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In the last twelve years, nobody has cared for traditional folk songs as diligently as Sam Lee from London. He is a singer, organizer, and outdoors expert (he trained under Ray Mears). Lee’s main goal is to find new ways to present old songs, many of which he learned from the nomadic community. For his third album, Old Wow released in 2020, he broadened his musical style by collaborating with Bernard Butler, the previous guitarist for Suede who has now become a diverse scholar, to create unique arrangements for Lee’s beautiful singing.
Songdreaming is even more ambitious. The artist, Lee, creates their own songs, with the vocalist taking on the role of a shamanic figure who roams through landscapes that are praised in folk songs and poems, but are now facing the threat of ecological collapse. The first track, “Bushes and Briars,” initially sets out as a relaxed search for birdsong, but gradually becomes consumed by a threatening blend of violin, piano, guitar, and dissonant noise. The songs that begin as slow, melodic ballads eventually transform into deep voids of outer space, or in the case of “Meeting Is a Pleasant Place,” a powerful defiance reflected by a choir of transgender voices, called Trans Voices. The themes of romantic love and admiration for nature prove to be intertwined: “Be soft like green moss, be free,” implores Lee. The album’s dreamy atmosphere is alluring yet unsettling, serving as a poignant tribute to the conflicted soul of Albion.
Source: theguardian.com
