Artist: Nick Cave & Warren Ellis
Label: Mute Records
Released: 2009
Running time: 122: 27
Rating: 5/5
Warren Ellis and Nick Cave are inseparable buddies. Not only are they both Australians, their musical careers are also tangled up together through The Dirty Three and Grinderman, and Ellis was, and still is, part of Cave’s Bad Seeds lineup too.
Mute Records decided to squeeze a little extra pocket change out of music lovers, something that might drift into the label’s greedy (bottomless) bank account. Usually these “forced” and not exactly necessary moves from labels are pretty “shallow” and easy to overlook. So where are the arguments that convince a buyer “White Lunar” is worth the investment? After all, the music Mute Records is offering is already out there in the films The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Proposition, The English Surgeon, The Girls Of Phnom Penh, and will soon be available in the upcoming film The Road too. What “White Lunar” delivers is a compilation, a selection of the brightest musical moments from the soundtracks of those films, which the two musicians contributed between 2005 and 2009.
The two-CD compilation is, first and foremost, two discs that are separated from each other, mood-wise, like two halves of a folded sleeve. On the first disc we get to enjoy tracks that come, among other things, with orchestral arrangements. The first CD is easier on the ears, in other words less demanding, while the second CD is marked by far more melancholy, darkness, pain… though throughout, the thread of the musical expression stays clear and typical. Typical only of what happens when Ellis and Cave join forces. The inclusion of some “lost” pieces (The Vaults), which never made it into any of the films, is welcome. It gives this compilation an extra something special. The arrangements of these “lost” tracks (Halo, Zanstra, Daedalus, Magma), which are slotted onto the second disc, complement each other beautifully too. Mute Records were careful and put together on each disc the stuff that fits together better. So the first disc is made up of tracks taken from the films The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Proposition and the upcoming The Road.
Anyone who knows the two musicians’ wider body of work will see right away that they were picked as if made to provide music for films whose themes and scenes revolve around violence (murders, rapes, human trafficking, the chaos of a post-apocalyptic world…). In other words, to score stories that mostly end tragically. Of course, Ellis and Cave approach this in a thoroughly unconventional, unique way and, most importantly, completely unburdened and independent. What shines through in them above all is sensitivity, that subtle side that can be so convincing and real.
The first CD will gently rock you through washes of piano and string arrangements covering the first four tracks, taken from the soundtrack to The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. That pleasant overture gives way to more depressing and bitter moments, which goes hand in hand with the extra violence in the story of The Proposition. Here the two musicians don’t forget to put emphasis on musical elements coming from the Australian continent either. That’s a whole bundle of motifs that English and Irish settlers brought to Australia (violin, acoustic guitar), while the track The Rider no 2. has a motif foundation that uses a sound similar to a traditional instrument typical of the music of Australia’s original inhabitants, the Aboriginal people, called the didjeridoo. This sterner, more serious part of the first disc is cut through by a ray of sunshine in track no. 11, The Rider Song, where fans of The Dirty Three will get their fix too, since Nick Cave contributes his vocals to it. For the rest of the first disc we can keep enjoying choice moments from the soundtrack to The Road. Once again the fragile interplay of violin and piano takes center stage, with additional string arrangements filling in the background. Strong motif structures can feel hypnotic through repetition, so it’s worth surrendering to them completely, because their atmosphere is truly special.
The Road is a film that should have come out a year ago, but is finally supposed to be released this November. Its director is once again John Hillcoat, as with The Proposition. The fight for survival, which is the core theme of The Road, led the two musicians to bring the music very close to that of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. It won’t make you laugh, but the tasteful color palette of interwoven textures in the arrangements will keep you alert the whole way through.
The second disc offers a bit more psychedelic chaos, and its motifs can tease and repel more sensitive ears, so you need a bit more resolute toughness and perseverance to fight your way through it. The trafficking of girls in Phnom Penh is certainly no rosy reality, and Ellis and Cave exploit that fact here, underlining it masterfully with their huge talents. Although the second disc has 7 tracks, behind the closing Sorya Market lurks one more hidden track, which in all its chilling atmosphere will surely make every hair on your body stand straight up!
So “White Lunar” justifies its existence completely, because the music on it outweighs every demand of even the most spoiled ears. All devoted followers of Nick Cave will surely grab it, and especially his work together with Warren Ellis. Even though the music on “White Lunar” has no genre ties at all to Grinderman, The Dirty Three or Bad Seeds, the energy radiating from the very approach to composing is something that will subconsciously remind you that “White Lunar” is very close to you too, and that, despite its musical peculiarities, it sounds very familiar. As said: Cave and Ellis are immensely powerful artists in their expression, offering an absolute musical one-of-a-kind in their approach, and with this compilation Mute Records easily gets past the danger of the release being labeled “forced,” “unfelt” and a strict need for an extra source of income. The music on both discs has a veil that is unique and recognizable only when Warren Ellis and Nick Cave join forces. Because many of the motifs are simple, minimalist, short and repetitive, the feelings the two artists want to bring out are that much stronger. And that was their core idea all along. Repetition here is by no means distracting, if anything it’s welcome, since its basic function is to underline a particular scene unfolding in the film. Thanks to these polished and well-thought-out minimalist tricks, “White Lunar” will easily win over the hearts of many post rock fans too!
Lineup
Nick Cave – guitar, piano, arrangements, vocals
Warren Ellis – piano, guitar, violin, arrangements
Track list
CD1.:
1. Song For Jesse
2. Moving On
3. What Must Be Done
4. Song For Bob
5. Happy Land
6. The Proposition #1
7. Road To Banyon
8. The Rider #2
9. Martha’s Dream
10. Gun Thing
11. The Rider Song
12. The Road
13. The Mother
14. the Father
15. The Beach
16. The Journey
17. The Boy
CD2.:
1. Srey Leak
2. Me Nea
3. Rom
4. Halo
5. Zanstra
6. Black Silk (Suture)
7. Brain Retractor
8. Dandy Brain Cannula
9. Rat s Tooth Forceps
10. Kerrison s Punch
11. Micro Sucker
12. Window
13. Daedalus
14. Magma
15. Cheata
16. Sorya Market
