The Phenomenon of Broderick
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Label: Various
It seems everywhere we turn these days, the name Broderick crops up, so it was time to delve a little into the most striking representatives of this family name at the moment, namely Peter Broderick of Portland, Oregon, and looking just a short distance further, we find his equally talented sister, Heather Broderick, both members of the influential Danish, experimental band Efterklang.
Not a simple task taking on these two musical geniuses, and it’s a task undertaken with more than just a tad bit of envy or awe of so much talent contained in an individual. First, as a big fan of the Type and Kning Disk labels, my experience of the Brodericks begins with Peter Broderick, this ludicrously young musician for all his experience, talent and already impressive repertoire of albums to his name. As young at school, he would learn the ropes of all instruments he could get his hands on, and to date he fluently and aptly treads the ground of piano, guitar, violin, percussion, voice with an ease to simply gawk at. Starting out as a session recording musician, 2007 found him later joining the Danish Efterklang and promptly launching him into a career of touring, which as of then and until now has graced the world with an innovative and influential musician that seamlessly blends folksy and rock music with more experimental electronica and classical compositions that have been released quickly in succession as solo recordings.
Releases has seen him go from the piano-centric debut album on Type in “Float”, a selection of delicate and fragile piano and string based instrumentals to render a tear in anyone’s heart, to the originally Bella Union-released “Home” which saw Broderick take up the singer-songwriter tradition based around vocals and guitar-laden folk-rock, or even the nostalgic yet simply awesome “4 Track Songs” that recently saw early recordings, often made in a single sitting at home with only a tape cassette recorder, that finally was made available on Type too. And since then the British label Erased Tapes/_Western Vinyl_ has released his soundtrack-esque “Music For Falling From Trees”, actually a commissioned score for a piano and strings-based modern dance piece, curated by London-based choreographer Adrienne Hart of Neon Productions, and Dutch label Slaapwel (“sleep well” in English perhaps, given the label’s focus on sleep music) recently came out with the reminiscent, sleep-inducing “Music for a Sleeping Sculpture of Peter Broderick” – both albums seeing Broderick turn his attention to diligently to the art of composing within stricter boundaries and upon being challenged to create a piece that answers to certain conditions, he meets these initial outlines and expectations to produce such beautiful and breath-taking musical moments that defy imagination. The former of these is split into seven movements and courses from tripping, light pieces to more lavishing, droning pieces, and as the listener you can practically envision the dance piece and the movements of the dancers to an imaginary story of falling from trees, both from the outset to study the protagonist of the piece to witnessing the dramatic scenes and the postludium. For the latter, Wim of Slaapwel had challenged Broderick to compose a piece one could sleep – or fall asleep to – and through the combination of hollow, airy choirs near-angelic vocals and lingering, sweeping piano tones, the feeling of sleep slowly and surely creeps up on the listener to lull them into that comfortable state of being.
Lastly for our Peter Broderick spotlight, we need to focus on the recent collaboration with another in-house favourite, the ever-industrious and oh so prolific Machinefabriek, and their album “Blank Canvas Grey Sky” that came out on Swedish label Fang Bomb as 2009 ebbed out. It is inspiring to see how well these two musicians collaborate, this time a joint project from the off, where both contribute with their trademark signatures, Rutger Zuydervelt coming in from his minimalistic, glitchy drone/electronica angle and Peter Broderick contributing with light and airy qualities by playing violin, piano and using his voice as supplement. In the end, the album does feel nothing at all like two musicians bouncing ideas and tracks off each other, but completely in sync and fitting, not like two musicians have been working in alternating order but as if they were live in studio together, improvising upon each other’s ideas and extending them into a fine selection of 6 tracks. Occasionally the compositions border on the sheer brilliance of Alva Noto and Ryuichi Sakamoto’s recent, yet already legendary collaborative works. Highlights come in quick succession after the album starts and reach a climax with “Planes” and then my personal favourite “Kites”, and my only struggle with this album is the unnerving lyrics of “Rain”, and though I love rain and also find it awesome, there’s something in the repetitive duet of Broderick and Susanna Lundgren that dispel my usually fond feelings for rain.
Moving on from the male sibling, we find Heather Broderick (also former member of Loch Lomond and Horse Feathers), who released her debut album, “From The Ground” on Australian Preservation. Similar to Peter, Heather Broderick masters piano and voice perfectly and have created a lovely selection of tinkering, neo-classical songs on a folk-rock tip where the primary attention is on her vocals. Her background learning several instruments and growing up in a quiet countryside helps to see the rural connection in the music, but what distinguishes these 11 songs from simply more of the same ol’ singer-songwriter tradition, is Heather Broderick’s aptitude and affinity for ambient and experimental sounds. This adds many more layers to her songs, and also allows for instrumentals that perfectly manage and maneuver tranquil, countryside landscapes without the influence of vocals and create perfect moods for home listening. Peter Broderick has also had more than a finger in on Heather’s project, playing instruments throughout the album and recording and mixing it. Highly recommended and listen if you like Hildur Guðnadóttir, Natalie Merchant, PJ Harvey, Rachel Grimes.
Since her debut album, Broderick traveled around her beloved home town of Portland, Oregon and recorded her musically inclined friends on 4-track. The result was a collection of “Portland Stories” and came out on Sonic Pieces in 2009, and she also contributes with the closing track. Originally conceived as a way that Heather could have the music of her home with her when she was away, the collection of songs sound warm and friendly, probably capturing the feeling of Portland and retelling different facets or stories of Portland’s inhabitants. The contributions range from the soothing Spanish vocals of Rauelsson, to Sarah Winchester who is herself reminiscent of Heather’s voice, to the sweet kite string-inspired singer-songwriter piece of Kele Goodwin, to the lively guitar chords of Town Rill detailing life from a park bench (at least so we’re inclined to imagine) and Galveston’s personal endeavour on “Never Ask Why”. Heather Woods Broderick concludes with her own “Behind Doors” which is a moody song to wrap up this sweet compilation, full of emotion and probably evoking good memories of home if you’re fond of Portland. With great musicians like this based there, it’s easy to see why one would appreciate Portland. Only sad thing is, Sonic Pieces printed a limited 369 copies of this, and of course, they’re all gone now.
Lastly, on the topic of Brodericks in music, let’s bring out the rabbit in the hat, Matthew Broderick. What’s his role in music, we hear you say, well, we’re not sure if he’s got some hobby band in addition to his mediocre acting career, but his Ferris Bueller part earned him the credit of being sampled by Mark Pritchard and Tom Middleton’s early 90s atmospheric drum and bass project, Chameleon for their timeless classic Links that appeared on LTJ Bukem’s Logical Progression series.
Web resources:
Peter Broderick on myspace
Heather Broderick on myspace
