’m so glad you suggested we review this album. It’s been out a couple of years, but it didn’t get the attention it deserves. I became a fan of Lifesigns when they released Altitude in 2021, which was one of my favorite albums of that year. Live In The Netherlands features live renditions of almost that entire album, which is definitely a plus!

On listening to it, I am impressed with how well they replicate the studio versions of the songs, while adding a lot of energy. 

Brad: Thanks so much, Tad.  From what I can tell, Lifesigns is pretty huge in Europe but just does get enough attention here in the U.S.  Our loss!  Back when we were at Progarchy, John Young got ahold of me and let me know about Lifesigns.  I knew about Young, of course–he’s a huge name in the prog and rock worlds–and I was honored, to be sure, to communicate with him.  He’s not only a gentleman, but I believe he is truly a good, good soul.  And, obviously, what a talent.  So, I’ve been proudly following Lifesigns from the beginning, being introduced to them with their first amazing album, the self titled Lifesigns.  

My first and lasting impression of that album is that it’s one of prog joy, much more closely related to, say, a Transatlantic album, than, say, Storm Corrosion.  There’s a real beauty as well as real innocence to the music that I deeply admire.  

When I say it’s related to Transatlantic, I don’t mean in sound, but in atmosphere.  While I wouldn’t call Lifesigns a Christian band, I would say they’re most certainly not adverse to Christianity and all it entails.  And, the fact that the openly Christian Dave Bainbridge is now a part of the band certainly doesn’t hurt this reputation.  It’s definitely not an in-your-face Christianity like some of Neal Morse’s work tends to be, but rather music and lyrics inspired by Christianity.  Again, the best way I can explain it is that Lifesigns radiates joy.

There’s also something humorous about what I just said.  When I became Facebook friends with John Young, back in 2013, I also became friends with the first bassist of the band, Nick Beggs.  Beggs, of course, is well known in the prog world, especially given his work with Steven Wilson.  Almost immediately after I became friends with Beggs, he posted a number of pictures of himself in the buff.  I will admit, I was utterly shocked and, in no uncertain terms, made my horror quite plain on social media!  Ha.  There’s a puritan streak in me, to be sure.  Young, however, gently reprimanded Beggs and suggested this might not be the best way to introduce the band to the public.  It all turned out well.

Tad: Brad, that is hilarious! Beggs is definitely a prankster, but he is an amazingly talented bassist.

Let’s talk about Lifesign’s Live In The Netherlands. It features an excellent playlist, with the first half of the show devoted to old favorites like “N” and “At the End of the World”. It’s the second half that really gets me excited, where they perform the entire Altitude album. They are an incredibly tight unit, and Dave Bainbridge really shines on guitar.

Like you, Altitude was a favorite of mine the year it came out, and I immediately picked up all of their other albums. I still think Altitude is their best, but they haven’t released a weak album to date. I love the title track, which runs a generous 15:49, but never lags. John Young does a fantastic job on keyboards and vocals. “Last One Home” is one of my all-time favorite songs, regardless of genre. I think it is just beautiful in its perfect melding of song and lyrics. The version on Live In The Netherlands is outstanding, with Bainbridge turning in a wonderful guitar solo reminiscent of Gilmour at his best. 

It’s interesting you find Lifesigns reminding you of Transatlantic, and I can certainly hear that in terms of atmosphere, as you say. When I listen to Lifesigns, I am reminded of the classic prog band, UK – especially their eponymous debut album that featured Alan Holdsworth on guitar. I think it’s because Young’s vocals remind me of the late, great John Wetton’s. Also, Young’s melodies have a way of turning a phrase that brings to mind late ‘70s prog. 

Anyway, I think for someone who enjoys melodic and uplifting prog, Lifesigns is hard to beat, and Live In The Netherlands is the perfect introduction to their music. It covers the best songs from their first two albums as well as including an excellent performance of their complete third album. Lifesigns doesn’t have much music on the streaming services, so I encourage people to support them by buying hard copies of their albums. 

Brad: Tad, what a great analysis.  I’d not thought of Lifesigns resembling late 1970s proggers like UK.  Now that you’ve said that, I can’t unsee it.  I think you’re absolutely right.  Maybe John Young has a particular 1970s sound that I’ve never quite realized. 

Again, for me, it’s best summed up as “joy” rather than overly precious or overly intricate or overly self-involved.  For whatever reason, John Young and his music inspires me to be a better person, to approach my own art with a love of life and a gratitude for all that made my own life possible.  Hence, I think of it as being Christian adjacent rather than out and out Christian.  Again, we know Bainbridge’s Christianity, but if someone told me that Young was also serious about his faith, I wouldn’t be surprised.

And agreed, Lifesign’s three (only three!) studio albums are all excellent, and I very much love the two live releases.  I suppose, if pushed, I would say that Lifesigns (the debut album from 2013) is my favorite, only because it was my introduction to them.  In terms of quality of music and lyrics and vocals, I would rank all three equally.  Again, this music just makes me want to be a better person. 

We haven’t explicitly mentioned Cardington, and I would like to praise that album as well for being every bit the equal of Lifesigns and Altitude.

If I had one complaint, it would be that I want more Lifesigns music!  Call me greedy, but I would love more than three albums over a decade.  Still, I’m sure that John has a ton of things going on, so I’m deeply appreciative of what we do have.

Though I’d not thought of this as having a late 1970s sound until you mentioned it, I would love for more prog to have this feel and atmosphere to it.  There are a hundred Radiohead and Porcupine Tree inspired bands, where are the John Young inspired bands?  I would love more of this kind of music: classy and classic, beautifully constructed, and majestically orchestrated.  The lyrics are perfect and compelling as is the music itself.

For me, Tad, Live in the Netherlands perfectly captures all of this.  Indeed, in terms of sound quality, I’m especially impressed, as the live album sounds just like the studio release, despite being in an uncontrolled environment.  I love the first set of older material and the second set of newer material.  My only complaint is that all of the banter has been removed from the live release.  I’m sure that John spoke to the audience, and I would love to know what he had to say.  Specifically, given what a gentleman he is, I’m sure that he’s an excellent frontman.

John, Jon, Steve, Frank, and Dave: if you’re reading this, please know that you are loved, and my desire to have more music from you is meant in the best possible way.  Thank you, hugely, for everything you’ve given us already.  Now, we just need to get all Americans to listen to you. . . .

Tad: From your keyboard to John Young’s ears, Brad! Yes, I wish they released more music, because the contemporary music scene needs more like it. And, dear readers, you can find all of Lifesigns’ music and merchandise at https://lifesignsmusic.co.uk/. Check them out!

LITERATURE

The Hank Show: The End of Privacy

I was born in 1961, so a little more than half of my life was pre-internet (for me, the internet really began in 1995, when a new piece of software called Netscape was introduced). I remember how amazing email was before spammers got going, how fun the early “world-wide web” was, and how interesting and informative various bloggers were before Facebook, Twitter, and Google showed up and took over. There weren’t adblockers in the late 90s, because there weren’t many ads. I remember how furious we websurfers got when it was revealed that websites had these things called “cookies” that were sent to your browser, so they could track your history. What an invasion of privacy!

Those concerns seem quaint now. My daughter was born in 1994, and she has really not known any time when she couldn’t go online. She also knows that she has no privacy, and she goes on the internet with the expectation that everything she emails, posts on social media, and buys is seen and logged by someone or something. McKenzie Funk’s book, The Hank Show, is a biography of the man he holds responsible for first exploiting the financial potential of Big Data.

To continue reading, click here.

Music

In Concert: Alison Krauss Warms Our Cold, Cold Hearts

Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas, Meijer Gardens Amphitheatre, Grand Rapids, Michigan, September 5, 2025.

Over three decades, Alison Krauss has parleyed her singing and fiddling skills into an international career that (with the help of a Coen Brothers movie or two) brought bluegrass back to the masses and boosted her into an orbit of musical celebrity shared by few. But in the wake of her second collaboration with rock god Robert Plant, Krauss went back to her beginnings, reconvening her long-time band Union Station after a ten-year hiatus, with a new album and a six-month tour on the agenda. And that’s how, on the first genuinely chilly evening of Meijer Gardens’ concert season, Krauss and company wound up onstage in winter gear, getting down to business with relish, drawing a sold-out audience huddled beneath layers of Gore-Tex and fuzzy blankets toward their blossoming circle of musical warmth and light.

Not that Krauss & Union Station’s music is all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows. The tunes featured from their new album Arcadia were about (in this order): loneliness; a factory fire disaster; loneliness again; a mysterious stranger terrorizing a small town; and getting shut down on the make. In fact, some of the most compelling vocal moments were the darkest – Krauss’ spooky solo turn on “Ghost In This House”, Russell Moore’s bone-chilling folk narrative “The Hangman”. And there was melancholy galore in the mainstays of the band’s back-catalog: “Every Time You Say Goodbye”, “Let Me Touch You For A While” (“our one sexy song”, according to Krauss), revamped 1970s soul classic “Now That I’ve Found You”, and a spare, devastating cover of Willie Nelson’s “Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground.”

But while sad songs say so much, they weren’t the only emotion on offer; for every heartbreaker, there was an anthem to survival and resilience like the new “One Ray of Shine” and the classic “Forget About It.” In these tunes especially, Krauss showed her consummate range and interpretive skill, pattering out the verses to draw us into the story, then launching into the high lonesome choruses (often cradled by Union Station’s understated vocal harmony) to finish the job. While that sweet, supple voice is Krauss’ foremost calling card, she’s also consistently savvy with her vocal gift, knowing how to blend in tart, savory, even spicy flavors as the music requires.

So there were humor and high spirits aplenty to set off all the sadness too. Whether commiserating with us about the weather (“You all look like Paw and Laura under the blankets in the back of the wagon”), or slyly teasing her bandmates (guitarist/banjo player/songwriter Ron Block was introduced as “our sexy librarian — and a recovering vegetarian”), Krauss combined downhome deadpan with a mischievous gleam in her eye whenever she addressed the audience. And when Union Station launched into hoedowns “Choctaw Hayride”, “Sawing On the Strings” and Bill Monroe’s “Cluck Old Hen”, she leaned right in, hunkering down on rhythm fiddle as Block, violin/mandolin wizard Stuart Duncan and dobro legend Jerry Douglas tore it up over Barry Bales’ resonating bass.

Douglas proved equally riveting in his extended solo spot, a weird and wonderful medley of Paul Simon’s brooding “American Tune” and Chick Corea’s festive “Spain”. Extra kudos go to Russell Moore as well: slotting into the male lead vocal spot formerly held by long-time stalwart Dan Tyminski, he brought home the bacon on both the back catalog and the upbeat “(Crazy ‘Bout A) North Side Gal” (which, in Krauss’ words, “covered three important topics – geographical location; mental wellness; and gender.”)

Ultimately, a concert by Alison Krauss & Union Station comes down to first-rate musicians playing and singing deceptively simple yet deeply affecting music, at the highest level of technical brilliance and visceral commitment, to stunning effect. But if anything, the extended encore, where the sextet gathered around a single microphone to harmonize with minimal instrumentation, sounded even richer depths. As the gentle love song “When You Say Nothing At All”, the weeper “Whiskey Lullaby”, the traditional spiritual “Down to the River to Pray” and Block’s moving confession of faith “There Is A Reason” wafted into the chill of the night, it settled over the rapt crowd like a bluegrass benediction to provide a thoroughly satisying finish. Put simply: hear and see them live if you can.

— Rick Krueger

Setlist:

  • Looks Like the End of the Road
  • Granite Mills
  • Choctaw Hayride
  • Sawing on the Strings
  • Rain Please Go Away
  • Every Time You Say Goodbye
  • Cluck Old Hen
  • The Lucky One
  • Ghost in This House
  • I Don’t Believe You’ve Met My Baby
  • Baby, Now That I’ve Found You
  • Wish I Still Had You
  • Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground
  • Let Me Touch You for Awhile
  • American Tune (Jerry Douglas solo)
  • Spain (Jerry Douglas solo)
  • Dust Bowl Children
  • The Boy Who Wouldn’t Hoe Corn
  • Lie Awake
  • The Hangman
  • Orange Blossom Special
  • One Ray of Shine
  • Restless
  • North Side Gal
  • Forget About It
  • Paper Airplane
  • Gravity
  • When You Say Nothing at All
  • Whiskey Lullaby
  • Down to the River to Pray
  • A Living Prayer
  • When He Reached Down His Hand for Me
  • There is a Reason

LITERATURE

Raymond Chandler’s The Little Sister

I’ve become a big fan of Raymond Chandler’s hard-boiled novels featuring his private eye, Philip Marlowe. I previously reviewed his fourth book, The Lady In The Lake, and The Little Sister, published in 1949, continues Chandler’s bleak and disillusioned perspective on the seamy side of Los Angeles and its surrounding towns. 

It opens with Marlowe alone in his office, when a woman calls him on the phone, asking him to find her missing brother. He insists on seeing her in person, which she resists, but eventually gives in. She is Orfamay Quest, and, as Marlowe describes her, 

She was a small, neat, rather prissy-looking girl with primly smooth brown hair and rimless glasses.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 229-230). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

She has come all the way out to California from Manhattan, Kansas, because her brother, Orrin – who, she assures Marlowe, would never get into any kind of trouble – stopped sending weekly letters to her and their mother. Marlowe is naturally suspicious of Orfamay’s story, but he agrees to take on her case for twenty dollars. 

What follows is a very complicated situation involving mobsters from Cleveland, corrupt cops, Hollywood B-listers, a doctor who supplies them with drugs, and a murderer who likes to kill by stabbing his (or her) victims in the neck with an ice pick. Suffice it to say that no one is particularly innocent and Marlowe’s natural cynicism is fully justified. 

And yet, even in the most dangerous and tempting circumstances, Marlowe clings to his code of honor: refusing to take bribes, stating the truth to the police even when it puts himself in danger, and resisting the blandishments of a beautiful Hollywood actress. He knows he won’t get rewarded for his virtue, but like a medieval knight pledged to behave chivalrously, he never gives in.

As in The Lady In The Lake, one of my favorite ingredients of Chandler’s style is his deadpan humor. Here are a few examples:

I got my wallet out and handed him one of my business cards. He read it thoughtfully and tapped the edge against his porcelain crown.
“He coulda went somewhere without telling me,” he mused.
“Your grammar,” I said, “is almost as loose as your toupee.”
“You lay off my toupee, if you know what’s good for you,” he shouted.
“I wasn’t going to eat it,” I said. “I’m not that hungry.”
He took a step towards me, and dropped his right shoulder. A scowl of fury dropped his lip almost as far.
“Don’t hit me. I’m insured,” I told him.
“Oh hell. Just another screwball.” He shrugged and put his lip back up on his face.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 571-577). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

A fat man in sky-blue pants was closing the door with that beautiful leisure only fat men ever achieve. He wasn’t alone, but I looked at him first. He was a large man and wide. Not young nor handsome, but he looked durable. Above the sky-blue gabardine slacks he wore a two-tone leisure jacket which would have been revolting on a zebra. The neck of his canary-yellow shirt was open wide, which it had to be if his neck was going to get out. He was hatless and his large head was decorated with a reasonable amount of pale salmon-colored hair. His nose had been broken but well set and it hadn’t been a collector’s item in the first place.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 1364-1368). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

The boss mortician fluttered around making elegant little gestures and body movements as graceful as a Chopin ending. His composed gray face was long enough to wrap twice around his neck.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 2162-2163). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

And, of course, there are plenty of wonderfully descriptive similes to set the mood:

Her voice was as cool as boarding-house soup.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Location 683). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

She had a low lingering voice with a sort of moist caress in it like a damp bath towel.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 795-796). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

I smelled Los Angeles before I got to it. It smelled stale and old like a living room that had been closed too long.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 1338-1339). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

I took the wrinkles out of my lips and said aloud:
“Hello again. Anybody here needing a detective?”
Nothing answered me, not even a stand-in for an echo. The sound of my voice fell on silence like a tired head on a swansdown pillow.
RAYMOND CHANDLER. The Little Sister (Kindle Locations 2985-2987). Delphi Classics. Kindle Edition.

Either you love this stuff, or you don’t. I think it’s great – despite Marlowe’s world-weariness, he loves LA and the losers who populate its seediest neighborhoods. He knows one man can’t make much difference in the world, but he never gives up trying.

Chandler wrote The Little Sister after he had had some very frustrating experiences as a screenwriter in Hollywood, and his contempt for Tinseltown is as clear as a bell. (Or maybe like “two dead fish in the silt at the bottom of a drained pool”, to borrow a simile!) The plot is difficult to unravel at times, and just when I thought I had things figured out, he throws a curveball to surprise. That said, the ending is very good, and I would rank The Little Sister as one of Chandler’s best. 

Republic of Letters

My Mood This Morning

This has been a schizophrenic week for me. The beauty of a new semester and teaching things that really matter, the gorgeous early Autumnal weather, and the horrors of a Mass shooting in Minnesota. The latter has really, really affected me.

So, here I am on a Saturday morning, trying to reconcile all these things, and music becomes the medicine.

Enjoy.

Music

Kevin Keller’s Arcadia – 37 Minutes of Musical Joy

Close shot of sun at sunset, Brussels, Belgium

I’ve been writing the praises of contemporary composer Kevin Keller for years now. It has been fascinating to see his evolution from an extremely talented “ambient” composer/musician into one of the most vital and engaging classical music composers in America.

Keller’s Evensong, which was released in 2023, was a beautiful set of chamber choir pieces. He has just released its sequel, Arcadia, which primarily features the vocals of Sofia Campoamor, backed by a small choir and piano with string trio. As is usual with Keller, he augments this traditional musical setting with discreet and tasteful electronic touches. There simply is no other contemporary composer who can combine ancient musical styles and instrumentation with 21st century electronics as skillfully and satisfyingly as Kevin Keller.

All of the songs in Arcadia are sung in Latin, which creates a reverent and calming atmosphere throughout. The opening track, Arcadia 1, is “Et Vidi Caelum” (“And I Saw the Sky”). Hushed acapella vocals begin the song and are soon joined by various acoustic and electronic instruments. As the melody develops slowly and deliberately, the listener is transported into a state of bliss. I know I’m sounding hyperbolic, but this is some of the most beautiful music I’ve ever heard. The only thing I can compare it to is Thomas Tallis’ “Spem In Alium” or some of J. S. Bach’s fugues.

The second track, “Et Nox Ultra” (“And Night Is Over”) is a sprightly and wordless chant with a rhythmic bed of synths. It is full of anticipation for a new day. Arcadia 3, “Me Solum Me Invenio” (“I find myself alone”) is, appropriately, sung by Ms. Campoamor solo while accompanied by Keller on organ.

Kevin Keller and Sofia Campoamor

In Arcadia 4, “In Tenebris” (“In darkness”), the choir returns to sing a gentle lullaby accompanied by piano and string trio. As this song progresses, it becomes more insistent in its rhythm, but it maintains its control. It is one of the longer tracks at 6:22, and there is a beautiful, long coda that brings it to rest.

Arcadia 5 is “Mare, Littus, Flammam” (“Sea, Shore, Flame”), and you can hear waves gently washing ashore as Ms. Campoamor sings a melody that, to my ears, is full of longing. Her vocal is supported by a cello and soft electronics.

My favorite track is Arcadia 6: “In Equo Fugit” (“She flees on horseback”). It is introduced by a gentle pulse that is soon joined by the choir who sing an extraordinarily beautiful melody. I’m having a hard time conveying how delightful Keller’s music is here – it really is ineffable!

The final two tracks are “Et Lux Perpetua” (“And Eternal Light”) and “Veni Intus” (“Come Inside”) They bring our journey to a close with a very satisfying sense of returning to the comfort of a beloved sanctuary.

There is something very timely about the art Keller is creating these days. We live in such contentious times, which are exacerbated by social and news media.  Arcadia is a balm for the souls of people who need a respite from the 24/7 anxiety that our contemporary culture has a tendency to induce.

Spending 37 minutes listening to Kevin Keller’s Arcadia  is a great way to reset oneself – it is restorative and reminds us that true beauty still exists. I admire how Keller utilizes centuries-old forms of music to compose and perform new and refreshing music. He recognizes the precious worth of classic art, while building on it and adding his unique and immediately recognizable style. Here’s hoping Arcadia sparks a renaissance in contemporary classical music. Keller is planting a seed that promises to bear fruit to a world that is starved for music with lasting substance and beauty.

Arcadia is produced and performed by Kevin Keller. Sofia Campoamor sings lead vocals, while Katherine Wessinger, Danya Katok, and Wendy Baker form the choir. Sarah Zun plays violin, Angela Pickett viola, and Laura Metcalf cello.

You can purchase Arcadia at https://www.kevinkeller.com/arcadia.

LITERATURE

Cather’s Death Comes For The Archbishop: A Good and Faithful Servant

I enjoyed Willa Cather’s My Antonia so much, I immediately started reading her Death Comes For The Archbishop. They are completely unrelated to each other, except they are both concerned with how people lived on the frontier of nineteenth century America. Death Comes For The Archbishop is set in the mid-1800s in the new territory of New Mexico. A young Roman Catholic priest, Jean Marie Latour, has been named bishop to this enormous, wild, and mostly lawless area of the southwest. He sets up his base in the small settlement of Santa Fe. 

From the title, one might think this is a mystery novel, but it is not that at all! Rather, it is the story of how two Roman Catholic missionaries from France serve various peoples with grace, sensitivity, and love. Latour’s best friend, Father Joseph Vaillant, accompanies him in his new placement. They first met in seminary in Clermont, France, and became fast friends, even though they are almost polar opposites. Physically, Fr. Vaillant is short, unattractive, and full of restless energy. Fr. Latour is tall, handsome, graceful and intellectual. Where there is a spiritual need, Vaillant wants to rush in to address it, while Latour tends to observe, take stock of the situation, and consider the long game.

Cather makes the point that these two approaches complement each other, and both are necessary for effective ministry (I owe this insight to Joel Miller’s excellent review of Death Comes For The Archbishop on his Substack, Miller’s Book Reviews.) The ministry Latour and Vaillant are assigned is daunting to say the least: a huge territory that encompasses most of what is now Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. There are villages of Catholics that have not seen a priest in years. Men and women have paired up, without being married. Their children have not been baptized. 

Another pressing issue is Father Martinez of Taos, a very powerful and corrupt priest who refuses to recognize the authority of Bishop Latour. When Latour visits him, he flaunts his women and children and asserts that celibacy can no longer be enforced. He is also responsible for inciting a raid on the new American authorities where several men and women were brutally slaughtered by natives. As the famous Kit Carson relates to Latour, 

Our Padre Martinez at Taos is an old scapegrace, if ever there was one; he’s got children  and grandchildren in almost every settlement around here.
(Location 855, Standard ebooks edition)

Martinez tries to set up a schismatic church, but rather than force the issue, as Vaillant urges, Latour chooses to let Martinez slowly lose influence and followers as the true Church reasserts itself in the region.

While reading Death Comes For The Archbishop, I was impressed with the efforts these French Catholics take to serve their parishioners. They traveled literally thousands of miles on horseback through some of the most inhospitable land on earth. Often, there were no roads, let alone any maps, and every trip was life-threatening. And yet, Latour’s and Vaillant’s love for their flock enabled them to effectively administer to a diocese that was thousands of square miles in size.

One of Latour’s most impressive qualities is his ability to connect with wildly different groups of people. He relates to the lowliest Mexicans in his diocese, the wealthy landowners, and the various indigenous peoples like the Hopis and the Navajo. He forges deep friendships with members of all these constituencies. As far as the Native Americans go, he respects their traditions and doesn’t try to make them “European”. There is one fascinating chapter where he and his Indian guide, Jacinto, get caught in a deadly snowstorm. Jacinto manages to reach shelter in a cave. There is something about the cave that immediately causes Latour much discomfort. Jacinto tells Latour he must never reveal that he has been in this cave. He sees Jacinto carefully fill in a hole in the wall from which a stench is issuing. Latour is aware of tales that Jacinto’s tribe has offered human sacrifices to a “giant serpent” who lives in the mountain. However, once again, Latour doesn’t press the issue, and we never learn just what it is that causes Latour his distress.

Vaillant feels called to go to believers in Arizona, and there is constant tension between Latour’s desire to have his best friend nearby and allowing him to satisfy his calling. As the novel progresses, both men see the hand of God in the decisions they make. Early on, there’s an interesting conversation between them about the Virgin of Guadalupe:

“Where there is great love there are always miracles,” he [Latour] said at length. “One might almost say that an apparition is human vision corrected by divine love. I do not see you as you really are, Joseph, I see you through my affection for you. The Miracles of the Church seem to me to rest not so much upon faces or voices or healing power coming suddenly near to us from afar off, but upon our perceptions being made finer, so that for a moment our eyes can see and our ears can hear what is there about us always.”
(Location 572, Standard Ebooks edition)

Just like in My Antonia, Cather does a masterful job of describing the beauty of the southwest desert. She truly is a visual artist whose medium is words:

The sky was as full of motion and change as the desert beneath it was monotonous and still – and there was so much sky, more than at sea, more than anywhere else in the world. The plain was there, under one’s feet, but what one saw when one looked about was that brilliant blue world of stinging air and moving cloud. Even the mountains were mere anthills under it. Elsewhere the sky is the roof of the world; but here the earth was the floor of the sky. The landscape one longed for when one was far away, the thing all about one, the world one actually lived in, was the sky, the sky!
(Location 224, Standard Ebooks edition)

As the title says, death does eventually come for Archbishop Latour, but not before we have an opportunity to reflect on a life well-lived. He served God and the Church to the best of his ability, and he left an extraordinary legacy in the wild expanse of southwest America. I’m not a Roman Catholic, but this book made me profoundly grateful for the unsung heroes of that Church who risked everything to bring the Faith to the most inaccessible areas of the world. Cather’s novel is a beautiful tribute to them.

Music

A Debate On Depeche Mode

Greetings, Spirit of Cecilia readers! In this post, Brad Birzer and Tad Wert discuss a musical artist that may surprise you: Depeche Mode. These boys from Basildon, England burst on the scene in 1981 with the bouncy synthpop hit, “Just Can’t Get Enough”, and their first album, Speak and Spell, was a big hit. At the time, they seemed to be just one among many British synthpop groups that were popular due to MTV exposure in the US. Vince Clarke was their songwriter and synthplayer, while Martin Gore and Andrew Fletcher also handled synths and Dave Gahan provided vocals. They were famous for performing live without any guitars or drums. They also appeared to be doomed to “one-hit wonder” status when leader Vince Clarke left immediately following Speak and Spell. However, they had a secret weapon in Martin Gore, who stepped up and began writing songs. After the tentative album A Broken Frame was released, they added multitalented Alan Wilder to the lineup and released their first really great album, Construction Time Again, which contained the massive hit, “Everything Counts”. 

Depeche Mode has ended up outlasting all of their ‘80s synthpop peers, releasing music of surprising depth and beauty despite suffering trials that would end most artists’ careers: Alan Wilder left in frustration after Songs of Faith and Devotion, Dave Gahan survived a near-death experience from a heroin overdose, and Andrew Fletcher passed away in 2022. And yet, Gore and Gahan continue to release new music, and they remain an outstanding live act. 

Brad, I think you wanted to focus on later-era Depeche Mode, beginning with Black Celebration. Kick off the discussion!

Brad: Hello, Tad!  My friend, my colleague, my writing partner, my fellow progling.  Always great to dialogue with you.  

Ok, I admit, I’m pretty uninformed when it comes to Depeche Mode.  Of course, I’m familiar with them–as any child of the 1980s would be–but I don’t know them, really know them!  That is, whereas I knew everything there was to know about Rush or Talk Talk or, later, Big Big Train, I know next to nothing about the band.  I didn’t study their history or analyze their lyrics to any great degree. That is, I never obsessed over the band or considered them “my band.”  They evoked in me some fascination rather than loyalty.  And, when I did look them up prepping for this discussion, I find that they consider themselves Marxists.  Not a winning point for me, to be sure.

That said, in high school, I was rather taken with Black Celebration (the lyrics still resonate with me, and I very much like the production and the flow of the songs–all of which struck me, at the time, as rather proggy), though I’ve not listened to it in years–though I am now as I’m typing this.  I also bought Music for the Masses, which I appreciated but didn’t love.  And, like almost everyone our age, I had a copy of 101.  From my memory, everyone owned Black Celebration and, even more so, 101.  They were just a standard part of one’s music collection at the time.

Before I get to Songs of Faith and Devotion, let me just note that I’m very much enjoying my re-listen to Black Celebration as I type all of this.  It’s been years and years since I last heard it. I had forgotten that the songs really bleed one into another which is something I always appreciate.  And, even though this album dates back to 1986, the production and engineering is impeccable.  And, again, my memory did not deceive me–this is a very proggy album.  Even the second track, Fly on the Windscreen, seems to reference Peter-Gabriel Era Genesis.  Even the fourth track, the Gospel-tinged “Sometimes,” seems like a fragment, much like Yes’s “White Car” does on Drama.  A pop album would’ve never taken a risk like that.  Track number five, “It Doesn’t Matter Two,” sounds very much like Trevor Horn produced it.

Then, side two begins with the sixth track, “A Question of Time,” a brilliant track musically, but with very disturbing lyrics.  Track seven, “Stripped,” while again quite disturbing in its lyrics, is quite proggy in its dirge-like drive.  It merges quite nicely into a poppy eighth track, “Here is the House.”  The ninth track, “World Full of Nothing,” one against quite innovative musically, is deeply disturbing lyrically–a song about the loss of sexual innocence.  “Dressed in Black,” track 10, is about lust, and track 11, the final track, “New Dress,” is about social conformity and celebrity adoration and rather humorous in its scathing cultural critique.

Tad, what can I say?  I’m glad to have returned to Black Celebration, an album of fascinating music and deeply disturbing lyrics.  Because of the lyrics, I probably won’t return to this album again anytime soon.

Tad: Yes, Brad, I agree – there is always tension between the wonderful melodies Martin Gore conjures up and his very dark lyrics. I was not aware that they consider themselves Marxists – hopefully that was a youthful phase that they outgrew! 

As I’ve mentioned before, for me personally, lyrics take second place behind music. However, there are times when the darkness of Gore’s lyrics are unavoidable (“Blasphemous Rumours” being the most obvious example). I have all of Depeche Mode’s albums, and Black Celebration has never been high on my list. Your pointing out its proggy aspects has piqued my interest, however, and I am listening to it now as I write. 

“Stripped” has always been my favorite song from this album – the music itself is very stripped-down, and the tune is quite simple and arresting. I think Gahan’s and Gore’s vocals work together beautifully, and I love the way the production gradually adds layers of sound, while that clanking rhythm track never lets up. It also contains a great line that has turned out to be extremely prescient:

“Let me hear you make decisions without your television

Let me hear you speaking just for me”

Replace “television” with “social media” and you have our current culture nailed.

Black Celebration was followed by one of my favorite albums of theirs – Music For The Masses. The opening track, “Never Let Me Down” is probably my all-time favorite song. The opening hook is simply incredible, and I never tire of hearing it. Also, this is the album Martin decided to branch out and play some guitar! It’s interesting how incorporating that instrument immediately adds warmth to their music.

“Sacred” is a very nice song where Gore uses ecclesiastical images and metaphors to illustrate his love for someone. I think this is the album where Alan Wilder came into his own as far as contributing to the overall sound. Every song is chock-full of interesting samples (and sometimes perverse ones, like the wheezing accordion that opens “I Want You Now”!) and the array of synth sounds is employed in a more orchestral manner. “To Have and To Hold” is one of the most menacing and claustrophobic tracks they ever recorded, and it makes the more open and melodic “Nothing” a positive relief, despite the utter nihilism of the lyrics. And, again, there’s some really nice guitar work in “Nothing”. Overall, I think Music For The Masses is their strongest album to this point, even with the inclusion of the now-cringy “Little 15”.

Another reason I like MFTM is it was the album behind the tour documented in the 101 film. I love this movie! It captures mid-80s America very well. What I like most about it is that it doesn’t take itself seriously. There is a lot of humor throughout, and the footage from the final concert at the Rose Bowl is absolutely stunning. It makes it clear why Depeche Mode was such a popular band, even though they got relatively little airplay on the radio in the US. They put on an incredible show and earned their fans through touring.

On a side note, there is a scene in 101 where they go shopping on Lower Broad in my hometown of Nashville, and the sight of a leather-clad bleached-blonde Martin Gore buying country music cassettes in Ernest Tubb’s record store cracks me up every time! The sweet little lady cashier doesn’t bat an eye at him as she informs him that they can ship music all over the world.

Following Music For The Masses was the album that turned Depeche Mode into massively huge international stars – Violator. Do you have only thoughts on that one, my friend?

Brad: Tad, I’m so sorry, I really, really dislike Violator, so I’m probably not the one to review it.  I heard it when it first came out, and I thought it was ok.  Listening now, however, to it is, for me, painful.  I very much dislike “Personal Jesus,” “Enjoy the Silence,” and “Policy of Truth.”  I especially dislike the kind of spoken rather than sung lyrics, and I really dislike the lyrics, overall.  The only song I like–and I do like it quite a bit, musically–is “Waiting for the Night” though its lyrics seem creepily sexual.  I also somewhat like the final track, “Clean,” though I wish, lyrically, this song had come first and had erased the previous lyrics of the album.

Again, I apologize, Tad.  I’m not trying to be a spoilsport here.  But, the album just annoys me exceedingly.

On a more positive note, I need to listen to Music for the Masses.  I’m guessing–and it is a guess–that I’ve not heard it since 1987 or so?  I actually remember buying it at my local record store in Hutchinson, Kansas, and the record store owner actually gave me a hard time for it.  That cracked me up rather than bothered me, but I didn’t take to the album.  

Reading your review, though, makes me want to go back and listen to it.  I very much appreciate your enthusiasm.  I do remember liking “Never Let Me Down Again” and “Strangelove” and “Pimpf.”  I’m sure I misunderstood the album, though, as I thought–at least back in the late 1980s–that it was a Gay anthem, something like “We are the Champions” by Queen.

Regardless, I did really like Songs of Faith and Devotion, though I think the production is off a bit.  Whereas the production on Black Celebration is really crisp, Songs of Faith and Devotion sounds like the band was recording under heavy blankets.  It could definitely use a Steven Wilson remix!

That said, I like the album both lyrically and musically.  I actually really like the use of guitar on this one.  I especially like “Higher Love,” the final track.  A beautiful way to conclude the album.

Tad: Okay, Brad, tell us how you really feel about Violator 😄! I happen to enjoy it a lot. I agree with you about “Personal Jesus”; it was the album’s big hit, and I have never understood its popularity. It has always struck as being stupidly simplistic: twangy faux-country guitar with the shouted tagline, “Reach out and touch me!” Like you, I think “Waiting for the Night” is a good song. I imagine it as the theme song of a low budget vampire movie.

However, I have to disagree with you about “Enjoy the Silence”. I think this is a great song, with a fantastic guitar line. Instead of cheesy twang, it has just the right amount of reverb. The song’s hook is very good, but I’ll admit the lyrics are troubling: “Vows are spoken to be broken” sounds like a pathetic pickup line. I can overlook them, because the melody line is so strong. As the song progresses, it just takes off and soars. 

I also like “Policy of Truth” because of its slinky bassline and swooping synths. Once again, I ignore the lyrics and just appreciate the wicked groove of this track. I cannot listen to it and sit still! 

Okay, with Songs of Faith and Devotion, three years had elapsed since Violator. Dave Gahan had moved to Los Angeles and got caught up in the rock scene there. When they reconvened to record Songs, he was lobbying for a rawk and roll record. They decided to rent a villa in Spain and live and record there together. Hot young producer Flood was hired to oversee things. It was a disaster. Gahan was using heroin, Gore was barely speaking with Alan Wilder, who was doing yeoman’s work with Flood trying to pull things together. Fletcher was caught in the middle. All things considered, it’s amazing they got enough good music to release an album.

When I first heard Songs, I didn’t like it at all. Over the years, though, I’ve grown to appreciate it for what it is: an attempt to inject some raw emotion and energy into their music. I think Gahan’s vocals on “Condemnation” are some of the finest of his career. And I believe “Higher Love” is one of their all-time greatest songs. It is just so beautiful how it begins barely audible and inexorably builds to an amazing climax. It truly is a song of faith and devotion. 

The SOFAD tour is legendary for the excessive indulgences Depeche Mode engaged in. After it concluded, Alan Wilder announced he was leaving the group. Dave Gahan overdosed in America, and he went into rehab. It was three years before they began work on what is another all-time favorite album of mine: Ultra. Once again, it’s a miracle they were able to cobble an album together. With Wilder gone, they were once again a trio, and the onus was on Martin Gore to come up with some decent songs. I think he delivered, but apparently Dave was barely able to sing anything. According to Tim Simenon, the producer, they had to cut and paste some of his vocals into the digital tracks line by line. That said, there are some fantastic songs here: “The Love Thieves”, “It’s No Good”, “Useless”, “Sister of Night”, and another all-time favorite, “Home”, which is sung by Martin. When I hear it in the context of the album’s genesis, I have to believe “Home” is Martin’s song of concern and caring for his friend Dave, who was struggling to overcome his drug addiction.

I love the way Ultra flows – there are a couple of short instrumental tracks that link and set up larger ones, and they help create a unified work. Ultra was a transitional album that proved Martin, Dave, and Andrew could still make great music as a trio, and it allowed them to regain their balance. 

Brad: Wow, Tad, I had no idea about any of this regarding the band.  I had no idea about the drugs, the fights, etc.  All totally new to me.  And, admittedly, it doesn’t make me like the band any more than I already didn’t.  

As to Ultra, though, I think this is by far the best thing I’ve heard from the band, and I’d go even beyond this–it’s a truly great album.  From its opening moments to its conclusion, this album really grips me.  I had no idea that Gahan was so out of it–for the vocals perfectly match the production and flow of the album, though I like the instrumental tracks the best.  I especially like “Home” with its orchestration and aching vocals, the quirky but proggy “Uselink” and “Jazz Thieves” and “Jr. Painkiller,” and the triumphant “Freestate.”

Again, though, Tad, I apologize.  I generally don’t like reviewing music I don’t like, and I just find myself in very little sympathy with this band.  C.S Lewis once said that no one unsympathetic to a genre should review within that genre.  He was talking about literature, but I think it applies to music as well.  

For what it’s worth, though, I very much appreciate your enthusiasm, and I very much appreciate that I had a chance to revisit the band, despite my own negativity.

Tad: And I appreciate your candor, Brad. It’s funny how you and I are completely in sync with so much music and so many artists, but we have wildly divergent takes on this one group. Thank you for taking the time to listen and give them a chance. 

After Ultra, they took an extended hiatus, and finally released Exciter in 2001. It’s not bad, but with the exception of “Dream On”, nothing really grabs me. There is a new maturity and confidence in their music, I think. They are all healthy and seem to be comfortable making an album on their own schedule. 

I will close with a brief word of praise for Exciter’s followup, Playing the Angel. This is the last “great” Depeche Mode album in my opinion (at least up to this point – they’re still releasing music!). From the opening screech of “A Pain That I’m Used To” through the bluesy “John The Revelator” and moody “Nothing’s Impossible”, this is a very good album with no filler. The best track is the single, “Precious”, which seems to be a father’s lament for an ailing child. It has a beautiful melody, and the lyrics are quite tender.

I saw Depeche Mode live on their Spirit tour, and they were full of energy as they connected with the audience. Now that Andrew has passed away, it’s just Martin and Dave carrying the torch. Dave has contributed several nice songs to the last few albums, which has relieved Martin, I imagine. 

So there you have it, SoC followers – two very different perspectives on one of the longest-lived and popular groups from the ‘80s. Next, Brad and Tad will discuss another big ‘80s act, Boy George and Culture Club! Okay, I’m kidding – we will NOT be covering that one; there are some limits to even Tad’s tolerance for ‘80s pop music.

Music, Books, Poetry, Film