Polar Twins – Wee Small Hours At Swansneck (LP Clear Vinyl + CD)
Dirk Polak and Mark Ritsema had been individually active in obscure wave and avant-garde bands for a while, but after meeting in 2005, they both delved into the collaborative, multidisciplinary post-punk project Mecano, with which Polak had already been a member for some time. In 2008, they began making music together and collaborating on ideas, which were finally collected a good four years later under the title "Polar Twins." Similar to Mecano, Polar Twins also features a wealth of colleagues and artist friends. This results in an album of great diversity. Yet, there is one major constant. Both men possess a truly impressive, thunderous baritone voice reminiscent of David Bowie, and they weave this into playful yet solidly grounded compositions. This further reinforces the comparison with the Thin White Duke. The doubled vocals in the carousel with dragging harmonica, ‘Black Sea’, seems like a corruption of Bowie’s cover of The Doors’ ‘Alabama Song’, only even more immersed in melancholy.
For ten songs, The Polar Twins meander through a journey full of languidity, conviviality, and occasionally grandeur. In "Environmental Twist," the duo pits a lanky trumpet, robust piano, and rumbling drums against each other. Ballads rooted in keyboards or guitar occasionally veer into long, more psychedelic melody lines and dare to call upon backing vocals or subtle keyboards for further support. At times, however, things can be a lot more intimate. The closing track, "Tamara Moon," is a lingering song full of wounded pride and sadness, while the opener, "Changeless in Athens," with its full sound of Spanish guitar, hollow piano, warm bass, and two-part harmony, achieves pure beauty and purity. Polar Twins also doesn't cling to elaborate English lyrics that lead to phrases like "In the quest of love, I surrender myself with a bird and a field. Purifying me." "Schönhauser Allee" is German-influenced, and "Carrousel" features French lyrics, making the warm, dark vocals vibrating with the Hammond sound even more melancholic than in the other songs. It's a shame that the latter song requires a bit of an anglicized accent.
'Polar Twins' took a long time to develop their debut, but the result is something to savor. It's an album brimming with charisma and each one a powerful emotional force. Creating a successor that can match the caliber of this first release will be a significant challenge, but if it's any consolation, 'Wee Small Hours at Swansneck' certainly has a long shelf life.
Label: Tonefloat
Country: Netherlands
Media Condition: Mint (M)
Sleeve Condition: Mint (M)
Limited to 200