Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Theo Bleckmann: Hello Earth! - The Music of Kate Bush

110

Theo Bleckmann: Hello Earth! - The Music of Kate Bush

By

View read count
Track review of "The Man with the Child in His Eyes"

Theo Bleckmann: Hello Earth! - The Music of Kate Bush
Vocalist Theo Bleckmann is a man of numerous modalities and ambitions. He's covered classical composer Charles Ives, teamed with heavyweight guitarist Ben Monder for experimental and improvised sojourns and, more recently, has performed and recorded with the always hip jazz unit, The Claudia Quintet. Here, Bleckmann treks into the pop-rock realm as he imparts a personalized touch to the music of iconic British singer/songwriter, Kate Bush. Bush's use of electronics, layered vocal parts, and futuristic production processes are also noted by Bleckmann as influences, as he alludes to a holistic perspective of her artistry.

Among these fourteen pieces is Bleckmann's succinctly endearing cover of Bush's "The Man with the Child in His Eyes, which was released as a single on her debut, The Kick (EMI, 1978). With sublime beauty and a calming rock pulse, Bleckmann adds dreamy and reflective qualities to Bush's ballad and lives the song, as the old adage goes.

Henry Hey's quaint piano intro launches the storyline, laying the groundwork for Bleckmann's intimation of beauty and wonderment, shaped with understated lyricism and utmost conviction. Tempered by a calmly drifting theme and the memorably melodic hook, the band projects an air of innocence amid a modern twist on an old classic. Hello Earth! parlays a source of wonderment as each piece radiates an impressionistic take on Bush's musicality, incited by the band's mutable arrangements and divergent instrumentation.

Personnel

Theo Bleckmann: vocals, electronics, toys; Henry Hey: piano, harpsichord, Fender Rhodes; Caleb Burhans: electric five-string violin, electric guitar; Skuli Sverrisson: electric bass; John Hollenbeck: drums, percussion, crotales.

Album information

Title: Hello Earth! - The Music of Kate Bush | Year Released: 2012 | Record Label: Winter & Winter

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.