Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Tu Fawning Put Their Hearts On Hold


Simply put, Tu Fawning are just weird. Sounding like Faun Fables on lithium, Tu Fawning take their mystic gypsy folk and slow it down to a crawl and then cover it in a patina of ancient history. They're music is so slow and so mysterious it's almost too bizarre to listen to. Their album, Hearts On Hold is a stripped down, minimal kind of affair that sounds as if it were recorded in a castle somewhere around 1395 and sounds so old, I'm left wondering if the instruments used on this record are even from the last 100 years.

Hearts On Hold isn't necessarily an album you'll run home to hear but it is something that you can't help but scratch your head at. This strange slightly alien soundtrack is beguiling not because of how good it is or how bad it is, but because of just how strange it is. This is music from a bygone era recorded by people that were not alive three decades ago and who, even at their poppiest, still sound as if they were a band of gypsies who set up shop in your living room. Hearts On Hold does not contain one catchy, hummable, or memorable chorus on it, but it does contain enough transcendental and uncanny moments to last a lifetime. Whether or not that was the idea is up to debate but having spent some significant time with this record, I'm not sure if I find this record tolerable.

While a band like Faun Fables intentionally sounds like they're musicians from 700 years ago, I'm not sure Tu Fawning are trying to sound quite that old. Tu Fawning are an intriguing bunch but after a few songs of their puzzling percussion, droney mysticism, and otherworldly vocals I was left wondering if I could go on any further. If you like gypsy folk, music recorded in abandoned abbeys, or really old folk songs you'll more than likely enjoy Hearts On Hold. Tu Fawning are clearly old souls and Hearts On Hold is a reflection of that.

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