Wildbirds & Peacedrums

Rivers (The Control Group)

By Megan Martin
Published: August 27th, 2010 | 7:00am

Rivers feels more like a journey than an album—a trip through forests and tree-covered terrain, across the ocean and onto a desolate island. The record, the husband and wife team’s third, is a reshaping of the way music is made, beautifully combining the ways of old (jazz era singing, ancient instrumentation) with the sounds of today. Mariam Wallentin’s vocals are a powerfully intimate element to Wildbirds & Peacedrums music, a bluesy, angelic tone that seems rooted deep within.

The record is comprised of two previously released EPs, Retina and Iris, and thus divided into two parts, the former building a hymnal battle cry between man and wild, while the latter faces it in a peaceful acceptance. It’s cohesive, the split not at all drastic, though the second half leads the listener down a calmer stream on the same rushing river. “Peeling Off the Layers” is a beautiful ballad about earthly elements and the acceptance of the worlds’ continuous motion, while “The Wave” is a dreamy and passionate number where Wallentin procalims, “I am stuck here on an island / I don’t blame it on bad luck / It’s fate / Love is moving like a wave.”

Wildbirds & Peacedrums are perfectly named, as the duo utilizes elements that inspire primitive ways of creating music. Drummer Andreas Werliin rattles to the core, and you can practically feel each strike on the skins. The more primal urges of sound and songwriting are explored, including heavy drumbeats, unique percussion, and chorus chanting. The music flows along in an effortless motion that seems carried by Wallentin’s warm vocals, creating a juxtaposition of peaceful and dark sounds like waves crashing in the middle of the night.

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The Control Group