At lecteur < > liseur, we introduce the thoughts and backgrounds of artists, sometimes using their own words, and hope that by getting to know them more deeply, you will be able to feel something more than just listening to them. This time, we will introduce the music of Edmondson, who is from Newcastle and lives in Berlin.
"Linhope" (2020)
"Linhope" is a collaboration between Edmondson and Practitoner, a long-time friend of Edmondson. Released in 2020, a year of upheaval as the coronavirus pandemic began, this EP has undoubtedly become a faint but certain light in Berlin's cultural scene.
…The above introduction
① Released in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic
②Club closures in Berlin due to COVID-19
③The title contains the word “hope”
④Collaboration with Practioner
That was my imagination, put together from fragmentary information. Some of the songs have ambient elements, and they are very pleasant to listen to, which is also influenced by the fact that I felt they were a good mismatch when I thought about the world at the time of the release. However, I was curious about the actual situation, so I asked Edmondson himself to explain the EP.
Edmondson: "Linhope comes from Linhope Spout, which is a natural waterfall in the Northumbrian countryside near where I grew up. I think there's always a lot of nostalgia and escapism in my music and Linhope occupies a particularly calm and innocent place in my mind, so it felt like a good match (especially for Persian Palaces). I think I actually named and completed this EP shortly before Covid happened, with no idea of what was to follow! Me & Practitioner are both from the same area in the UK (Newcastle Upon Tyne) and lived close by in Berlin too."
In fact, the EP was completed before the COVID-19 pandemic, and it was completely different from what I had imagined. However, Linhope's sound still gave me the impression of an oasis in the desert because it was composed of pure nostalgia and escape. Then, the impression changed again completely with the next EP that was released.
"New forest Mysticism" (2022)
The track "Think Back" has a tense bass phrase repeated, and the bass and percussion that entwine with the soft drone sound create a mysterious feeling in "New Forest Mysticism". " All Dressed Up & Going Nowhere" have a memorable synth that gives a sense of tragedy rather than nostalgia. And "Y2K Glow Mix" loosens up the stiffness of the past with a familiar piano chord progression, concluding the EP with a sense of speed and freshness.
"New forest Mysticism," which seems to have a different theme from Linhope, is released in 2022. Perhaps there was a gloomy feeling of "I can't go anywhere even if I dress up" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here too, we received commentary from Edmondson , focusing on "All Dressed Up & Going Nowhere."
Edmondson: "All Dressed Up & Going Nowhere was written deep in the 2nd Covid lockdown period, by which time I was living in the countryside in Southern France. I had lost my job and couldn't find a new one since everything was closed, so I was stuck in a routine of waking up and getting dressed up to do nothing all day. As well as fitting the sentiment of that period of my life, the name is also a reference to my region in the UK, as it was the name of this documentary about Newcastle gangs in 1971."
" All Dressed Up & Going Nowhere" is a double meaning of a documentary about his hometown of Newcastle related to his own circumstances, but even in difficult times, Edmondson's nostalgia and feelings for his hometown of Newcastle are consistent at the core of his being. It is also very interesting that he has sublimated these elements into music without lyrics, and knowing the background not only makes it enjoyable to listen to, but also encourages us.
By the way, this documentary is uploaded to Youtube, so if you are interested, please take a look. Some of the interviews are very hard to hear, but it seems that the Geordie (people who live in Newcastle) English accent is very difficult to understand. And it seems that Geordies are full of hometown love. Maybe Edmondson's roots, nostalgia and escape come from here.