Novella - RENAISSANCE****

Can You Hear Me/The Sisters/Midas Man/The Captive Heart/Touching Once (Is So Hard To Keep)

The British progressive band Renaissance never broke through to mainstream acceptance but they received many critical plaudits which Novella continued. Much of the strength of their appeal derived from the voice of Annie Haslam. (US:46)

“A quiet album that still has much of the classic period feel of the band. Less epic, and more closed, shorter, the music feels warm and somewhat sunny. Clearly, the force of the band is running down, as was happening to most of the prog bands during this period. Renaissance offer shorter songs, less histrionics, and quietude amid the squalor of the punk ‘revolution’.”

“There are wonderful orchestral arrangements, unforgettable melodic piano parts, and the bass is well played, sophisticated and absolutely not timid. Annie's voice is superb, as always, and the other musicians produce excellent backing vocals. There are harp, small bells, tubular bells and acoustic guitar. The keyboards fit well with the symphonic ensemble. The influence is, again, very baroque and progressive. There are some mellow, delicate, mystical and dreamy bits which are really addictive.”

“Renaissance used classical instrumental arrangements and an operatic lead singer to experiment with the interface between rock and older forms. In its time, this type of music was sometimes dismissed by critics for its pretension, but in hindsight the critics were wrong. In Novella, Renaissance perfected a sound that possessed the driving insistence of rock but with a texture that might be described as folk, light jazz, or even the dreaded art rock. Annie Haslam's vocal stylings drive the action--her multi-octave range and incisive, insistent phrasing is impressive and effective.”

“The album's songwriting is generally far more distant and sombre than usual, making the quaint, quirky beauty of the band's music appear more heart-wrenching than entertaining this time around. But then, the album is not without its peaks of sudden happiness either.”

“Undoubtedly their least rock album, Novella flows with stately pastoral orchestral parts and entrancingly delicate quiet passages for twelve string guitar and synthesiser. There’s also a little more sense of sadness on this one. The three shorter songs are just beautiful.”