MACIE STEWART & LIA KOHL “Recipe for a Boiled Egg” (Astral Spirits)
One glance at this thing before I pop it in reveals Lisa Kohl on “cello
and voice” and Macie Stewart on “violin and voice,” and I’m like, “Right! Got
it.” I know exactly how this is going to go – some kind of chamber orchestra
thingee. Crack knuckles, lean back, let this review write itself.
Wrong.
As my desk chair slips out from underneath me and I crack my head on
the floor (do NOT lean too far back in triumph in wheeled desk chairs), I’m met
with Recipe for a Boiled Egg in all
its glory, and despite all the promises to the contrary, I’m not finding any
actual boiled egg recipes on this tape. (I guess just boil water, drop in egg,
repeat? I’m not much of a cook.) Plucks and plunks punctuate “PERFECT (EVERY
TIME),” accompanied by vocal arpeggios and righteous cello sawing. But that’s
not the lane Stewart and Kohl stay in, and that’s what makes Recipe such an engaging listen. Even by
the next track, “Open Winded,” the duo is stretching out harmonic notes as
languid as the surface of a lake, resolving in delicate chord changes.
But that’s not all! They also play their stringed instruments as if
they were percussive ones, all while allowing their voices and bows equal
playing time. The playing is often electric, especially on the tempestuous “Screaming
Tea” and madcap “The ‘Electric’ Slide,” while such flights are set against
moments of relative calm and beauty, such as on tape closer “Song for
Soft-Serve.” And food is a delightful theme throughout, as many titles refer
back to eggs or other adjacent subjects (“Right Before Dinner,” “Rich, Sticky,
Sweet,” etc.). So, basically, Recipe
is the exact opposite of the classical tropes I’d imagined before hitting play,
which made for a much more exciting listen. Drop your expectations, people!
Also, don’t worry – my head’s OK.
https://maciestewart.bandcamp.com/
http://liairenekohl.com/
https://astralspirits.bandcamp.com/
--Ryan
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