Brainchild of Dan Berridge, Broadway Project first appeared
with a series of ambitious 12” published on then
newly-formed Memphis Industry in 1999 and 2000, instantly
gaining interest with the likes of John Peel and Gilles
Peterson. The dark and sumptuous ambiences of the album
that followed, Compassion,
released in early 2001, saw Broadway Project compared
to Tom Waits, Boards Of Canada,
Pink Floyd and Portishead. Two years on, Berridge comes
back, this time accompanied by vocalist Richard Palmer,
with the follow up to this impressive debut.
Dan Berridge started working on Broadway Project after
contracting myalgic encephalomyelitis, also called chronic
fatigue syndrome, an incurable condition causing those
who suffer from it to get extremely tired very quickly,
not allowing in the most serious cases more than a couple
of hours of activity at a time. Confined to his studio,
Berridge patiently developed an incredibly dense sound,
combining influences ranging from jazz to classical
and rock. The Vessel, second Broadway Project
album, sees Berridge and vocalist Richard Palmer exploring
further the bleak atmospheres of Compassion.
While the first album was mostly instrumental, with
occasional vocal contributions, The Vessel
expands on Berridge’s original cinematic soundscapes,
and Palmer’s contribution is nothing short of
impressive. The disturbingly blurred sexuality of his
voice adds to the mystery of Berridge’s increasingly
complex sonic constructions. The album opens with the
stunning Beauty, an instrumental track, except
for a discreet vocal contribution from Mimmi Jenkins’s,
which evokes the darkest hour of a wretched Burt Bacharach,
before giving Palmer his first moment of glory on the
recent single I Believe In Superman, while
Berridge, drawing Asian references into his rich soundscape,
builds one of his most convincing moments since No Pain.
If Palmer’s performance doesn’t here reach
the intensity witnessed later, it however provides a
perfect introduction to his contribution. More on The
Vessel than on its predecessor, melodies appear
incredibly dense, supported by Berridge’s complex
network of orchestrations. From the inspired melodies
on Coming Back, Beaten Dog and Angel
Heart to the more introvert shades of Unborn,
by far one of the most straightforward heart-felt moments
here, the pair unleashes a series of magnificent atmospheric
moments.
The Vessel is not however as murky and dark
as it could seem. Quite the opposite in fact as this
album actually leaves the listener with a feeling of
intense joy. The pair’s collaborative work proves
here to be extremely cohesive, with Dan Berridge’s
stunning arrangements and melodies and Richard Palmer’s
intense vocal performances providing some extremely
satisfying moments.
4.3/5 |
