(photo: outofthisspark.com)There’s a kind of hush that opens “Lanterns”, the first track of Spirit Guides by Evening Hymns that reminds me of standing alone in a sacred space, dimly lit, with just your thoughts for company. The tone of the album is one of contemplation, or yearning for some understanding and meaning of life, love; a longing for answers that probably don’t exist, and may very well just lead to more questions and confusion. That being said, it’s also a gorgeous album of stark beauty and lushness, and has an underlying sense of redemption and hope that seems to render all else moot.
Jonas Bonnetta is originally from Orono, Ontario and currently calls Peterborough his home. His music very much echoes that of his friends and label mates on Out of This Spark (Ohbijou, The Wooden Sky and Forest City Lovers), making his spiritual home a little closer to the heart of Southern Ontario’s rising musical mecca. When I first heard “Mtn. Song” I could swear I was listening to The Acorn, but much like Frank Chromewaves, I quickly realized that to try and make musical comparisons with Evening Hymns is to ignore the impressive beauty of the music itself. Regardless of the talent that has joined him on these recordings, all their skill would be for naught if it weren’t for Bonetta’s expressive vocals and wondrous songwriting. “Tumultuous Sea” even gets a little funky, showing that there’s more to Evening Hymns than just melancholy and pain. Through swelling horns and a chorus of hand claps, the clouds break and a ray of sun breaks forth, and you know is all going to be alright.
At a time of the year when thoughts and minds have turned to year-end lists and encapsulating the last twelve months, Evening Hymns have given me that rarest of treats: an album of breathtaking beauty that I didn’t even know I was missing. Bonetta celebrates teh release of the LP tonight with a free in-store at Soundscapes (572 College Street, Toronto) at 7PM and a full show at the Tranzac (292 Brunswick Avenue, Toronto) on December 4.
http://www.quickbeforeitmelts.com/2009/12/hymns-of-love-and-spirits-2/
