Christina Carter & Loren Mazzacane Connors - Meditations On The Ascension Of Blind Joe Death Vol 1. (2005)

Loren MazzaCane Connors - electric guitar
Christina Carter - piano

Even though I stopped following Loren Mazzacane Connors's every heartbreaking guitar move a few years back (I had 6 or 7 of his albums and they seemed to contain enough angelic genius to last a lifetime), I immediately picked up his newly released duet record with Christina Carter of the Charalambides. It seemed like it would be such a perfect match of exquisite high-lonesome tone, and not only is that true, there's a whole lot more to it as well. For one, Ms. Carter made the choice to completely forgo her more common guitar and vocal route, and instead play perfect soft lost acoustic piano. This was a sweet move; there are so many moments throughout both sides where a cluster of warm piano notes seems to bloom out of a cold and lonely guitar tone that shines like a sheet of ice . . . and vice versa! There is also the awesome cover art by Conrad Capistran, which refers to early John Fahey cover art in order to illustrate the album's heavy concept, a deep heart-and-gut-felt musical tribute to the life and ascension of ole Blind Joe Death Fahey himself, crystallized by a tough elegy and mission statement, written by Byron Coley and printed on the back cover. "Death is dead. Long live Death." (Blastitude Magazine)

The first in a proposed series of collaborations in memory of John Fahey, this was a joint effort 'by mail' between the great Loren Mazzacane Connors and Christina Carter of Charalambides. The two apparently sent 4-track cassettes back and forth building tracks organically by layering their ideas, and the results are deeply moving and utterly entrancing. We're all paid up members of the Loren Connors fan club here, and his 'Sails' album from earlier this year totally destroyed us, so I'm hardly the hardest of reviewers when it comes to his material, but this LP is a devastating work. Comprised of Connors' deep and detailed guitar playing and piano parts from Carter it ends up sounding as meditative and involving as William Basinski's 'Melancholia' or 'Movements in Chrome Primative' and there is something similarly spiritual and moving about the arrangements. The tracks are a perfect testament to the memory of John Fahey, without ever seeming like the musicians are trying to simulate the great man's style. Loren Connors has proved to be one of the most consistently interesting guitarists of our generation, and while he might not attract the accolades of so many others, he is for our money an essential part of avant garde music history. So totally beautiful - buy!

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