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FINAL COPIES of 2013 regal masterpiece from a co-founding member of The ENID, and if you like them, you’re surely going to love this symphonic gem!
From the moment you take this album’s double-fold gate-fold card sleeve in your hand, with its beautiful, artistic cover art painting, there is a feel of quality to it, and after you play the disc you know that you have heard something very different, but very special!
Recorded between May and October 2012 at the Old Barn Studios, Francis Lickersish has produced a bit of a masterwork that is certain to go down well with ENID fans everywhere!
Francis Lickerish began his professional music career as a founder member of The ENID, that extraordinary classical rock band that achieved cult status during the 70’s and 80’s.
Along with Robert John Godfrey and Willie Gilmour, he was one of the main contributors to The ENID’s highly individual and accomplished sound, and appeared of the band first four albums as well as several singles. He has also appeared as a session player in several unexpected places such as: Kim Wilde’s ‘Kids in America’ single, and on former INCREDIBLE STRING BAND member Malcolm LeMaistre’s solo album. He even did a stint as a bass player in a well-known 70’s reggae band!
Prior to the release of ‘Far And Forgot’, Francis released the album entitled: ‘To Wake The King’.
A return to the sound of the early ENID, Francis spent three years writing ‘To Wake The King’ and formed the band SECRET GREEN to record and release it in 2009. The music incorporates all of Francis’ musical influences, including his love of British music and folklore, and this is reflected in the uniquely English sound of that album, and it was to be a prelude to what we have here early into 2013, with the awesome symphonic score that is ‘Far And Forgot-From The Lost Lands’.
Francis’ discovery of modern day technology and recording techniques has enabled him to create this epic work, but even with all the hi-tech gear available these days, you can’t make an album this big on your own, and Francis has quite a line-up of musicians – some you might recognise - complementing his “rock orchestra”… Hilary Palmer (from SECRET GREEN on vocals / flute), John Beedle (from SECRET GREEN on guitars), Mike Hicks (lap steel guitars), Dave Brooks (drums & percussion), Terry Pack (bass guitar / upright bass), Tony Freer (oboe / cor anglais), Fran Newberry (cello), Brian Mitchell (trumpet), Chris Marsh (soundscapes and ideas), Jenny Russell (additional vocals), Sir Giles Holybrook (contrabassoon) and Neil Kavanagh (additional vocals) who also produced and engineered the album.
So, what does ‘Far And Forgot’ sound like? …
‘Brides Of The Wind’ opens the work with an atmospheric mix of brass sounds and cinematic effects, then electric guitar and percussion emerge into what is now becomes a powerful Enid-esque orchestral arrangement, and after the initial three minute deluge of sounds and textures comes the first vocal performance from the beautiful voice of Hilary Palmer with a song delivered with passion and grace.
At this point it sounds almost like Edward Elgar or Vaughan Williams meeting Celtic folk music with the rich brass sounds and synthesizer orchestrations forming the perfect backdrop for Hilary’s lovely vocal. The Lickerish guitar melodies weave their magical spell throughout and then it goes into the next keyboard laden instrumental passage. The track closes with another vocal refrain, this time with the full gamut of instruments building into a huge magical crescendo that ENID fans will be delighted by.
‘Shining Hour {For Helen}’ is an almost operatic female vocal duet performance set over a backdrop of synth strings and brass orchestral sounds. It’s a quaint and rather pretty work that is very period English in nature.
‘Man Who Sold Magic’ is a very ENID-esque quirky orchestral instrumental work with multi-tracked electric guitar and percussion driving the lead melody along in classically structured way, with complex counter melodies coming in here and there, with moments that made me think of the music of Mike Oldfield and Anthony Phillips along the way. There's a majestic feel to much of the brass arrangements featured in the middle passage, before concluding with a classic ENID style crescendo - A truly magical piece!
‘Seeds Of The Sun {A Lament for The Hedgerows}’ has an amazing trumpet intro, before the FL orchestra kicks in with strings and Cor Anglais to form a beautiful symphonic passage. Percussion enters at two minutes into the track, followed by a sombre cello melody, and the effect is just magical.
This all leads to the album’s major epic: Disenchanting’ – a half-hour tour-de-force that features five different movements, and because the transitions are seamless, it is often difficult to know where one passage ends and the next begins, but it doesn’t matter because this mainly all-instrumental track is a work of true genius that really is classic ENID in it’s construction, and one can’t help but think of it as the ‘Fand’ style piece that ENID fans have been craving to get their hands on for many years.
The track opens with a charming symphonic passage featuring a beautiful vocal performance from Hilary Palmer. The background is tastefully scattered with steel and electric guitar textures and the electronic orchestral instrumental passage that follows prior to re-emergence of the vocal, is gloriously grandiose!
The next part is much faster in pace and again very ENID-like in style, and the electronic orchestration here is amazing to say the very least – dynamic and dramatic with a sound that is both deep and meaningful.
The vivid atmosphere of the music takes you off to another place. The sweeping string arrangements are both joyous and mysterious; the melodies delicate and thoroughly charming, and together they create truly beautiful mind images of vast seascapes and distant shores clad with and richly coloured skies.
This music is powerful and passionate, evocative and provocative, and really does take you off to “another place”.
The final movement is easily recognisable as ‘The Faeries Funeral’ and features the beautiful sound of Francis Lickerish’s weeping electric guitar singing over a sombre backdrop of strings and more, then as the final four minutes approach many more of the instruments join the funeral parade and lead you to the album finale with a huge swell of symphonic sounds that every die-hard ENID fan will go all gooey-eyed over, finally closing – as does ‘Fand’ - with a final dramatic crescendo that rolls in to close the album in true grandiose beauty.
In conclusion, ‘Far And Forgot – From The Lost Lands’ is a magical, classically influenced work of beautiful fantasy music that bridges the world of Progressive Rock, Celtic and Classical music perfectly. 90% instrumental, this new music definitely has the power to deliver its listener to lands that time has forgotten! However, what is truly amazing about this album is Lickerish’s use of technology to achieve the vast array of sounds that have allowed the creation of what often feels like a real symphony orchestra in full flow. One can only wonder what The ENID might have sounded like today had Francis Lickerish and Stephen Stewart remained in the fold, but if the former is going to continue to release orchestral based rock albums of this calibre, and his old band continue breaking their new ground, then you can’t help but feel that ENID fans are going to be getting the best of both worlds!
A thoroughly recommended album, not only for ENID fans, but lovers of all symphonic rock music!
Also available by FRANCIS LICKERISH with SECRET GREEN: TO WAKE THE KING CD - Stock # 1236275
FRANCIS LICKERISH: FAR AND FORGOT-FROM THE LOST LANDS Track List:
01. Brides Of The Wind (14:17)
02. Shining Hour {For Helen} (6:16)
03. Man Who Sold Magic (10:08)
04. Seeds Of The Sun {A Lament for The Hedgerows} (7:39)
05. Disenchanting (29:46)
i) Willow Hill
ii) Lyonesse
iii) Berceuse {The Rain Curtain}
iv) Broceliande
v) The Faeries Funeral
TPT – 68:10