Scarlet’s Well 'The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse' album

“The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse” is the new album by Scarlet’s Well. Todd E Jones reviews.

Bid, once member of The Monochrome Set, is now the driving creative force behind Scarlet’s Well. While all of the music and lyrics of Scarlet’s Well is composed by Bid, young girls sing many of the songs. The beautiful and organic quality of the music felt like it could be a soundtrack for The Lord Of The Rings. Taking place in the fictional village of Mousseron, all of the Scarlet’s Well albums have unique instrumentation, vivid imagery, and deep literary lyrical sentiments. The previous 3 albums ("Strange Letters", "Isle Of The Blue Flowers", and "Alice In The Underworld") took listeners on a magical journey into a world of imaginative creatures and characters. In 2004, Scarlet’s Well returned with their 4th album “The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse” released on Siesta Records. While the new album does maintain the sound and musical quality of the others, Bid handles a majority of the vocals on this LP. Zarif, Florence, and Alice are the only female singers this time. Still, “The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse” is a wonderfully imaginative LP from the hearts and minds of Scarlet’s Well.

The LP is filled with beautiful songs and some of them instantly hit the listener. One of the ending tracks, “I Walk In Endless Silence” is one the best Scarlet’s Well song ever made. Eerie, magical, and very beautiful, Bid glides through the song with a graceful sadness. The lyrics in the chorus are lovely and poetic: “…I walk in endless silence / And in my footsteps lilies grow / And around them rivers flow…” The guitar and the rim-shot rhythm make this a song where you can feel the actual walking. Another majestic song is “Walking With The Beast” (originally recorded by The Monochrome Set), which features both Bid and Zarif on the vocals. The upbeat guitars and drums give the track a solid driving rhythm. As Zarif handles the verses, Bid sings the hook: “…Muscle of love / kiss me ever so sweetly / Honey truck, hit me and rattle my bones / Walk with the beast and your heart will complete me / In love, in love…” Filled with passion and vivid imagery, the romance of the song can truly engulf the listener in a ravishing delight. “Endymion Sleeps”, sung by Alice, is not only very pretty but has an organic quality due to the guitar work. Alice sing, “…Stay for ever / With those strands of hair I bind you / Dream of me…” The romantic sentiments mixed in with the magic make this truly beautiful. Alice makes one more appearance on “Billy Buttock’s Requiem”. While not as pretty, “Billy Buttock’s Requiem” is very upbeat and catchy. The lyrics (written by Bid) are both humorous and bitter. Alice sings, “…Pray silence for my rotten son / Into whose hands In leave the sum / Of many ways to drown and fade away / And his lovely wife has come to stay…” The evil is delicious and accentuated by the electric guitar. Overall, the song is very theatrical. The final instrumental, “De Natura Deorum” has some crooning by Zarif and has a mystical Middle-Eastern flavor.

As a singer, Bid does prove to have a very strong presence. On “Big Dipper On The Spearman’s Floor”, his hushed voice has a cool flow. On “I Walk In Endless Silence”, his voice can go from a cool whisper to a falsetto tone. Bid opens the album on the title track too. While fans may expect the ladies to handle all of the singing, Bid does not disappoint.

Scarlet’s Well is a wonderfully creative and theatrical sounding group that consistently releases quality LPs. Overflowing with imagination and creativity, Bid’s songs sound like they could be performed in a play or in a magical land very far away. Mousseron is a magical place filled with love and danger. The cast of characters along with the mystical quality makes the whole concept delightful. “The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse” is another beautiful addition to the Scarlet’s Well series. The major difference in this LP and the past LPs is that Bid sings on 5 of 11 songs. Although Alice, Florence and Zarif all do amazing jobs, Bid can hold his own. “The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse” by Scarlet’s Well is a magical journey. Like a dream, it is filled with passion, romance, peril, and wisdom. The LP will satisfy old fans and could enlighten new fans too. Take a drink out of Scarlet’s Well and let the magic take control.

9 out of 10

Review by Todd E. Jones
toddejones@yahoo.com

OFFICIAL WEBSITE For Scarlet’s Well:
http://www.bid.clara.net/swell

Label: http://www.siesta.es

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Scarlet’s Well - The Dream Spider Of The Laughing Horse