A Closer Listen
In the current climate, it’s refreshing to hear music that affirms the good things in life: family, community and social responsibility. The calming nature of Under a Familiar Sun is a reminder that many blessings still remain, and that they multiply when we reach out to help others in need. As 2025 already seems to be the most destabilizing year since the pandemic ~ in a splintering manner as opposed to “we’re all in this together” ~ we expect to hear even more reassuring music like this, as well as its angry counterpart.
Sam Beste made his early reputation as the pianist for Amy Winehouse’s live shows; as The Vernon Spring, he’s found his own voice. The father of three, Bette dedicates the album to his family, emphasizing the gratitude he feels and extending it to others. There’s some jazzy soul in here, heard as early as the first track, along with the warmth of familial field recordings and a smattering of guest stars. The first to appear is Max Porter, who lends spoken word to “The Breadline,” acknowledging the insidious nature of poverty while underlining the interconnectedness of humanity. Kate Ellis’ cello deepens the emotional connection, making the closing, singsong question even more poignant: Do you feel for others?
“Mufasa” blends piano, radio samples and voice in a disjointed symphony that seeks its way to stability. The oblique “Other Tongues” sounds as if it were beamed in from a prior century, with sweet, spare vocals that dissolve into echoes and static. This leads to the gorgeous instrumental title track, awash in cascades of ivory and tendrils of breath. Does warm music lead to feelings of inner and outer warmth? While listening, one begins to believe. The feeling is extended on the peaceful, piano-centric “Fitz.”
Vocalist aden highlights some of the album’s later tracks. After being stymied by Google Translate, this reviewer realized that “Esrever Ni Rehtaf” is actually “Father in Reverse,” which explains the backmasking of the opening tape samples. Like many of the album’s tracks, it flows directly from the previous track, without pause. Despite the more prominent vocal, which occupies but a short segment of the track, the tone is set by the sound of happy children. And this perhaps is the quiet point that Beste is trying to make: if one is concerned with the happiness and well-being of one’s own children, then it’s a short step to empathy for the happiness and well-being of other people’s children, wherever one lives and around the world. Should such empathy develop on a global scale, the world might experience the societal equivalent of a vernon spring. (Richard Allen)
Mon May 05 00:01:40 GMT 2025