U - ARCHENFIELD

A Closer Listen

October is the time for haunted music, and U‘s new collection fits the bill.  Archenfield represents a very British manner of haunting, connected to the area of Herefordshire, whose folklore connects these pieces in drama and dread.  Old vinyl samples are mixed with modern snippets from TV and YouTube to create a mesmerizing collage, made visual in the summer single “Black Vaughan.”

The album begins with dusty piano, rife with crackle, defined as a “primary school assembly vibe.” There’s nothing dangerous in these sounds, at least not yet.  A mourning dove announces the day, and a choir begins to sing.  “Is it a kind of dream?” a falsetto soloist asks; why in fact, it is!  But what kind of dream?

As the “Avenbury Organist” begins to play, the listener starts to suspect the presence of spectral sources.  According to legend, a ghost plays the organ and bells of St. Mary’s when no one else is around.  Still, this seems benign, as does the choir singing “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” in the background of “Half Moon.”  On the other hand, Hansel and Gretel saw no red flag atop the candy house; and the pleasant timbre of folk song “The Bitter Withy” belies its lyrics about the young Jesus murdering three children in cold blood.

The most modern piece, “He’s Found It,” includes a conversation about a voice heard in the background of a YouTube recording.  People have been hearing such voices for years, playing records backwards to hear hidden messages; and pareidolia leads us to hear words where they may be absent, but the residue remains unsettling.  With a wink, the artist titles the next piece “SPOOKS!”  We are only missing the emoji.

Twice as long as all but one track, “Black Vaughan” is clearly the focus piece.  The piece relays the legend of an evil squire whose spirit had to be trapped in a silver snuff box in order to protect the local populace.  Not mentioned is where said snuff box might be now.  Transitioning from dirge-like drums to a parade of ebullient horns, the piece reflects both the trial and the triumph.  But U desires more than to recover and reflect British folklore; the liner notes include a warning about “unscrupulous people with questionable motives (who now) hold positions of power.”  Old stories of ghosts and goblins were meant to teach, guide, entertain and frighten.  But what power does a ghost have to frighten now, when compared with the terrors of everyday life?  (Richard Allen)