Faith & Disease Albums (6)
What The Critics Say
Faith & Disease's slow transformation from a quietly elegant goth band to an equally quietly elegant group with a broader range had been one of darker music's better pleasures during the early 2000s. Passport to Kunming continues that progression -- the first song alone, "She's Got a Halo," suggests everything from New Order's warm bass flow to the Moon Seven Times's rich rural reflections and back again. It's a perfect sign that the core duo of Dara Rosenwasser and Eric Cooley aren't content to simply replicate their past, and if the album title and graphics would seem to promise an exploration into Chinese music more than anything else, the focus here is more on other interests. The growing interest in various forms of country and folk that the two have showcased in the past continues here, sometimes in very subtle ways. There's the gentle twang on Cooley's guitar on "How Far Does the Sky Go" or the Mojave 3-tinged stately piano of "Girl at the Window," but there's also the mighty fine cover of "Made of Wood," originally done the previous year by Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter. Elsewhere, the emphasis is more on drony psychedelia reworked for the band's sound -- the acid-fried solo growling down below the main rhythm of "Between the Folds," the moody keyboards of "Impermanence." The latter song could well be the album's secret highlight, a slow unfolding chiaroscuro of Rosenwasser's voice shimmering up through a slow, powerfully somnolent arrangement. For all this, the sense of what makes the band its own unit remains strong, and there are plenty of examples to show it, a continuing argument for the relevance of shadowy and sweetly sung melancholia in a 21st century world. The CD includes both a remix of "She's Got a Halo" and a video for said song. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Having quietly built up a well-deserved reputation throughout the '90s as purveyors of darkly beautiful, goth-tinged music, Faith and Disease hit the year 2000 with another fine effort, the lovely Beneath These Trees. The core duo of Rosenwasser and Cooley still nail it song for song, her dreamy, haunting singing and his quietly elegant performances on guitar, keyboards, and other instruments in perfect harmony. Drummer Semple deserves note for his subtle, strong-without-seeming-it work, while Sather completes the regular lineup with her work on harmony vocals and flute. It all begins on an almost impossibly great note, with the a cappella duet between Rosenwasser and Sather on the title track shifting into "Rubina Verde." Easily the equal of the best work of Low in terms of hushed drama and atmosphere, it's both a standout track for Rosenwasser's gorgeous singing and the band's collective sense of performance. Some numbers recall the songs on Insularia, which explored a more rural, folk/country side of the group, a vein further tapped here with fine results. "If I Drink From This Cup" features Rosenwasser letting a slight but clear twang into her singing, just enough, while the slow piano, cello, and guitar parts often recall the hushed mood of Mojave 3's earliest efforts. Even more striking in context is "Banks of the Ohio," a traditional murder ballad recorded in an intentionally scratchy 78 rpm mix that really does sound like an archival Smithsonian Folkways number. One of the more intriguing numbers is "To See Her in This Light," which reverses the usual formula for the band in that Rosenwasser wrote the music and Cooley the words. It's still another great number from them, though, with a lovely flute part from Sather to help distinguish it. Add in such other notables as the elegiac "Eventually Again" and Faith and Disease enter a new decade with style and grace intact. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
On Faith and Disease's third studio effort, the band finds itself aligned a touch more with another Seattle underground legend, to everyone's collective benefit. Said legend would be the Walkabouts, the accomplished group that touches on everything from rural country to Scott Walker-type ballads and back again -- good company for the similarly broad-minded Faith and Disease. Kevin Suggs, regular Walkabouts producer, assists Cooley behind the boards for this effort, while Walkabouts lead figures Chris Eckman and Carla Torgerson appear on various tracks as well. Eckman adds keyboards to several songs and a wonderful lap steel guitar part to the opening "Perhaps...Persephone," which also features Rosenwasser playing electric herself as well as singing. Meanwhile, Torgerson duets brilliantly with Rosenwasser on the closing "Violet II," with Cooley's deep, moody organ fills and Knouse's dark chiming guitar setting the stage for a mysterious, grand performance that sounds both decades old and completely of the now. The band isn't simply cloning the Walkabouts here or elsewhere, though -- it's another lovely all-around effort from the group, with Knouse especially starting to shine as a guitarist with an individual, powerful performance sense. Cooley's bass work gets several standout points -- "Marie Don't Sleep in Your Makeup" is a particular winner, when three minutes in everything cuts down to his instrument, turning the song into a slow, almost '50s-tinged gloomy strut. Rosenwasser's singing, Furman's rolling drumming, and Knouse's narcotic fuzz guitar complete the elegant picture. Furman himself gets plenty of moments to stand out thanks to the variety of percussion he plays with skill, including djembe, clave, and even Tibetan bell-dribu. The end result isn't Dead Can Dance, but Faith and Disease pursuing its own encompassing muse. There's country twang, there's Ummagumma-era Pink Floyd pacing, and above all there's Rosenwasser with the voice of angels. Simply a wonderful album. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The title's a touch unusual but, a couple of bonus studio tracks aside, this is indeed Faith & Disease at various live dates (covering 1992 to 1996), ranging from club shows to outdoor festivals and even to a local TV spot. With Dara Rosenwasser and Eric Cooley backed by three other musicians, though all other Faith & Disease members of the era have separate credits as well, the band covers an interesting range of stylistic ground throughout the collection, which is organized in no particular order, chronologically or otherwise. Most numbers are familiar from the original recordings, including their excellent take on Renaissance's "Ashes Are Burning," with some astonishing guitar work from Steven Knouse while Rosenwasser's vocals are among her best ever. There are some interesting ringers as well, though, with Faith & Disease's range shown by two other remakes. "Witches," which eventually surfaced in studio form on Insularia, is a Cowboy Junkies composition given a fine electric folk-rock reading, while the studio take "Overwhelmed Beneath Me" was originally done for the Black Tape for a Blue Girl tribute album Of These Reminders. The band's original material, meanwhile, gets very fine performances throughout, including some real winners. "Violet," taken from a hometown show at the Crocodile Café, flows with a gentle majesty, the haunting romantic goth quality of the band's earliest efforts fully coming to bear. "Closure Song," meanwhile, finds Faith & Disease's open debt to bands like the Cure admirably repaid, with dramatic, slow-pound drumming from Rick Allen and an absolutely entrancing all-around performance making this version the definitive one. The concluding "Healing Anne," the earliest track on the disc, makes for a slightly murky but still interesting listen, finding the group already in command of the basic sound if not yet making a totally individual mark. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
With a slight band lineup change -- Joshua Ferman took over on drums from Allen, though he adds a few parts here and there -- Faith and Disease built on the strengths of its debut with an equally accomplished sophomore effort. A lovely cover and excellent overall recording quality assist it immeasurably -- the band's self-production, with help from Chris Hanzsek, is one of its hidden strengths not fully appreciated until hearing the results. Rosenwasser's again simply captivating voice, Cooley's bass playing sounds even more fluid and inspiring than before, and returning members Knouse and Tavares further help the band's own identity stand clearer. Opening track "Healing Anne," a lengthy composition originally from a 1993 compilation and thus featuring Allen as a result, makes for an inspired start, but it's the bulk of the tracks, from a newer vintage, that truly entrance. Whether speaking of the slow, drone-touched synth orchestrations from Tavares that dominate "Wallow," Rosenwasser's vocals softly keening through the music like a lost soul, or both excellent versions of the title track, soft medieval dances translated into a more modern moodiness, the band simply can't put a foot wrong. Two covers demonstrate not merely the range of the group's inspiration but its ability to put that spark into something new. "Ashes Are Burning," a key track from early-'70s art/folk/rock sorts Renaissance, shines in a keyboards/vocals-only version. Even more astonishing is the reworking of the Cure's "All Cats Are Grey," one of that group's most affecting, minimal numbers from the Faith album. The arrangement doesn't differ much, but the delivery, especially Rosenwasser's singing, is completely entrancing. Add to that a reinterpretation of "Hashivenu," a Hebrew chant of a psalm with a centuries-old provenance that features a guest singer and violinist with Rosenwasser on an evocative, haunting performance, and Faith and Disease simply nails it once again. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The band's first full-length, Beauty and Bitterness managed the hard-to-do trick of creating dark, atmospheric music with obvious appeal to goth fandom while not sounding limited or cliched in its approach. A lot of this has to do with Rosenwasser, whose singing would be to kill for by any number of country, blues, or folk singers. Rich, deep without sounding conventionally or hammily spooky, about the closest comparison to be made would be Margo Timmins' early work in the Cowboy Junkies, with a touch more of a brood. Higher registers are equally within her reach -- not helium squeaking or anything (thank goodness), but the gentle flow of her voice on the busier musical arrangement for "Ebb and Tide" creates a wonderful contrast. Cooley concentrates on his bass work, which works a touch more successfully than Steven Knouse's guitars -- at times the latter kicks up a fine enough wash of digitally delayed feedback as needed, though it makes everything sound more conventionally goth than it needs to be. The post-psych drones and fine folk/blues-tinged acoustic performances he puts in at points helps make up for that, and quite nicely, too. As for the rest of the band, Rick Allen's drumming adds some surprising body without being overwhelming, while Joaquin Tavares concentrates on fine but generally unobtrusive synth parts. Together the five-piece ranges from busy, almost rock-on efforts here and there to slow, stately majesty. "Intro: Voltaire's Vallerie" makes a great example of both, with the intro itself showcasing John Clough's guest keyboard work at the start, almost like an orchestral start, while the main song starts calmly before hitting a great, mid-paced groove highlighted by Knouse's rural-touched playing and Rosenwasser's wonderful singing. In sum, a fantastic debut from a young band already well on their way to where to go next. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
