Album Review: Snowapple – Illusion
Illusion
Released 3rd February 2015
Words: Julia Grantham
Illusion is the second album by Dutch trio Snowapple. A group of three women with very eclectic musical backrgrounds; their collective tastes, talents and abilities are demonstrable on this beautifully melodic and instantly likeable record. Their voices are indicative, collectively, of bands such as The Wailin’ Jennys, and The Unthanks but Snowapple are more than just a folk-pop band. The trio have come together from a range of backgrounds including opera and jazz, but have shrewdly used these talents to create a unique folk/gypsy sound whilst including a multitude of other genres along the way. A description which sounds bizarre and yet a combination that works so well.
The opening track Small Stone opens with a simple guitar melody accompanied by single female vocals, harmonised shortly after the first few bars with a second and third voice, elevating it from a folk number, to being reminiscent of Kate Bush in places, even if just in vocals alone. The light touch of the guitar sounds gentle; like falling snow and is cleverly emphasised by the line: ‘simple clean game’. The second track California is a distinct contrast to the former, with distorted synth sounds which introduce an almost eerie and mystical sounding tune. California is beautifully haunting and tells a tale of hope and longing delivered by a dream-like, gypsy-style beat.
The interesting thing about this album is that no two songs are the same. Just when you think you are getting a feel for the music, the genre changes and yet this in no way takes away from the quality of this LP. Snowapple can introduce a song in their folk style such as Vagabond, but within the same song, can fuse it together with electro pop before changing yet again into a choral music style, perhaps a nod to the operatic background mentioned earlier. This technique is as unusual as it is beautiful and makes for a very engaging album. Other songs are drum-led as well as eerily haunting, such as the title track. Others combine folk with a playful fairground style for example as heard on Plato’s Prank. Part of the appeal of this album is the clever transition between genres, and the occasional use of techniques such as the syncopated passages on the track Sleep. The fascinating and alluring thing about Illusion is that each song is so different in its delivery and yet one thing remains constant: the beautiful harmony between three outstanding voices. And it’s this ability to sing in unison so well, that allow their voices to transcend a number of styles and make it work, collectively, in this refreshingly different way.
Perhaps my own personal favourite is Marry A Man which includes some beautifully poignant piano playing and seems to make a mockery of the notion of marriage; an unusual topic for a song. It is full of a sense of foreboding, but has a strangely dream-like quality to it, making it irresistible to listen right through to the end. There is nothing at all predictable about Illusion, which, is perhaps what makes it so appealing. It is rich in melody, talent skill and beauty; an absolute gem of an album.
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