Insight & Critique
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact

manco - the great wall

12/17/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Manco

The Great Wall
self-released; 2014

3.8 out of 5

By B Parker


Manco serves up a style of alternative folk that at first listen is deceptively minimalistic. The core of Manco lies in his far-reaching vocal performances and easy guitar melodies. Though there are other elements to The Great Wall—primarily keyboards and drums—the common thread throughout the album is a sparse, warm sound.

The album opens with a heavy country-western slant. “Good and Low” is accented with just enough twang to be a cowboy song, with the crux of the lyrics being the limitations of time and the irony in wondering about one's own mortality. He tells us there's only enough time to love the people close to us and “leave them with a song.” This is one of the more traditional sounding songs on the album and a great way to start things off. It moves at a brisk pace but is still engaging. The track that follows “Argentina” carries much of the same feeling as the previous song in terms of sound but is decidedly slower, reflecting the more somber shift in mood. 

This time Manco tells the story of someone who can't go home, and the song's ending introduces a major earmark of his style: before singing the last line an electric guitar solo comes in to add a bit of a twist on the song, giving it a brief biting moment. Though in this song it sounds a bit plain comparatively, later uses of the electric become rough, fuzzy, humming things, everything that folk is not. It's a nice choice that distances him from others in the genre, but we'll talk about them in more detail in a second.

The Great Wall does have a few upbeat moments thrown into the mix. “Wreck” is a glowing love song made all the more brighter by Larisa Montanaro's backing vocals. “Move Slow” while somewhat more ambiguous in writing than the rest of the album again falls back on the album's early country styling with a steady strum and some select picking to punctuate the end. It's a nice counter-balance: though it isn't fair to say The Great Wall is downbeat overall, these two tracks shine the most and are certainly the most uplifting.

To return to the electric guitar, each song that showcases it uses it differently, utilizing tones and textures to match or even alter the mood entirely. In “10-Speed” there's a thick layer of buzz in the song's final moments: a dense riff rises and falls in the background as a separate solo plays out on top of it, sounding much sharper and growing more frenzied before reaching the conclusion. “Hope to Gain” builds up to the chorus like a storm, cuing up the dense, buzzing electric notes like thunder. It's nice that some thought went into how best to use the instrument rather than just plopping down solo after solo. 

Overall The Great Wall is a mixture of tradition with alternative embellishments. While it's not exactly genre bending, most songs have enough of a different identity from one another to keep the casual listener engaged while regular folk and country enthusiasts will find more than enough to keep them hooked.
official website
Tweet
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

       Critique/insight

    We are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent  music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.

    Tweets by divideanconqer
    Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook


    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012

Company

About
Contributors

Newsletter

Newsletter
Book Your Band

© Divide and Conquer 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact