United Bible Studies
Camera Obscura
2009-04-07
The Jonah is a diverse, sometimes delightful, sometimes maddening record. Ireland’s United Bible Studies seem to encompass the full range of the noise and psych-folk community, from rugged, traditional ballads like “The Mildew Leaf” and the chiming “Skelly’s Fireplace”, which recalls early Steeleye Span and Anne Briggs, to the 16-minutes monster of a title track, which vacillates between more traditional British Isles folk and metallic, noise-inspired experimentalism. Sometimes, the blend can seem either too precious or too studied, but overall, The Jonah rings true, from the sonorous harmonies of “The Lowlands of Holland” to the echo-filled atmospherics of “Death in the Arctic”.