Mau, Melanie & Martin Schnella: The Rainbow Tree

The Rainbow Tree is, I believe, the fifth album to arrive from the acoustic, folk duo (often expanded into a wider band) Melanie Mau & Martin Schnella. The pair have slowly built up a sizeable following releasing a mixture of their own compositions and, as if often found in this sphere, interesting and completely rearranged covers of a rock and prog persuasion. The Rainbow Tree falls into the latter category, covering an impressively wide selection of artists from Iron Maiden and Leprous to Gentle Giant and Rush via Massive Attack and Phil Collins! So yes, the music can be themed as rock, and a lot of it with a progressive eye, but in the hands of this duo, everything is, to a greater or lesser extent, reworked into energetic acoustic guitar, hand percussion fare all brought together through some genuinely impressive vocal interplay from the core twosome.

From the darting romp of the Kansas standard “Song For America�, which is embellished with all manner of pipes and whistles, to the cleverly sparse reinterpretation of “Alleviate�, originally by Leprous, the class and talent on show is beyond question. The key word, even across all of the different emotions conveyed is fun, “Secret World� (Peter Gabriel) and “Blackest Eyes/The Sound Of Muzak/Halo� (Porcupine Tree) all smile inducing. However, and this is a personal thing, my issue with albums like these, good though they be, is how often will I hand on heart revisit them? Truthfully, the answer is not often at all, with my own connection with this pair’s albums where they compose their own songs really sitting pretty low - not because of the standard, but that the style doesn’t ‘hit’ me. Hence, when the novelty factor of riding the acoustic wave of Iron Maiden’s “Hallowed Be Thy Name� or Opeth’s “Ghost Of Perdition� wears off, so does my interest. Therefore, what I suggest is that if this musical hat fits neatly on your head in a way my bumpy bonce won’t allow, then feel free to add an extra star to the overall score below. For me personally, The Rainbow Tree is an album where it’s a few listens and done. Those more at home in these surrounds will, quite rightly, disagree, for even I can’t deny the talent on display.

Track Listing
1. Free Hand - Medley (Gentle Giant)

2. Song for America (Kansas)

3. Something Happened on the Way to Heaven (Phil Collins)

4. Rainbow Demon (Uriah Heep) 

5. Alleviate (Leprous)

6. Teardrop (Massive Attack)

7. A Love that Never Dies (Neal Morse Band)

8. Secret World (Peter Gabriel)

9. Tom Sawyer (Rush)

10. Blackest Eyes / The Sound of Muzak / Halo (Porcupine Tree)

11. Hallowed Be Thy Name / For the Greater Good of God (Iron Maiden
)
12. Noise (Nightwish)

13. Ghost of Perdition (Opeth)

14. Siuil a Ruin (Traditional/Clannad)

Added: March 11th 2024
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Mau, Melanie & Martin Schnella @bandcamp
Hits: 497
Language: english

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