Customer Reviews

Undrentide

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you haven't listened to the Mediaeval Baebes before, they're great, and I highly recommend Worldes Blysse -- but not Undrentide. After listening to their earlier work, I snapped up Undrentide and was disappointed. I actually enjoy its modern synthesizers and electronica -- I think they work to set a mood, especially on the hypnotic "Isabella." I also like the Baebes' collaborators, Delerium, although "Aria" (a remix of "All Turns to Yesterday" from Worldes Blysse) couldn't improve on the exquisitely understated original track.

I think the music on the Baebes' previous albums was simply more compelling. "Erthe Upon Erthe" (Worldes Blysse) is my favorite: a creative, lovely setting of a dark middle English lyric about the transience of worldly pleasures (the theme of their second album). The music and lyrics fuse in a subtle and disturbing way, cycling inexorably through life and death. And you don't need to understand medieval languages to enjoy the intricate vocals and melody.

Undrentide again showcases the Baebes' voices and arrangements, and is very pretty, but I fell asleep to it more than once. "Besse Bunting," for example, is a boring rendition of a middle English lyric that was boring to begin with. The Baebes' strength lies in synergizing medieval sources with a modern aesthetic, not in faithfully recreating the sound of the twelfth century. If they don't bring new energy and immediacy to their source material, I don't think it's worth throwing in the synthesizers. Thematically, Undrentide just doesn't compare to their earlier work. Buy it if you love the Baebes, but I'm forcing my friends to listen to Worldes Blysse instead.

I have collected all the Mediaeval Baebes CDs thus far, and must say that this is my particular favourite. I'm more partial to the Baebes' songs that are upbeat with drums and chants versus some of the others which have more of a sleepy sound- and I find that this CD most fulfills that partiality. My favourite songs are the title track and "Veni, Coronaberis".

Although I adore the Baebes and their music, I have to say that their Middle English-- and it IS Middle English, not Old English (also known as Anglo Saxon)-- is a little inaccurate. They pronounce their vowels as though they are modern instead of Medieval! For instance, they pronounce the word "grene" like "gren" when it SHOULD be "gray-neh". Since English is actually a Germanic language, Middle English had a sort of Dutch or Swedish sounding accent to it that the Baebes just don't posess. I think they should do a bit more research. I can't account for the French and Italian, but I can say that their Medieval Latin pronunciatin is pretty good, as I take it as a language in school.

If you're well- educated in Medieval languages, their music might annoy you a bit, but is definetly worth a listen anyway. The melodies are beautiful and Katherine Blake, who does much of the lead singing, has an exquisite voice.

Oh, Baebes! What were you thinking? Jazzy saxophone riffs? House drumbeats? Synthesizers? Get rid of that producer and bring back the beauty and purity of the Mediaeval Baebes sound! I was captivated by the Baebes previous album "Worldes Blysse" from the first and couldn't stop listening to it for months, so my anticipation for "Undrentide" was high. Unfortunately, their producer John Cale decided to 'update' the Baebes sound by adding dance backbeats, synthesizers, lush orchestral strings and (19)70s soul music. Yuk! The attraction of the Mediaeval Baebes sound was that it was so different, uncluttered and focusing on vocal harmonies. To be fair, there are some lovely melodies and I like some of the tracks, but too often, musical 'updates'intrude. "Undrentide" may be a logical progression for the Baebes, but I want more soulful, simple middle-English song-weaving.

I first heard about Mediaeval Baebes from Delerium's newest album. The group's name intrigued me, so I looked them up. After listening to a few of their songs on Napster, I went out and bought "Undrentide." Their harmonization is absolutely beautiful and they sing in older forms of English, French, and German as well as Latin. Their voices are very rich and clear and there isn't a jarring moment on the whole album. The musical arrangements are interesting as well. They are not always the traditional arrangements that you would expect to find. As in the case of "Aria," which is a remake of one of their songs by Delerium, the music is very synthesized. One of the things I find so great about this group is that they create this unique sound by blending the traditional with the new-fangled. This is one of the reasons I find the Swedish goup Garmarna and the French group Ekova so wonderful...they do something similar and have entirely different sounds. These ladies can go from brooding to something that is almost like Old English pop music. If you like unexpected fusions, chances are you will like this group quite a bit.

I have to admit that the first thing that caught my notice a few albums ago was the name of the group. It just sounded intriguing. Since then, I have become a fan who ardor has cooled and then, with this album, been reignited.

In general the group sings old renaissance or medieval pieces in the native language and in doing this, they do a good job of performance. The voices are sweet and so is the music, usually. You have to be ready for the unexpected, though. The occasional saxophone or electronic effect sound distinctly out of place except for the minor miracle that it fits in.

Its hard to pin this group down. They are, however, enjoyable.

I liked all three of their albums and am eagerly awaiting number four. Of them, this is my second favorite. My first favorite being Salva Nos. There was an earlier review saying they have "virtually no skill as compared with professional early music groups". I disagree. They have a great deal of skill. They choose to present their music in their own unique and playful manner. What others might call less skill, I call originality. They can't be compared to classical singers and they can't be compared to pop bands. They can't be compared well to any vocal group because there is no one quite like them out there.

As a followup to "Worldes Blysse", this CD is excellent. Most of the tracks are sung in Mediaeval English, though there are a few in Italian and Latin. The twelve Baebes sing as a choral group, with solo parts and instrumentals. The final track "Aria" is especially good, as a dancey collaboration with the group Delerium.

I am hooked on Isabella. I hum it just out of the blue. These women have captured an era from long ago and brought it back. It's cool to listen to, but for those who study history it makes it even more interesting to study, knowing the music behind it. I highly recommend it.

This is a great CD. Very winning in its mix of sources. If the object is to live in the eleventh century these ladies won't take you there. If the object is to listen to wonderful songs done the way they like to do them, then this, listened to with your mind open, is very exciting and fun. I also like the other CDs they've created. I think having a problem with them sounding too current is just an odd criticism. The Baebes are making music now and they are not nearly as stuffy as their would-be critics on this site. Too bad for those that can't hear them. If you like your music infectious and performed by people having fun, and you don't mind the diverse mix of languages and instruments, you will have a joyful experience with this piece. Harmonies are wonderful. Song choice is lovely. Can't get it out of the tape player in the car. Now this is music to ignore the Bush administration by.

I rather liked this CD, as the rest of works by Mediæval Bæbes. However, the overall quality is unbalanced. They're clearly trying to evolve and find something new. But they haven't got the formula yet.
At first, I was delighted to see they had tried Mediaeval Occitan (Provençal) poetry, but when I listened to both "Quan vey la lauzeta..." and "Lanquan li jorn" I was horrified. They're singing old Provençal songs with French pronunciation!!! I mean, this is like singing a Mediaevel Welsh song with English pronunciation. I understand it's hard to get the Mediaeval Provençal pronunciation, but they could have used the modern one! Occitan isn't a dialect of French! People at the Institut d'Estudis Occitans would have helped them with pleasure (and it's so easy to reach them, just a click away through Google).
I wonder whether I'm asking for too much; but it seems to me that documentation and study is basic in this kind of 'historic' works. I don't request 100% accuracy, but there should be some minimal adequation. It's meant a great disappointment to me, and it's a real pity, because so far, they do very well in Italian, Latin and German.