PRINT REVIEWS:
PROG Magazine: Issue 108 (April 2020)There is something very satisfying about tracing 'family trees'. They can both reveal the root of things and help us understand the present. The prog family tree of Three Colours Dark is both fascinating and impressive. Back at the turn of the millennium, its two members, Rachel Cohen and Jonathan Edwards, were part of Karnataka, one of the genuine founts for Welsh prog. From it's deep waters flowed The Reasoning, Panic Room and Edwards' most recent project, with Anne-Marie Helder, Luna Rossa. Fifteen years since Cohen and Edwards last wrote together (and nearly a decade since Cohen's last recordings) their creative paths have finally re-crossed. The result is fascinatin, beautiful and compelling.
From it's opening chords, The Science Of Goodbye is as invigorating as a pool of pure, shocking water. Enter Soubrette - which draws on the old opera idea of a character who plays a flirtatious woman - is delicate, strange and unabashedly theatrical. The world Edwards and Cohen creates is no less real for that: this is music that's, by turns, vulnerable, disturbing (as on Monster) and moving. When Cohen sings of escaping a man who is 'three colours dark' we should not simply take her lyrics as autobiographical. Nonetheless, her often eerie voice - part Jon Anderson, part Sarah McLachlan - creates room for all of us who've negotiated personal fractures. Her voice's vulnerability is its strength. Edwards' recent work with Anne-Marie Helder has been keys-based, whereas The Science Of Goodbye reconnects with his proggier and rockier past. In particular, Wonderland (How Can This Be Love?) draws on rock grooves present so impressively with Panic Room. Perhaps what's most impressive about Cohen and Edwards' achievements, however, is their soulful handling of melancholia, wounds and pain. Know You Now matches Cohen's Vox with Nathan Brays' flugelhorn and trumpet to impressive effect. |
This is also an album with some outstanding guest performances, including a couple of outings for Steve Balsamo's mighty lungs as well as a soaring guitar display from Chantel McGregor on Blood Moon Rising. Props should also be given to the third 'unofficial' member of the band, Tim Hamill, whose cross-album bass and drum programming act as an anchor for a lot of emotion and vulnerability.
On the album's title track Cohen sings about taking back her life, closing the album on a cathartic and hopeful note; The Science Of Goodbye is the perfect vehicle for Cohen's delicate and ethereal talents. But most of all it is a collaboration between two musicians who comprehend and complement each other.
(RACHEL MANN)
On the album's title track Cohen sings about taking back her life, closing the album on a cathartic and hopeful note; The Science Of Goodbye is the perfect vehicle for Cohen's delicate and ethereal talents. But most of all it is a collaboration between two musicians who comprehend and complement each other.
(RACHEL MANN)
EURO ROCK PRESS (Vol 85 - May 2020)
"Despite having a treasure trove of good work, they made another debut with a new band working in the female symphonic area in Wales. Panic Room's Jonathan Edwards and Rachel Cohen of the disbanded The Reasoning have formed a new band. They have released an album with Dave Gregory who recently left Big Big Train and several other guests. It has properties picked out from the good points of the duo's former homes and Rachel's voice also reminds me of the early days of Karnataka. The Richard Thompson cover is delicious and the lyrical beauty of 'Tasted Like Kryptonite' and 'Blood Moon Rising' is masterpiece level."
(TESTUO UCHIDA - translated by Tom Edwards) |
POWERPLAY (July 2020)
Here's a record I've been looking forward to for a while. Having been a fan of Karnataka in the early noughties, their initial break might not have been devastating but certainly disappointing. From the embers of Karnataka came... a rejuvenated Karnataka in a couple of lineups, Luna Rossa, Chasing The Monsoon and Panic Room, and after an outing with The Reasoning, Rachel Cohen joins forces again here with Jonathan Edwards in Three Colours Dark. They take the stage in their first collaboration for sixteen years as a duo with guest appearances, most notably from Dave Gregory and Chantel McGregor. However, it's Kate Ronconi's violin that sets the wheels in motion on 'Enter Soubrette' and continues to make frequent significant contributions amidst some sumptuous Edwards arrangements. Nathan Bray's brass adds a melancholy to 'Know You Now' with it's Celtic Clannadesque atmospheres, but at the core it's wonderful to hear the Cohen voice: fragile, velvet and pure. Lyrically there's a hint of confessional. Most significantly, the track that gives it's name to the band references twelve years wasted, them and that was three colours dark and some telling lines ' "I gave it all and all for nothing, three time over and one woman down" and "what good is our freedom when we're empty inside" - that cut in the general air of refined calm with an emotional depth. Often deeply personal and hopefully cathartic.
There might be a heftier present with the beats of 'Monster' and a lovely cover of Richard Thompson's 'Ghosts In The Wind', but this is a long way from being hard and heavy. On the plus, it's a beautifully lush album. (MIKE AINSCOE) |
FIREWORKS Magazine (Issue 91 - Summer 2020)
Three Colours Dark is the new project from UK Prog scene stalwarts Jonathan Edwards (Panic Room, Luna Rossa, Karnataka) and Rachel Cohen (Karnataka, The Reasoning). The project, and the duo's debut album, has come a bit out of the blue to be honest. Indeed, despite their long writing and recording history, it's their first collaboration since the original Karnataka line-up disbanded some sixteen years ago.
Sonorous, reflective and mature, 'The Science Of Goodbye' is a breath of fresh air which has been quietly gathering an enthusiastic response from those in the know. It's been beautifully co-produced with Panic Room engineer/producer, Tim Hamill and features and intriguing array of guest musicians, including Dave Gregory (of XTC, Big Big Train and H Band notoriety), blues rock guitarist, Chantel McGregor and Jesus Christ Superstar luminary, Steve Balsamo (last seen by this writer at the Royal Albert Hall during the Jon Lord Tribute show). Edwards sounds masterful throughout, while Cohen's voice is as confident and strident as it's ever been on record. The songs are generally short and accessible and despite the coherence of the overall sound, have an eclectic feel which is due in no small part to the personal contributions of the musicians. For example, take a listen to Kate Ronconi's soulful violin one 'Enter Soubrette' or Nathan Bray's telling trumpet on 'Know You Now'. Other features of note are the laid-back country blues groove, guitar inflections and organ of 'Blood Moon Rising', the almost Tori Amos-like vibe of 'Tasted Like Kryptonite' and the foreboding cinematic drama of 'Monster', a track which builds powerfully and packs an unexpected punch. Lyrically, the album is also striking. Cohen's words come from a place that blends the personal and the intellectual, and can be explored as lightly or as deeply alone wishes (check out the Echo Society UK for links between the lyrics here and the issues of real-life significance, or her Walls Of Wonderland blog for thought provoking reflections on the nature of self in it's various layers and guises. |
'The Science Of Goodbye' is a superb left field comeback for Edwards and Cohen. However, its real joy lies in hearing two seasoned musicians who will both be known to readers from their previous bands, sounding so liberated and relaxed in each other's company. Musically it's a smile inducing pleasure from start to finish.
(MICHAEL ANTHONY)
(MICHAEL ANTHONY)
ROCK 'n' REEL Magazine (Vol. 2 No. 82 - July/August 2020)
Now here's a misleading band name. Three Colours Dark had me expecting the arty cinematic end of Gothdom, so the thing that particularly struck me about this debut album, for all the dark lyrical themes of domestic psychological abuse covered, was the music's quality of light - a shimmering Aurora glow. Synaesthesia aside, the band reunites Rachel Cohen and Jonathan Edwards for the first time since the original line-up of Karnataka back in the early 2000s, and on The Science Of Goodbye the spark is very much still there.
Of course, it will appeal to fans of their earlier work, but for those out of the loop, there are similarities to both Renaissance and Solstice - intelligent, classical inflected rock with commanding female vocals, that puts melody before unnecessary flash. Indeed, if someone had told me that the cover of Richard Thompson's 'Ghosts In The Wind' - the album's only non-original - was an outtake from 'Ashes Are Burning' I wouldn't;t have questioned it. The prevailing textures are provided by Edwards' warm tactile keyboards and synths, but Tim Hamill's snaky bass is a key element throughout and guests broaden the palette with additional guitars, violin and trumpet. The effect is one of uplift in adversity and, ultimately, spiritual triumph that culminates in the airy closing track. (OZ HARDWICK) |
HIGHLANDS Magazine (Issue 103 - August 2020)
DIGITAL REVIEWS:
Who Is Sam Lewis? (April 2020)
"Cohen and Edwards were two-thirds of the original Karnataka line-up's songwriting trio, with their contributions leading to those first three Karnataka albums sounding the way that they do. The mix of atmospheric progressive rock with Celtic melodies that adorned those early Karnataka albums has never really been achieved by any of the main protagonists since Delicate Flame Of Desire. but Three Colours Dark's debut album, The Science Of Goodbye, is easily the closest thing yet to that sound. The sweeping soundscapes of the early Karnataka albums returns here which, when coupled with Cohen's delicately controlled vocals (I am not sure anyone can hold a note quite like her), certainly turns the clock back to the early days of Three Colours Dark's former band."
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
PROG ARCHIVE (May 2020)
"I thoroughly enjoyed this album, which will be on my playlist for years to come, as, of course, are the albums of the bands which make up this collective. What is certain is if you enjoy Karnataka, Panic Room, Luna Rossa and the vocal contribution to The Reasoning by Cohen, you will find much to enjoy here. Very highly recommended and awarded an 'excellent' four star rating. I, for one, hope that this is but the first in a series of such collaborations." ★★★★
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
The Spirit Of Progressive Rock (May 2020)
"It is the best part of a decade since Rachel released any music, but her voice is as good and strong as ever. At times her voice is quite ethereal, but she has a bite of something much grittier lurking in the back ground..."
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READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
AMAROK Magazine (May 2020)
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PROG FEMALE VOICES (June 2020)
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PROGARCHY (June 2020)
"From its claustrophobic onset to its inspiring end, The Science of Goodbye rings true as both testimony and art; spying the 'crack in everything' Leonard Cohen sang about in 'Anthem', Three Colours Dark follows the light that gets in to a new day. A great listen from a great new duo, well worth your time and your cash"
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
LET IT ROCK (June 2020)
"It’s been more than a decade and a half since Jonathan Edwards and Rachel Cohen last concocted such gripping song cycles as 'Delicate Flame Of Desire', but their chemistry remained the same – dormant to manifest itself after all these years in the pair’s second joint project’s debut whose very title seems to quietly speak volumes about the Brits’ creative method – simultaneously sensual, nuanced and understated. Accumulating the apart-experience the two protagonists acquired in, respectively, LUNA ROSSA and THE REASONING, and adding Tim Hamill to the ensemble’s line-up, Rach and Jon delve deep into human psyche – the art-rock veterans go as far as to provide bibliography for further reading: a logical outcome of her academic career and his musical expertise – and explore their own soul along the way. The result is introspective and captivating on both melodic and lyrical levels that reveal more and more semantic layers with each new spin."
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READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
PROG CRITIQUE (June) (French Language)
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PROG CENSOR (June) (Belgian Language) ★★★★ READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE |
PROFILPROG.COM (July) (French Language)
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BACKGROUND Magazine (July) (Netherlands)
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MUSIPEDIA OF METAL (July 2020)
An album of loss, acceptance and rebirth The Science Of Goodbye could be the ultimate break up album (and you thought that belonged to Alanis Morissette) and it stayed with me for hours after each time I listened to it. A wonderfully vivid album from some of the Welsh 'progressive' rock scenes finest, a must listen. 9/10
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
DUTCH PROGRESSIVE ROCK PAGES (July 2020)
"The repeated feeling I had throughout the course of listening to the album was being drawn back to the 1980s and hearing the Eurythmics being played... The ambiance of the album brought to mind that of the dark and brooding feel of Marillion's Brave..."
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE
READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW HERE