The old Irish proverb says that one should never speak ill of
the dead. That makes me really hate reviewing
Angelos, the third disc from Austria-based Agnus Dei.
This duo, comprised of keyboardist Gerald Krampl and poet Hilde
Krampl, had released two discs of New Age piano music when Hilde
died of cancer in 2002. Grief-stricken, her husband continued the
project, combining Hilde’s poems with his music. This disc revolves
around the army of archangels, combined with a musical expression
of grief over the loss of his wife and partner.
You see, that’s why I hate having to review
Angelos. I hate having to say anything bad about this disc
due to the circumstances surrounding it. But it is as boring as
sitting through a day’s worth of church services.
I know that Hilde Krampl’s poems should go hand-in-hand with the
music, but I’ve never been a scholar of poetry, so forgive me if I
leave that area to someone with more expertise. I focus on the
music — and, truth be told, Gerald Krampl’s compositions are dull,
dull, dull. Each of the 11 tracks revolves around its own musical
theme, repeating it as often as some of the prayers we used to
chant when I was attending Mass on a regular basis, thus sucking
what little life had been in the songs out due to sheer
repetition.
Now, this isn’t a damnation of New Age music, or even piano
music for that matter. When the music is well-written, I don’t care
what genre it belongs to, the music has a way of capturing and
enrapturing the listener. If only any of the tracks on
Angelos did that, it would be a better disc. Instead, tracks
like “Anael” and “Ezechiel” tend to grate on the listener’s nerves,
making them want to invoke something other than the heavenly
seraphim for relief.
I even wish I could say something positive about the disc’s
closer, “Grief,” a song written in memory of Hilde Krampf. But
while Gerald Krampf tries to create a soundscape which offers hope
in spite of the obvious vacuum in his life, the track feels like it
doesn’t fit the mood at all. I hate to say it, but I’d have
preferred something quieter without the electronica – possibly even
something more akin to a dirge – to really capture the emotion.
