Artist: Tennant / Lowe
Label: Parlophone Records
Release: 2011
Rating: 4.5/5
Andersen’s fairy tale, reworked into ballet music by Pet shop Boys duo Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, marks a new step forward and a leap into fresh musical territory for both of them.
Until now we were used to hearing them as the creators of electronic dance music, churning out one hit after another, especially in the second half of the eighties and the early nineties. Today their body of work is a highly regarded musical one-off. But the whole point of creating is constant movement. Standing still is a foreign concept. So the two artists are tackling new challenges in this way, in their never-ending musical creativity.
The music they wrote was performed with the Wroclaw “Score” Orchestra right on stage! That happened a week after the album’s official release, at London’s leading dance theatre, Sadler’s Wells! The performances ran from 17.03.2011 to 26.03.2011!! So that’s the two musicians teaming up with the Sadler’s Wells dance theatre and choreographer Javier De Frutos. The idea was born in 2007, when Tennant and Lowe were asked by Ivan Putrov, then head of the royal ballet, whether they’d be up for the challenge of scoring a ballet.
Andersen’s story goes roughly like this. In a mystical kingdom, despite all the comforts, there’s nothing but boredom. The utterly bored king dreams up a competition in which the winner gets his daughter’s hand and can take her as his bride. The winner will be whoever invents the most miraculous thing and presents it to the king at court. The ending is, of course, a happy one. The scenes in between, with all the uncertainty of how events unfold and the tension that follows, keep the listener alert and wide awake the whole way through.
Judging by the Pet Shop Boys catalog, Tennant and Lowe are considered refined musicians. Even though the band’s style is staked out, strictly defined, and rooted in electronics, the group’s sound is completely unique and instantly recognizable from a mile away. Take away the vocals and pair that kind of music with orchestral arrangements, and you’re taking a creative risk that can either pull the combination off successfully, or the bold bake can go completely up in smoke.
Of course, in our case the first option won out. The final product is an excellent blend of both approaches, where the two found a superb middle line and set all the building blocks in perfect balance, in an outstanding musical symbiosis. With generous help from German musician Sven Helbig, who polished most of the orchestral arrangements, Tennant and Lowe managed to capture the individual acts of the story in an extremely sophisticated way and bring them effectively to life through a very special musical mix. The swings in the highly vibrant atmosphere can be jolting over the course of the running time, or they can slip into one another so delicately and gently that you barely notice. Then there’s, of course, the undeniable addition of the typical trademark touches of the two Pet Shop Boys veterans, stunning string moments that deepen the mood, and entirely organic, subtly sensual touches of classical piano. A layered mix of many building blocks which, in a string of strikingly contrasting feelings, coexist harmoniously the whole time in a captured moment of musical climax. Some parts are fully orchestral. These are followed by a sudden switch to a solid rhythmic pattern and synthesizing, and the most fascinating moments are when both approaches come alive together in symbiosis.
Modern! Contemporary, that is! And all the more appealing for it, because it sounds fresh, out of the ordinary, and above all unique. The whole thing does take several listens to settle in your ear. But it’s not hard going or puzzling in the slightest, so even those of you who normally find “overcomplicating things” alien and steer clear of it will be receptive to it. It’s relaxing and soothing. So you can listen to “The Most Incredible Thing” in all the different mental states you go through in everyday life.
“Det Utroligste”, as the fairy tale is titled in the original Danish, is a new creative throw of the dice from Tennant and Lowe, and it’ll be interesting to see how it affects Pet Shop Boys’ music-making going forward. Meanwhile, the two musicians are preparing to stage the music with the ballet in the old continent of Europe too. This probably isn’t the last project Tennant and Lowe will take on. Given its remarkable, unmistakable charisma and distinctiveness, we can wait with great excitement to see what their artistic feats bring in the future.
Line-up
Neil Tennant – musical arrangements
Chris Lowe – musical arrangements
Wroclaw Score Orchestra
Production
Pet Shop Boys & Sven Helbig
Tracklist
CD1:
ACT ONE
1. Prologue
2. The grind
3. The challenge
4. Help me
5. Risk
6. Physical jerks
7. The competition
8. The meeting
ACT TWO
9. The clock 1/2/3
10. The clock 4/5/6
11. The clock 7/8/9
12. The clock 10/11/12
13. The winner
14. Destruction
CD2:
ACT THREE
1. Back to the grind
2. The miracle – Ceremony
3. The miracle – Revolution
4. The miracle – Resurrection
5. The miracle – Colour and light
6. The miracle – The meeting (reprise)
7. The wedding
8. The clock 10/11/12
