Another dispatch from the weird and wonderful world of Folklore Tapes’ Ceremonial Counties series. This time round, it’s the turn of Warwickshire and the West Midlands (though both sides feature musicians based in Todmorden, Yorkshire, a town that seems to have established itself as a cradle of all things strange and experimental).
The West Midlands half is particularly appealing if, like me, you’ve been a Black Sabbath fan for almost as long as you’ve been on this planet. On this piece, guitarist dbh (the professional name of Dan Bridgewood-Hill) is joined by Ramsey Janini, Dave Haywire, Bridget Hayden and Sam McLoughlin under the name The Dark Pool. Their four-part suite, entitled The Paranormal Origins of Black Sabbath, does exactly, and gloriously, what it says on the tin. The first part, Orb, is inspired by Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler’s childhood dream, in which he saw a glowing sphere containing a futuristic longhair who wore silver boots and played electric guitar. It’s a haunting slice of ambient psych-metal, sheets of sound hovering in the air as if suspended by invisible threads. The second and third parts, Metal and Blues, deal with guitarist Tony Iommi’s famous industrial accident (which, with no little irony, occurred at a sheet metal factory) which saw him sever the tips of two fingers, and the aftermath, during which he developed his unique playing style and practically invented heavy metal. dbh traces a path between the two genres with surprising delicacy, with the aid of field recordings that range from pastoral to industrial and a section of instrumental chamber-folk full of unexpected grace.
The most striking part, however, is Diabolus in Musica, in which dbh reimagines the famous riff from the song Black Sabbath, using it as a starting point to explore his own brand of doomy, psychy metal and its links to Holst’s Mars and the devil’s interval. It becomes gloriously heavy, almost unhinged, throwing a Hawkwind-like dash of space rock into the heady Satanic brew. Most contemporary stoner rock bands would sacrifice their grandmothers for a sound like this.
Side two, the Warwickshire side, is brought to you by the Primitive Percussion Youth Orchestra (PPYO). It is a sonic exploration of Meon Hill, a haunted landmark said to have been created when the Devil kicked a clod of earth in the direction of Evesham Abbey. The PPYO was formed by Mark Williamson, aka Spaceship Mark, but all its members are primary school children who are encouraged to experiment with new forms and freely improvise on unusual themes. Here, they create something that sounds both ancient and tonally sophisticated, with clattering percussion and strange chords conjuring up visions of esoteric rites on misty hillsides. Of the many myths surrounding Meon Hill, one of the most alluring is that of the hill opening up to swallow a huntsman and his entourage who had dared to ride out on the Sabbath. It’s hard not to see it as a distorted mirror of the various versions of the Pied Piper story, in which a town’s children are consumed by a mountain.
Other stories from the area concern black dogs, ghostly women and pagan death rituals, and the PPYO summon up the eeriness perfectly with their drones, gurgles and unnerving drum beats. It makes for a satisfyingly devilish and wholly fitting companion piece to the first side’s more forceful dose of mischief. All in all, another winner from the series that keeps on giving.
Note on the Series: Each tape can be collected individually each month or as one entire subscription and they are available via Folklore Tapes direct at www.folkloretapes.co.uk or via their Bandcamp page at https://folkloretapes.bandcamp.com/ and via selected independent record shops.