Some Soft Black Stars Seen Over London [live]

by Skip JansenThe stripped-back Current 93 recorded this super minimal folk-inspired elegy live at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London, April 6 and 7, 2001. Some Soft Black Stars Seen Over London consists of seven tracks composed of little more than David Tibet's spare and pained vocal, Maja Elliott's piano, and splashes of guitar from Michael Cashmore. The mood summons the spirit of the British folk revival's sadder moments in recalling Shirley Collins, Bert Jansch, and the like. The standout track, "The Signs in the Stars," is given two versions, and "A Gothic Love Song" is sufficient evidence that Tibet and company are not entirely humorless. "Whilst the Night Rejoices Profound and Still" alone makes the album worth owning, although the sound can be a little melodramatic at times.