Reflections on life, change and survival. Modern folk music which doesn’t rest in the past.
Since her last album ‘Darkling,’ Harding has entered a new stage of life. ‘The World’ is named for the tarot card. Harding says “I like the tarot. I’m not convinced of its divinatory properties, but for me, the cards are a map and a representation of our inner selves, full of metaphor, poetry and imagery. The World is the last card in the deck and represents.” Having lost both parents since that second album it’s not surprising that the album’s themes reflect change.
The first song ‘Barflies’ is about “old folks behaving badly in bars.” The tango feel set up by Steve Ricketts on accordion, the percussive guitar and producer Will Angelero’s fretless bass do make this the joyous celebration of life that she was aiming for. Some of her songs, past and current do take inspiration from an imagined Wild West. Her ‘The Bloody Rose’ with a lonesome fiddle and ‘Bordertown Blues,’ where the Tumbleweed blows in. “Bordertown is a state of mind, and we all have to pass through it at some time or other; loss is a universal experience.” Al Cosnett’s harmonica provides the haunting western soundtrack on this song.
Harding’s voice is at times tremulous, and this works to great effect on ‘The Briar,’ about “setting loving boundaries for those who might otherwise trespass on sacred ground. This song is a shot across the bows,” which she suggests came out as a prettier more delicate tune than she intended. ‘Old Glass’ takes the premise of looking through that material and seeing the world in a different way, through a slightly twisted window. ‘Icebergs’ is the most effective song on the album, better for being left as just voice and guitar. Taking the well-worn metaphor of the sea being our inner life she suggests that we are icebergs floating on that inner ocean.
Her lyrics seem to take her on journeys exploring ideas through a few songs. We had the Wild West earlier and now we stay at sea with ‘Sirens.’ The song of Homer’s singers is buried in the distance, as Harding relates her feelings about the story over a heavily phased guitar line.
The album ends with ‘Lady Electra.’ Recorded live judging by the ripple of applause. She describes this as a “silly ditty written as a crowd pleaser to play in a bar, became something more thoughtful.”
And thoughtful is the right word for Harding’s songs. They all carry a message she has reflected on as her life has changed in the last few years. In her blog she has a further reflection on the album title. “The World is the last card in the deck and represents completion of cycles so that the self can move on and start again. It is very beautiful and positive and most apt for a person entering their third age.”
Overall, an interesting album, a little rough around the edges from a production viewpoint but that feels intentional. If you like folk music which doesn’t rest on the past, then Sue Harding would be for you.
