ROBIN O'BRIEN : Fore EP.
This 4 track EP is yet another piece of documental evidence that the people running major labels don't know their Blind Lemon Jefferson's from their Blind Lemon Pie's (see Spinal Tap). Indeed the first song here Finding/Losing is said to be a response to Robin's courtship with major labels; I'm not that clued up on her previous career but I think I can take it that any past experience she's had have ended sourly. Again though I'm left wondering why? With a lot of un-signed demos I receive the problem is that a bit of studio gloss can never disguise a lack of songwriting talent. That's certainly not the case here; O'Brien writes with a lyrical and sonic range that is staggering, all of these songs are sure-fire hit singles in a parallel universe where all is just and fair in the music world. There's a hint of the country confessional Lucinda Williams here and a dash of Liz Phair style rock chic attitude there, but essentially this is a singer-songwriter with a strong identity, great voice and a bucketful of talent. Find out more at www.luxotone.com
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There are two great things about EPs. First, the short form offers a venue for artists to cut out the filler that typically goes into longer albums rushed to market, delivering a higher quality product. Second, if that product sucks, at least it’s over quickly. Robin O’Brien’s folksy, acoustic Fore falls into “high quality product” category. Thoughtful, intimate, and powerful, O’Brien does not deliver any bad tracks on this excellent release.

Even on an EP as strong as Fore, some songs rise above others. “Finding/Losing,” the opening track, defies easy rhymes and sets the tone for the complex lyrical combinations that are to come on other tracks. O’Brien depends heavily on an intricate layering of vocals via excellent mixing, sometimes singing melody, harmony and backing vocals all at the same time. She puts this effect to excellent use in “Finding/Losing.” The final track on the EP, “Waiting” is initially mellower. O’Brien sings in a low, velvety voice, letting the volume and emotion grow meticulously as the drama of the lyrics build.

“L.O.V.E. Love” is a fun foray into clever lyricism, playing on the spelling of “love” and involved emotions delivered in lines like “laughing, crying, I remember everything you said.” “So Good” has the most dynamic chorus on Fore, but also pushes the limits of O’Brien’s range, with mixed results. Although she carries the song through without overbalancing, the vocal layering effect is not as effectual here, largely because O’Brien is hitting notes just slightly above her comfort zone, and making them sound (at times) more shouted than sung.

The oddly endearing thing about Fore is its imperfection. Robin O’Brien’s voice is in turns pretty and powerful, but it isn’t perfectly polished. What it is, though, is thoroughly suited to her music. Fore’s liner notes feature a quote from O’Brien, commenting on her frustration with the cassette tapes from which the EP version of Fore was reengineered: “They are like diaries, except I can’t access them.” The personal nature of O’Brien’s songs brings a raw energy to Fore. She plays a mean guitar and brings inventive lyrics to the table, but it’s her naked personal revelations that make Fore a must-have. JENNIFER DELISLE
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I’ve never really actually listened to the Incredible String Band, but this is what I would imagine Robin O’Brien listened to---religiously almost---when she was growing up as a teenager, and then used later as her muse, her inspiration, her raison d’etre to write the beautiful, incredible songs that she does on Fore.
      I have, however, listed to Liege & Lief  by Fairport Convention and Robin’s resonant, precious voice is the very double of Sandy Denny (think of the mystic female voice singing "doesn’t the darkened night" off of Led Zep IV on the Battle of Evermore).  There’s also this very strong Joni Mitchell thing going on here, though unintentionally. Robin just can’t help sounding like Joni. Her voice is simply spectacular: layered harmonies, deep poetic tones, rich nuances. It’s simply beguiling and bewitching. Yes, even down right Celtic at times. Think Buffy St. Marie. But this is no folk or Renaissance Fair. It’s just great songwriting and singing and enchanting music at it’s best. Call it what you like.

"Nothing around here has changed," Robin sings, "walking New York in the rain" on her best song Finding/Losing.  "Streets I remember look and feel the same" ---as if finding and losing everything at the same time were a way of putting everything into perspective. Losing what or whom?  Bob Dylan?  Fried Neil? Or Tim Hardin lost somewhere deep in the black café bowels of 60s Greenwich Village?  This is the feeling you get from Robin’s music and particularly Fore. Like they paved paradise and poured boiling tar down your neck. There is love and loss on this E.P. and someone has hurt someone real, real bad.

George Reisch and Luxatone’s supburb production and guitar work on these songs has really brought them forward to a fine polish. Originally dusty and full of cracks on worn basement four-track tapes, Luxatone has re-mastered all the songs and added new strands of instrumentation that just seems to ring out in all the right places. Lot’s of extra tracks and overlays without drowning out the gemstone center of the vocal.

So what genre is it? Go figure. L.O.V.E. sounds like a psych-mystic mountain hop with rich tapestry of interwoven vocals and Doors This is the End-like guitar. So Good has a very Pixiesesque harmony, but with a strong cross of Dido "White Flag" with a modern edge you’d easily find on your local indie station.

Waiting, sounds like a grrrrrrrlllllll power growl, or Hole on a lonely unplugged set stabbing sticks into Olympian (WA) voodoo dolls. Or Patti Smith does P.J. Harvey does Richard Hell?  And then this sudden high alter-boy harmony that climbs up the scales like a Mozart choir. It’s simply bluesy and folky and grungy all at the same time!

So yes, give Fore a listen. Nothing has changed since Richard Thompson trimmed his beard, but thank god these tracks were saved from the stony menhirs of yesteryear and updated for the the 21st century. Robin’s songs will seduce and bewitch you, like watching the sun rise over standing stones on calm summer solstice. Spread your arms out and enjoy the show.
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