The Candle Horn Churchyard reviews...

The Burlington Free Press - 21 June 2001.

Brave artists play unique music.

Another brave soul is Sean Altrui, but for different reasons. The keyboardist/percussionist from Jenn Karson Ju Ju has been experimenting on his own and has the cojones to let the world have a peek. "The Candle Horn Churchyard" is a brief five-song exploration of darker themes, none too compelling.

It's a dark carnival ride of sorts. Songs created around simple chord progressions and flushed out with the help of Picture This' Jerome Monachino on guitars and Freefall's Lee Gillies on saxophones are dark psychedelic journeys smattered with Morrison-esque rantings. When I hear a deep voice cry a line like "drowning snakes in the quagmire," I have to roll my eyes a bit at the silliness of this and American rock's most overrated poet. "Sirens" adds a percussive element to the disc, which was kind of cool, but never enough to bring it out of its dreary, half-thought state of affairs.

So if you're having the coven over for a nice evening to watch "Charmed" some week, play "The Candle Horn Churchyard" during the commercial breaks. You'll be happy. [rating] 1/4.

- Steve Lemcke · e-mail: critikboy@aol.com · postal: C/O Scene & Heard, The Burlington Free Press, 191 College St. Burlington, VT. 05401.

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