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ANGELS
OF LIGHT
Tonic
Benefit CD
Young
God 1999
 When
local venue Tonic
needed a hand, Mr. Swan
himself, Michael
Gira, got his newly-formed ten-piece mini-orchestra,
The
Angels of Light, to come to the rescue. In the
process they made this special disc (the CD also includes some
tracks recorded at Bowery
Ballroom). The instrumentation of the all-star
New York ensemble consisted of vibes, accordions, ukuleles,
theremin, melodica, and all kinds of unusual percussion. One
of the other exotic instruments is the electric guitar - as
played by Mr. Kid Congo Powers. With this early incarnation
and limited release, Gira may have accidentally done more to
jump-start what is unjustly known as “freak-folk”
than his discoveries of Devendra
and Akron
Family.
ANGELS
OF LIGHT
How I Loved
You
Young God 2001
 Taking
a second look at Angels of Light’s catalogue, I think
this may well be their best work. It’s so elegant that
even the slightest flourish can have a dramatic effect on the
mood mood. Gira works best and is most effective with this extra
spacious atmosphere – as he has more room to tell you
what you’ve don’t want to know about love –
and it resonates. Again he assembles a really talented and interesting
group of characters – Dana
Schector, Larry
Mullins,
Austinite Thor
Harris, and Berlinner Christoph Hahn.
Bliss
Blood of Pain
Teens fame makes a guest appearance. Kid Congo
Powers plays on “My True Body” and “New York
Girls.”
©
New York Night Train , 2006
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