Tuesday, July 2, 2013

I'd Love to Turn You On #84 - Lilium – Short Stories


The first time I heard 16 Horsepower I was on my way to India, it was my first time out of the country and truly life-changing journey.  I met someone from Denver on the start of my travels, and he insisted I borrow his cassette player and listen to the entire album Sackcloth & Ashes. Ever since that first listening experience I have had a place in my heart for the beautiful voice of David Eugene Edwards.  Many years later I would move to Denver and discover Edwards’s current band Wovenhand.  They quickly became one of my all time favorite Denver bands.  In the racks of Twist and Shout I stumbled across Lilium, a side project of members of 16HP and Wovenhand, so naturally I picked up a copy for myself.  It turned out that Twist and Shout had helped press some of these CDs, and I was even more intrigued by this little gem.  Over the years I have bought at least six copies of Lilium Short Stories for close friends or people I knew were 16HP fans. 

This second album by Lilium captures that same dark Americana sound that makes the “Denver sound” synonymous with some of the artists featured on Short Stories.  Ex-16 HP members Pascal Humbert and Jean-Yves Tola created Lilium as a side-project and featured some amazing guest musicians like David Eugene Edwards, Kal Cahoone, John Grant, Billy Conway of Morphine, Jim Kalin and Daniel McMahon. Together these artists capture American folk music at its best while still giving listeners a glimpse into alternative European music. Bob Ferbrache, producer, engineer and owner of Absinthe Studios, mixed and mastered this album. Ferbrache is also known for putting his mark on the Denver sound with bands like Slim Cessna’s Auto Club, The Czars, and the Soul Merchants.  This album is a true Denver all-star collection is a must for anyone that is a fan of 16 Horsepower or Wovenhand.  Give it a listen, we only have a few left!

- Natasha

1 comment:

MIke Brandon said...

Amazing album. agreed.

Cheers from Brooklyn.10