Haunt Of Last Nightfall

David T. Little & Third Coast Percussion

New Amsterdam Records, 2014

http://davidtlittle.com

REVIEW BY: Tom Haugen

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 04/25/2014

An accomplished musician and composer in both rock and classical music, David T. Little has picked up some heavy accomplishments for not even being 40 yet. With a resume including the opera Dog Days, the artistic force and drummer behind the Orwell influenced Newspeak, and an Ivy League Ph.D to his credit, this is a man with a wealth of talent and knowledge.

For this project, Little linked up with Third Coast Percussion to peek into a tragedy in El Salvador history, the 1981 massacre at El Mozote where 800+ citizens were killed by the El Salvadorian army. my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

The instrumental disc opens with the gentle “Curtain, El Mozote,where clarinets, clapping, and vibraphones set a plaintive atmosphere before the abrupt drumming and loud bells of “Between The Hammer And The Anvil” strike. It's a jarring difference, the first two tracks, but reminds us that this in fact an album inspired by a horrible disaster. The quiet then creeps back in on the self-titled track that builds into a powerful anthem. Act One closes on two quick tunes, “Line Up/Face Down” and “Coda: And There Was Evening...” The former, as the title suggests, is a more forceful affair with crashing percussion, while the latter is a soothing, almost therapeutic end of the first half.

Act Two starts off playful and skittering before ominous riffs come in on “... And There Was Morning – The Second Day.” A more tense affair than the first act, the songs twist and turn between classical and dark rock 'n' roll before exiting on “Postlude: The Girl On La Cruz,” which adds an almost sludge metal backbone to the otherwise graceful endnote that punctuates the album's emotive template with a fuzzed-out roar.

Little is well known for tackling tough subject matter, and on this disc, he and company use sophistication with plenty of abrasiveness and power with tunefulness to address one of the most devastating civilian massacres to date. There really is nothing out there that remotely sounds like this, to my knowledge at least, so you have to applaud the players here for forging new ground. This isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but fans of both classical and hard rock/metal will find plenty to enjoy.

Rating: B

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