by Catherine L. Tully

Artist: Mary Knickle
Album: "Weave"
Year produced: 2006

"Weave" starts out with a powerful jolt--and jumps right into the mix of things. Track 1, "Weave" introduces Knickle's voice, which is commanding, skilled and powerful. Her vocal range pulls and pushes you through the song with excitement and sets the bar high for the rest of this CD. The interesting thing about this album however, is that the music is incredibly strong as well, making for a very intense combination of talents.

Passionate is a good way to describe these songs, and her voice, for that current runs throughout.While the slower tunes are enjoyable, Knickle also has a talent is for bringing out the energy of the music in a way that is uncommon and palpable. The slower music hints sometimes at a Kate Bush-like sound, but Knickle's voice is much more direct. Harmony, such as in track 6, "Tarry," soften it nicely, adding another dimension to the sound quality. When her voice is by itself, as in "Like The Heather," it can have an almost birdlike quality to it--very different.

Knickle reveals her love of story throughout this effort, as she loops and threads you through each track. Starting with "Weave" makes one hopeful for another high-energy song on the CD like it. In order to get that, however, you must wait until the end, where "Wild Irish Man" does so with a combination of vocals and racing music, capping off the album in an ultimately satisfying manner.

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Catherine L. Tully is a freelance writer and photographer who specializes in the arts. She has written for American Style and Classical Singer, among others and reviews music for Marc Gunn's Celtic MP3s Music Magazine. You can reach her through her photography website at www.moonbeamdigital.com.

Labels: cd_review_2007

Posted by Marc Gunn, Saturday, January 27, 2007.
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