Triple Aspect – Self Titled

Triple aspect is Lesley Gentilin on harp, vocals, taro patch and recorders, Johnny Murray on guitar and bouzouki, Matt Trewartha on drums and percussion and Craig Kelson on bass guitar. They formed in 2007 as a trio for the Stinky Creek folk festival on the outskirts of Port Lincoln. The opening night of the festival was a medieval banquet and the band put together a bracket of medieval and original tunes featuring harp, guitar and percussion, which were very well received. They played again through the festival using an eight string ukulele, playing original songs with a Celtic flair. And so the band was born. The following year they were invited to play in Adelaide with Spiral Dance at the folk centre and again for the medieval festival at Gumeracha. The band was then joined by bass player Craig Kelson, and now they remain a quartet. They have since played locally and at the Willunga Folk festival in 2008. The following year the band decided to produce a self titled album which is now available. The songs on the album have been inspired by love of the natural world and respect for sacred ritual. The music reflects an appreciation of life’s mysteries and profound beauty. The celtic thread, interwoven with the player’s individual styles, weaves through the melodies in honour of their ancestors.
Triple Aspect CD review by Don Bannister
Genre; Singer songwriter/ Medieval rock fusion The Cover / Holder The Front Cover is a drawing of a barren tree in the daytime, with the words in an ancient type font and includes a Celtic ribbon/ symbol attached to the text The Inside Cover has a photo of the band members and their instruments and includes a descriptive text on the members of Triple Aspect, as well as a support vocalist. There is no contact detail, except a website which has contact details. The front cover is a booklet with lyrics and authors duly noted. The Back Cover is a drawing of another tree at night and includes the song titles. They are not numbered but are timed. The Artist Lesley Gentilin is the moving force of the band as she is the song writer, harpist and vocalist. Gentilin also dresses in the style/era of the music played which adds a relevant dimension to the music. Triple Aspect is a quartet, featuring drums/percussion, electric guitar, bouzouki, bass guitar, vocals and Gentilin on Harp and recorders. The Songs/music; Murray’s work on the guitar and bouzouki is very enjoyable. Murray’s playing on tracks three “Fare Thee Well” and six, “The Round Table” were excellent. The fi rst few seconds of any song is what determines airplay for me and Murray displays his musical talents all through the album. Trewarthas drumming style seems fairly rock music based and I recommend he join a Scottish piping band and or just learn that style of drumming, also a bodhran would sound more authentic and that would really give the music a more authentic feel. However, the whole thing centres around Gentilin’s vocals, harp playing and song writing/ musical arrangements. General comments At fi rst the only problem I could see with the album was the band’s name and the album cover. Personally, I thought this an excellent album , a must have album actually, but if you want people to buy the album or even pick it up and look at it, the front cover and the name of the artist/s is so important. Track nine, “Merlin’s Tower” would have made a better name for the band with a picture of the dragon as the front cover, as both are more relevant to the music and songs. However folks don’t worry about the cover, this a great album and I can’t wait to see them.