Word: contraltos
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...stamp of My Bloody Valentine can be heard in Jake Duzsik’s vocals. Whereas Kevin Shields and Bilinda Butcher’s heavily dubbed harmonies were central to that band’s sound, Duzsik attempts to recreate that kind of sound individually, singing between tenor and contralto through a rather liberal use of reverb. He successfully generates an effect of androgyny, but the vocals can feel insincere as a result. HEALTH’s originality has always been most evident in the sheer force and power of their sound. Their 2007 eponymous debut album was unrelenting...
...Martin Luther King Jr. called her the queen of American folk music. Odetta's stage presence was regal enough: planted onstage like an oak tree no one would dare cut down, wearing a guitar high on her chest, she could envelop Carnegie Hall with her powerful contralto as other vocalists might fill a phone booth. This was not some pruny European monarch but a stout, imperious queen of African-American music. She used that amazing instrument to bear witness to the pain and perseverance of her ancestors. Some folks sing songs. Odetta testified...
...helping to clarify the subtle shifts between sentiments. In one especially memorable section, the dancers, cast in a bluish light, simulate swimming motions in the air. The only disappointment of the work is not in the dancing, but in the singing. The live duet between soprano Sandra Patrikalakis and contralto Susan Larson often detracts from the beauty of the choreography; overall, however, the piece is effective. The ending is particularly creative, making use of a tower built by the dancers from wooden blocks and topped by an illuminated, reflective sphere. The lights dim with the dancers intensely focused on this...
...dropout, is the group's songsmith, and what his lyrics lack in depth his melodies make up in lilting appeal. Phillips' wife Michelle, a willowy ex-model, is the spiraling soprano; Denny Doherty, 24, sings a secure tenor. Anchor girl is rotund (200 lbs.) Cass Elliot, 23, whose ringing contralto gives the quartet its oomph. Together they build a buoyant vocal blend that floats easily through intricate harmonic shifts, toying with rhythms that are as fresh and bracing as ocean breezes. The quartet is now on a highly successful college tour, stands to make $1,000,000 this year." Read...
...children down for a reading of The Little Engine That Could, some gramps will tell them, "Once, kids, there was a thing called harmony." There's no richer reminder of how lovely three voices singing as one can sound than this album by the New Jersey sibs: soprano Terre, contralto Maggie and alto Suzzy. The sisters' neo-traditional sound works wonders on a range of Christmas songs. A third of the 24 cuts are of secular songs, including a Caribbean-flavored "Deck the Halls," a "Sleigh Ride" whose percussion is horse-clop tongue clicks and a very heavily Brooklyn-accented...