A Wildly Theatrical Release From Sean Noonan and the London Symphony Orchestra
- R.A.G.
- 3 minutes ago
- 4 min read
A pretty massive release from drummer and composer Sean Noonan, along with the London Symphony Orchestra, delivers this super robust and incredibly theatrical sound and aesthetic, all with the full Orchestra bringing songs to life, along with Sean himself performing the drums and elements of spoken word.
This album is absolutely gigantic and kind of like nothing you've heard before. This is a bit outside the box, very experimental, but incredibly indulging.
It is an amazing experience to listen to this record. The way the drums are performed along with the orchestra is almost always breathtaking, and you can hear these other influences coming into play, even with fully orchestrated pieces like this.
What I mean is, you hear these elements of rock, pop, contemporary, jazz, and others all filtering through as the record unfolds.
One of my favorite pieces on the record is called "Arachnids Go So Wild", which is a perfect mix of exactly what I'm talking about.
This piece has that drumming to sort of drive it, give it unique rhythms, but it's also broken up and has different sections, along with this cinematic push.
There are all these elements of rises in intensity, and climactic parts along with the exhales and calmness.
You also hear those sorts of big band or jazzy influences coming through here and there, and this is a brilliant piece of work.
I can't really express enough how this release is in its own category. This is a record that bends and meshes elements of rock, symphonic and orchestrated classical, that theatrical overtone, and the jazz fluency and inspiration.
The record is called The Drummer of Tedworth, and it plays out almost like a rock opera, in a strange way. I'm not saying that's exactly what it is, but it's definitely conceptual, songs go together, and it plays through like acts.
It's like you're watching a play with different parts connected so that each of them are acts of that play.
The album is actually broken up into two separate segments, simply called part one, and part two.
Peace is like "Skippin' Tracks Side B" represents this almost rambunctious or wild approach, but still fully put together. It's performed by the orchestra with that element of wildness in play. That's what Sean was aiming for.
He certainly wanted to have the elements of intensity attached; this strange element of looseness.
It makes things feel, not quite improvised, but just more boisterous. It lends a hand to the energy of everything.
To explain a little more so that it's fully understood, this is the London Symphony Orchestra.
Let's make no mistakes. The performances are done with precision.
The performers in the orchestra can be polished, super tight, no gaps, no looseness, and still come through with a beautiful or elegant feel, along with any of the exciting moments that come along.
However, this record, in particular, was composed in a way that is enthusiastic and a little wild, so the strings and horns aren't super tight the way they could be.
This also leans slightly into the energy and approach of rock music.
So, this is what I mean by blending the rock with the orchestral or symphonic. Or, I should really say blending the rock with the classical.
It's beautifully done, and a lot of attention was paid to the aesthetic or the vibe that it was meant to have.
The songs can be very in your face and hit you like a sucker punch to the gut at times.
You leave songs wondering what just happened for some of the record.
This is all supposed to go down like this. It was meant to have that extra punch. That rock essence is sewn into the compositions.
Quite a beautiful thing.
Certain tracks come as mentioned earlier, with some elements of singing but more spoken words, and sometimes you can follow along with those stories really well, but not every song contains that.
Again, it does feel very conceptual, and there is a narrative that attaches everything.
This is a story with characters, and it's really fun to sort of dive into because when you listen, you have these visuals that pop into your head as pieces unfold, and I think that's brilliant.
Are more subtle, more cinematic, or more flowing. But for the most part, this is a record that leaves no stone unturned.
I've mentioned already that it's a large piece of work; having said that, though, I do feel like you should be listening to this all the way through, in one shop, because it's like reading a book or watching a film.
Going back to the theatrical aspect, this is a story with the main character. As it goes on, you meet other characters.
You wouldn't skip scenes of a film or chapters of a book, so I wouldn't suggest giving songs on this record either.
So, I would definitely take some time to check this out because it's really intense at times, and brings out such a wonderfully unique aesthetic in experimentation and the song sculpting.
It's got a brilliant sonic resonance to it, and can be very colorful at times.
So, don't miss this one because if you're someone who likes music that's a little avant-garde, a little different, but really engaging or theatrical, this is 100% for you.
Jump into this right now so you can see exactly where I'm coming from.