Temple of Lib - "My Name is Magic"
(September Gurls Records 2010, SGCD 37/SGLP43)
Temple of Lib - "My Name is Magic"
(September Gurls Records 2010, SGCD 37/SGLP43)
From Aural Innovations #41 (October 2010)
Delving deep into the world of the strange, Temple of Lib has embraced folk music and taken it to places that are sadly rarely trodden these days. Here on My Name is Magic we follow this psychedelic band through the phases of audible magic.
Temple of Lib is the product of one Stefan Lieneman, also known as Limo, who is also the man behind the Discolor and Fit & Limo projects on September Gurls Records. The music of Temple of Lib is mainly based around the psychedelic folk sound with a whole host of instrumentation being used to tap that sound throughout the album. The instrument list is vast and ranges from acoustic guitar, sitar, harpsichord, dulcimer, as well as many more.
The 13 tracks flow like an Incredible String Band album from start to finish, embracing a need for a strange edge rather than a straight folk music, as each track within itself feels like a small journey into the ether. Collectively the 13 tracks last around 54 minutes in total, making it on the whole a pleasant affair. The sound is, as I mentioned, very much in the vein of The Incredible String Band, very hippy, very mellow, totally acoustic, very well done, and it carries on straight from where Fit & Limo left off.
We are thrown into a hippy styled world, one where elemental spirits are mischievous and gypsies roam the wilderness lamenting of the days gone by. We journey through the high hills and tread the world machinery witnessing the meaning of life from the perspective of nature, as it should be, rather than through the eyes of this throw away culture that we now see outside the door.
This CD is a must for those who like The Incredible String Band, as these to me are the main sound comparison that I can make. My Name is Magic is very much a harking back to The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter album, yet it is also taken forward and executed in the Limo vein. It is all excellent stuff and it will be appreciated greatly by the folky that likes a bit of the strange with his bouzouki or banjo.
For more info you can visit the September Gurls web site at: http://www.septembergurlsrecords.com
Reviewed by Albert Pollard