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Omar Rodriguez Lopez albums

A couple of vinyl releases from a large catalogue!

Artist: Omar Rodriguez Lopez
Record label: Clouds Hill - Germany
Cost: From 30ish€ to 1499€ for the whole box set (Currency conversion) - (YMMV)
Reviewer: Graeme Budd - TNT-Audio France
Reviewed: May, 2024

Clouds Hill Records has recently (re)released all the Omar Rodriguez Lopez albums on vinyl and I was offered the chance to have a listen to his latest opus “Is it the Clouds” and a re-issue of the earlier “Blind Worms Pious Swine” from 2016.

I admit I hadn't heard of Mr Rodriguez Lopez but looking him up not only did I discover he's a) Puerto Rican, and b) released a load of albums but c) is also on the Ernie Ball Music man artist roster. For the non guitarists amongst you this may not mean a lot but it puts him amongst some pretty illustrious company as Steve Lukather (Toto and just about every significant album that had session guitar on it!), Steve Morse (Deep Purple, Dixie Dregs, Steve Morse band), John Petrucci (Dream Theater) and the fabulous Annie Clark aka St Vincent are also on the list.
So it was sufficient motivation to stop testing a rather fine CD player and re-connect my turntable!

First impressions:

Both albums have a quality feel although one could complain that the inner sleeves are a bit boring although admittedly totally functional including musicians names but little else. One thing that would be good is to write the record speed somewhere on the sleeve as the albums aren't always the same speed. Is it The Clouds in a 45rpm release whereas Blind Worms Pious Swine is 33rpm. If you've never heard an artist before this can catch you out although you realize fairly quickly that something is up!

The surface noise is also pretty low on both discs with a distinct lack of cracks and pops - what you'd expect from a modern release. Where Clouds Hill do things a bit differently from a lot of current vinyl labels is that the don't insist on virgin vinyl preferring to go down the recycled route. So those of you who bought Ed Sheeran albums now have something to do with them and they can be recycled into something better.

I didn't notice any issues with the recycled vinyl so with a bit of luck the rest of the industry will take notice and something can be done with all the 60s and 70s muzak albums that no one wants but which seem to show up in every house clearance and yard sale everywhere around the world. In fact I have a theory that the same albums are then sold in the next years yard sale by the person who bought them when they realize they've bought the audio equivalent of the Smurfs movie but I digress.

Listening

Is It The Clouds

I started of with Is it in the Clouds and once I'd got the speed right(!) it was really rather enjoyable. The sound is quite minimalist allowing (a majority of acoustic) instruments to sit in space across the whole room. It's not going to become the latest audiophile darling so unfortunately it won't banish either Hell freezes over or Jazz at the Pawnshop from hifi shows but it's not half bad and as we often point out it's ultimately the music that matters!

I'd say this record is more introspective than demonstrative and it will grow on you rather than be something you can instantly sing along to. It asks a lot of questions of the listener especially on Which came first and the rather beautiful Gently Tamed. I'm not in a position to answer most of them! I can say that there is some good guitar playing in there which always plays for the song rather than for the sake of a solo. Very refreshing indeed. There's also a short foray in Omar's native language with the track Amor Frio. A simple piece with nylon strung guitar and voice it gradually increases in tension around 2 minutes in. Here you'll either really appreciate the repeated single chord heightening the atmosphere or you'll be crying out for the chord to resolve to release the aforementioned tension. When it finally does resolve you realize how beautiful the other parts of the song are. I don't know if this is an elaborate songwriting trick but it's both interesting and effective at the same time.

The result is that I'm pretty sure I'll still be digging this out for evening listening sessions for years to come!

Blind Worms Pious Swine

Blind Worms Pious Swine is a different kettle of fish entirely. This time the instruments are electric in nature with the addition of some synths and more effects and the whole feel is more upbeat even though I'd say most of the album is still in minor keys. It's certainly not REMs "Shiny Happy People" but that's probably a good thing! Sound wise it's a denser mix with less space than Is it the Clouds but that suits better the increased intensity of the album.

The intensity (you can just imagine this being played in an underground 200 capacity venue) and the character of the music reminds me of a cross between The Naked and Famous and Muse. It's darker than the former and less pompous than the latter but it's no means a bad combo.

This is a more immediately accessible album than Is it the Clouds and tracks like Tunnel Riot will have you singing along quickly with it's catchy melody and synth lines. There's a lot more energy here and Omar even gets to let loose with some guitar solos on some of the tracks. Which clearly explains is presence on the Music Man roster I mentioned earlier. If I had to classify this album I'd say Intelligent Pop Rock. Again the lyrics are much more intense than classic boy meets girl and they fall in love fare. And again I'm going to have to take some time to work out what they mean! Or probably my interpretation thereof.

Conclusion

I've enjoyed my initial exposure to Omar Rodriguez Lopez and I'll definitely be digging for some of his other albums as the combination of decent playing and intelligent songwriting is an enticing one. I can't say I have a favourite of the two - I expect I'll probably play Blind Worms Pious Swine more often by its more upbeat nature - in any case both are going in my record bag for the next hifi shows I attend to improve the overall music quality level...

Credit to Clouds Hill for bringing these onto vinyl and at reasonable prices. The albums are around the 30€ mark or you can go the whole hog (no other swine jokes I promise) and buy a limited edition boxed set of 57(!) LPs for the not exactly given away price of 1499€. Maybe not this week but my elder son is convinced he's found a system to win Euromillions so you never know!

© Copyright 2024 Graeme Budd - graeme@tnt-audio.com - www.tnt-audio.com

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