East of Eden by Taken By Trees
LABEL: Rough Trade / Beggars Group

“It retains the integral tools that keeps the music classifiable as "World", and at the same time adds so much both consciously and unconsciously to an entire genre of music.”

Being of Syrian Jewish descent, hearing Middle Eastern music is nothing new to me. The instrumentation is always similar, the words are unintelligible chatter in a foreign tongue, and a lot of it, frankly, sounds the same. Largely, there is no noticeable progression in the style. One can listen to a song from the 1950s and a song from the 1970s and have a hard time hearing a difference. Forgive me for not sounding worldly, but Middle Eastern music could definitely benefit from some variety.

Which is why East Of Eden, the new album by Victoria Bergsman's project Taken By Trees, is so enjoyable for me to listen to. Recorded in Pakistan with local musicians and talent, it sounds like something that wouldn't feel out of place in a hip little hookah bar. It retains the integral tools that keeps the music classifiable as "World", and at the same time adds so much both consciously and unconsciously to an entire genre of music. It is a breath of fresh air for all parties involved.

Whereas her previous release, Open Field, was a bit more of an introverted effort, the appeal of East Of Eden lies in its close-knit and friendly village aesthetic. On "Wapas Karna", Bergsman doesn't do a thing, leaving locals to perform their very own song. It sounds like a block party set deep in the Fertile Crescent. And therein lies the appeal of the album.

Bergsman's detached vocal style positively shimmers on warm tracks like "Anna" and "Watch The Waves". The organic Pakistani instruments don't skip a beat while playing along with a bubbly synthesizer; instead, they meld in such a way that their togetherness seems expected and necessary. And the cover of the Animal Collective song "My Girls" (Cleverly titled "My Boys" on this release) makes it difficult for me to decide which track influenced the other. In a nutshell, the song sounds so comfortable in its foreign veil that it glides along effortlessly through the entire region. It just sounds right.

Taken By Trees can create wonderfully sincere pop music in a world rife with uncertainty and war. Listening to this reminds us that sometimes you just have to sit back and take in the music. And in this case you'll be glad you did.


REVIEWED BY RAYMOND CHALMÉ
RAYMOND'S 3 FAVORITE TRACKS: "Anna" • "My Boys" • "Greyest Love Of All"
Read more from Raymond on his blog, Warm Tape.

Taken By Trees - My Boys from Rômulo Martinz on Vimeo.