I believe artists like Adey Bell are increasingly rare in our modern world.
She doesn’t aspire to widespread pop fame. Chart position or mainstream exposure does not define her worth. Bell looks to inspire. There’s an underlying spiritual purpose in her work that overrides crass entertainment considerations. It is a purpose that doesn’t hinge on doctrine or dogma. Bell believes in the magic of human possibility.
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Human possibility given aural form is the core of her new release Venus Exalted Vol. 2 – Tribute to the Dearly Departed. It upends the listener’s typical notions of what tributes to the recently departed entail. It isn’t a downcast effort. Exaltation precludes despair. I hear this EP’s three songs as existing more in the vein of divine utterance rather than bleak elegy.
The death of Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg inspired the opener “North Star”. It introduces newcomers to Adey Bell’s musical direction. She builds Venus Exalted’s three cuts around the piano and her voice. There are other elements, without question, but I think centering her sound around that duo is a shrewd decision.
The interplay between her voice and the piano is effortless. Bell has a clear wont for treating her voice with post-production effects such as double tracking. It isn’t necessary. Bell’s voice is enough to carry the song with any adornment. However, the vocal effects never mar the performance. Bell’s eloquent writing has a much more expansive view of its subject matter instead of zeroing in on Ellsberg alone. Additional musical touches, such as drums, further develop this spectacular opener.
Invoking the time-tested power of the image of the phoenix allows Bell to excel. I hear the second track, “Phoenix”, as broader than the preceding number. It doesn’t branch off into previously unknown territory, but Bell expands her musical scope while retaining much of the spirit we hear with the opener. These are exceptionally textualized works. The surfaces of each song are important, but they supply pleasing “faces” for songs that contain impressive depth. Bell pushes drumming and guitar more to the forefront than the opener.
“Prayer” adopts the same essential principles. Much of the difference lies with tone. Bell modulates her creative direction in a meaningful way, toning down the hints of grandeur woven through the earlier performances. It is an excellent conclusion for Venus Exalted. Bell’s vocals envelop the performance with a near-worshipful amount of respect that never makes the song inert. Instead, “Prayer” reaches towards the heavens and raises listeners up.
I haven’t heard much modern music that reaches such high levels. Adey Bell occupies her own niche in the current musical landscape. She isn’t breaking any new ground, per se, but instead fills her work with a very different spirit to what we encounter in scores of other performers today. Her EP Venus Exalted Vol. 2 – Tribute to the Dearly Departed would be a dreary work in lesser hands. However, Adey Bell composes a work full of life and hope for tomorrow. You’ll be glad to hear it.
Garth Thomas