Tancred: String & Twine

By Mike Ward

The empty spot on the side of the bed calls for some kind of love. Maybe the kind that keeps it warm at night or maybe the kind that just wants to know that it won’t be alone for too long. This spot has the indent of the last body it held so close and keeps it there until it’s filled again. Never the less this spot in the bed leave room to wonder. The neighbor to this empty side is someone that sees both sides of the spectrum. On one hand leaving is a necessary evil and on the other hand coming back is simply uncontrollable. The spot lies cold and lonesome waiting for it’s unknown future to walk through the door and return to it.

“Things feeling so different in your head but when you break them down it’s all the same, and it’s all simple. It’s just hard to cope with,” Abbott explaining the title of her latest work.
Listening to the new album String & Twine by Tancred keeps these questions alive. Jess Abbott is the pioneer of this work and could not have produced a rawer form of expression if she tried. String & Twine is a short EP consisting of just four songs. Starting with a technical piece entitled “Bones”, Abbott lays all of herself on the table. Like finishing the last drops out of a wine bottle, Abbott takes in everything from her surroundings and presents you with nothing but what she has, which gives you nothing but a raw pure soul. All throughout the album imagery of love both present and past are painted in the listeners mind. Songs weave in and out of a love tale from start to finish. From first eyes making contact to the final seconds of being together. Abbott with this album gives a voice to that spot on the bed. Seemingly wanting to reconcile with something as well as grown from the experience.

Taking influences from bands like Owls and American Football, Abbott creates a technical collection of works that are unmatched except by maybe Mike Kinsella himself. This record is highly recommended for just about any music listener. Raw soul is given to the ear and nothing but.

Rating: 9.5/10

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