Tullworld.com Review of "Rupi's
Dance"
Ian
Anderson and "Rupi's Dance"
It is simply amazing how well Ian Anderson knows the way around his flutes. I myself being a classically trained flautist going on 12 years, can not fathom being nearly as fluid, free flowing and precise as Ian Anderson is on this album. Then again, the man has 20 years worth of practice on me. Still Ian’s rich sound, emotion and versatility when concerning all things flute is simply unparalleled. On this newest Anderson effort entitled “Rupi’s Dance” you can really feel the emotions running through his breath and into that metal, wood, or bamboo tube. This album is simply filled with technically impressive flute passages, like those on “Eurology”, that play very well in contrast to the softly shaped melodic and harmonic lines such as those found on the track “Griminelli’s Lament”.
The vocals here are quite solid. Ian’s voice is almost as rich and enchanting as it was circa “Minstrel in the Gallery” era on a few of these tracks. Oddly enough, there are a few other sections where vocals seem to wander off somewhere without the music’s permission. Curious, given how well Ian does for the vast majority of the album. Several of the tracks are very reminiscent of Ian’s past outing, “The Secret Language of Birds”, sometimes almost too much. But perhaps it is just the Ian Anderson style
showing some of it’s perseverance. Overall, the tunes are a mixture of sounds from different eras, some dutifully recalling acoustic passages of prior Tull albums, and some traversing new paths all together.
Although Ian’s flute playing may be the highlight here, don’t count out the tracks where the flute plays second to the overall sound. “Not Ralitsa Vassileva”, in particular, is a soft flowing song with an almost haunting verse and contrasting chorus sound that is the most enchanting piece I’ve heard anywhere in a long while, defiantly one of the gems on this album. “Calliandra Shade” is another fine example of a song that would stand well on it’s own sans the flute lines. But what would an Ian Anderson album be with out the signature flute interludes and solo passages that wind their way around the foot-tapping acoustic guitars riffs and curiously witty lyrical lines?
Reviewed by Patrick Lydon
August 6, 2003
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