Emergency Songs Reviews
April 10, 2011 2 Comments
Photo by Brant Brogan (www.broganphoto.com)
“EMERGENCY SONGS is a beautifully arranged, new concept album from Monk Turner and singer/songwriter Fascinoma(Alanna Lin) from Los Angeles, California. Together they bring us 12 wonderful songs filled with a variety of musical flavors and lovely vocals that, even if the music itself gets a little rough, maintains its composure; a very character attribute that could turn to be a critical factor in surviving a major disaster(the theme of the album). The album itself is conceived to awake the imagination of its listeners through both song and story as a massive earthquake is heading straight for LA! And so the lyrics take us on a 35 minute journey through all the phases of the crisis, “from pre-quake boredom, to post-quake freeway BBQ.”
“I am greatly impressed with Emergency Songs—and I am even more impressed that Monk Turner is providing it as a free download on his website. It is one thing to provide one’s music for free when no one would pay for it—it is quite another when an album is of a musical and thematic caliber to be worth paying for. Emergency Songs is now a permanent part of my musical collection, and I will be following Turner and Fascinoma’s future releases very closely. I will also be downloading and listening to Monk Turner’s other albums, which he has also provided for free. I cannot recommend this album highly enough for fans of jazz, folk, and just a touch of rock-and-roll.”
“Despite the dark and depressing subject matter, it’s a beautiful, optimistic, vibrant record. And quite eclectic too, from the gallopping country-tinged “Where’s My Horse” to ”Whatcha Doin”‘s acapella gospel, most of the production is sparse with a spotlight on the haunting vocals of Fascinoma (aka Alanna Lin). But amidst the post-disaster airiness, there are some really refined arrangements on Emergency Songs courtesy of The Emergency Choir and a whole slew of guests on guitar, piano, violin, sax, and trombone. The whole communal recording process is documented on Monk Turner’s wordpress.
The album is such a pleasant listen that it weren’t for lyrics about disaster and “blood on the freeway,” it might not seem so apocalyptic at all. In fact, the theme seems to be more about transcendence than doom; about appreciating life because it won’t last forever.”
“Monk Turner is an expert at concept albums and this is no exception. The album is divided into “before”, “during”, and “after”, depicting emotions attached to each experience. There is a hip jazz feel throughout tempered by Fascinoma’s sweet down-tempo voice. The songs are almost a little too pretty for the topic but it is hard not to like tracks like “Everything Already” and “After Disaster”. This is a well paced effort with good songs and better execution.”
“Listen to the new album by Monk Turner. Isn’t it that the good music you like to listen to your adult-orientated radio? Isn’t that the kind of music you can play to your friends, who only listen to the same old dozen of CDs they bought 15 years ago? Isn’t that the kind of music many major artists would love to make (and sell!) if they only had Turner’s talent to write charming pop-songs? Isn’t that the kind of music you like to sing along (and not being ashamed because it’s really cool stuff) and tap your feet?”
“Emergency Songs is a lovely record. If you want to convince someone how good a CC album can be, this is it. If you were looking for an album to carry around with you on your iPod for the rest of this year, Emergency Songs would be it.”
“…a new concept album by Monk Turner with singer/lyricist Fascinoma that’s got a variety of flavors. Even when the music gets “rough,” her voice remains rather soothing.”
“Singer-songwriter Alanna Lin, aka Fascinoma, recently finished a new album with her friend, Monk Turner. It’s actually a really cool concept album covering the theme of “The Big One” and the songs address normal life, disaster, and onward to new beginnings.”
“Unha semana antes do terremoto de Xapón, Monk Turner (preservamos o segredo do seu nome real) lanzaba xunto coa espectacular cantante Alanna Lin o seu disco “Emergency Songs”, un feixe de cancións para o antes (before), durante (during) e after (despois) do Big One, o terremoto que algún día vai facer escachar California.”
“Monk Turner és Fascinoma egy Los Angelest megrázó földrengésről készített egy jó kis konceptalbumot Emergency Songs címmel, letölthető innen vagy innen. A zene egyáltalán nem olyan, mint amire számítanánk: folkos, country-s, énekes-dalszerzős, jazzes vagy éppenséggel gospeles dalok hallhatók itt három részre osztva (előtte, közben, utána), visszafogottak és szépek, ráadásul Alanna Lin (vagyis Fascinoma) énekesnő hangja különösen kedves. Az általános visszafogottság csak annál hatásosabbá teszi azokat a ritka pillanatokat, amikor egy kicsit rockolnak a gitárok vagy felbugyog az elektronika. A Los Angelest sújtó földrengés állítólag a geológusok szerint biztosan bekövetkezik valamikor a következő 30 évben – arra viszont nem számítottak az alkotók, hogy nem sokkal azután, hogy felteszik az albumot a netre, valódi természeti katasztrófa rázza meg Japánt.”
“Tehát itt ez a szabad zenész, Monk Turner és alkotótársa, a Fascinoma művésznéven szereplő Alanna Lin énekesnő, akik Emergency Songs címmel felpakoltak a netre egy lemezt, méghozzá március legelején, alig pár nappal a Japánt sújtó természeti katasztrófa előtt. A márciust és az áprilist az ingyenes lemez promotálására szánták volna, ám az élet keményen beleszólt az alkotók terveibe, akik mostanában nem győzik magyarázni különböző internetes fórumokon, hogy nem érzéketlen opportunisták ők, csak egyszerűen rosszul időzítették a megjelenést.”
“先日、東北地方をとてつもなく大きな悲劇が襲った。そのニュースは海外にもすでに伝わっていて、今日「we love japan」というビデオが韓国の大学から届きました。本日はこのビデオ「we love japan」をごらんください。ビデオに使われている曲はロサンジェルスのフォーク系ミュージシャン、Monk TurnerのStart Again。歌はFascinomaという名義で活動している、Alanna Linさん。昨年、地震が起こったときのことを考えよう！という啓発を目的に発表したアルバム「Emergency Songs」の最後に入ってる曲。下のページから無料放出中。「Monk Turner – Emergency Songs」フリーダウンロードのページ”
If you haven’t downloaded Emergency Songs yet, what are you waiting for?
About Monk Turner
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