Published on Jul 7, 2003
Reminiscent of the work of Loreena McKennitt, Ontario-born
Kristin Sweetland provides extensive liner notes on her debut,
Root, Heart, and Crown, explaining the though process behind
each song. That, however, is where the similarity ends; while
McKennitt is shadow and mist and ephemera, Sweetland’s work is more
reminiscent of sunlight, open grassland, and substance. She is
astonishingly talented; her guitar playing is crystalline and
crisp, her songwriting complex and textured, and her voice
expressive, alternately wry and poignant.
Root, Heart, and Crown is a truly impressive debut.
(Hey, O Ye DV Faithful, don’t you love it when you get my
opinion out of the way in the first paragraph?)
The inspiration for Sweetland’s songs are legion and wildly
varied. The opening track, “O Quanta Qualia”, is a reworking of a
hymn of 15th century French scholar Peter Abelard, and the
following song, “The Abbess”, is inspired by the love songs shared
between Abelard and his long-time love, Heloise. “Battle Hymn” is
her tribute inspired by a visit to the American Civil War
battlefield at Manassas, Virginia. “Hermetica” is an instrumental
whose spark was, of all things, alchemy and the works attributed to
the Greek god Hermes. In short, this is lightyears beyond most pop
music in terms of its subject matter;
Root, Heart, and Crown makes you think, putting you through
a mental workout while simultaneously charming you with brilliant
guitar work and stellar performances.
For a small-label CD, the production and engineering are
excellent. The mix is perfect, focusing primarily on the chime and
steel of Sweetland’s guitar and the crisp, light percussion. This
plays to Sweetland’s strengths, especially on instrumentals like
“Above Hotevilla”, where there is nothing but the perfection of the
guitar.
Other tracks worthy of note: “Fall Down The Ground,” Sweetland’s
wrenching love song to Vancouver Island, with the wistful and
heartbreaking fiddle work of Anne Lindsay; “O Leander,” a clever
turn on the stereotypical ‘road song’ where touring and Greek myth
become intertwined; and the driving, chilling “Creeping Jenny,”
where a traditional ghost story is held up as a mirror in which we
see our own desires and hearts reflected.
Kristin Sweetland is, simply put, astonishing. Mature,
intelligent, clever, she has the poise of artists with fifteen and
twenty CDs under their belt on
Root, Heart, and Crown. If this is the root, I look forward
to seeing the flower; I suspect it’ll be something special.