Aural Innovations -- June 2001 #16

Basque are a unique duo hailing from Brooklyn N.Y. They are Brandt - Bass Guitar and Mary Asque - Vocals. This is their third album release to date. 'Somefire' is the first track on this well produced seven-song album. It slowly builds with weird atmospheric sounds that are produced by some interesting Bass layers; the sounds create an almost underwater feel, as if you are floating below an ocean, drifting with the motions of the waves. The waves of course being Mary Asque's beautiful enchanting Vocals. They flow along naturally and are perfect accompaniment for the already stirring scene that has been set by Brandt's mellow Bass scape. Her Vocals are more of a melody than they are actual words and they paint a moving picture. I like their mellow originality. A good opener. 'Falling Forward' is a seven odd minute song laden with feeling and expression, It has elements of Celtic style vocal harmonies mingled with what sounds like Acoustic Guitar picking and fretless bass slides. I can say that it is a great song and is good background music for relaxing. In certain places it reminds me Vocally of Deloris O'Riordan from the Cranberries for the Voice has a definite Irish feel to it, which I like. It shows that Mary Asque has a beautiful voice and that she is capable of producing good harmonies. 'Kamehamecha' also has an interesting Vocal which is set firmly in the Celtic mould, again more rhythmical and melodic than it is lyrical, but that seems to be a style that is being explored throughout this album. Well why not if you can do it so well? The music on the other hand is rather quiet and peaceful and it fits the Voice like a glove. Brandt seems to know what makes a perfect backing for Mary's voice and together they have worked out a style of their own. You can hear resemblance's to All About Eve in here and it makes for mellow listening. 'Grey and Green' is a five minute twelve piece that has some well played delayed fretless Bass on it as well as some effective tapping upon the strings to give a strange popping sound. I also can hear an Acoustic Guitar on it as well. The music is very laid back, almost silent, it moves at a slow pace but drives home what its purpose is. Its purpose is again backing for the Vocal that sways and dances, acting like an instrument itself. Again the Irish feel is apparent and Mary takes the song to a different level with her harmonic perfection. Simple effective Vocal arpeggios intertwine with the tune to make the song end in a rather colourful way. 'Inheritance' to me is the best track so far, the intro is very atmospheric with Brandt's Bass scape taking the lead and guiding the muse forward. Very mellow and spacey, I like his Bass style for it weave's an impressive scene, and is what makes Basque probably different from most other Bands of this type. And there are not many. The thing that makes this song my favourite is the way that the Vocal rises above the atmosphere created by Brandt and takes you inside its patterns. Mary has again produced some enchanting Celtic harmonies here, and in my eyes she stands out in this field because she has simply a stunning voice that is both inspiring and magical, and she knows how to use it to produce some fine sounding harmonic tones. I find that Basque is a very creative duo that seems to work really well together and they produce an overall sound that is quite atmospheric. 'In The Hollow Of Your Hand' is similar to 'Grey and Green' in its sound once it gets going. It is basically an Acoustic song that builds from the start. It offers some good Vocal technique and it moves through its phases quite nicely. It again has the All About Eve feel to it and it shows just how good a singer Mary Asque is. 'Orange Coloured Sky' is a Vocal only track that lasts just over a minute. It has a weird sort of beat to it; I cannot put my finger on what it sounds like. I have heard other people doing stuff like this, the main one being Suzanne Vega. A Nice end to a very good CD. Well there you have it. Let us say that Basque produces very mellow ambient Bass scapes merged with beautiful Celtic induced vocals. I can say no more than that, apart from I like it and am intrigued to hear the other two. Good listening for one of those quiet moments.

Music extreme -- June 2001

BASQUE - FALLING FORWARD (Independent, 2000): An exceptionally beautiful voice opens CD taking us to the magical music world of Basque through the first song "Somefire". This is the classical music of the future: melancholic, soft, climatic with a lot of emphasis on the feelings expressed through the beautiful female voclas of Maryasque. Elements of celtic music and folk are put together in passages adorned by the keyboard chords and the bass (it is interesting to see how Brandt creates all this atmospheres) to conform this dreaming songs. Arpeggios and vocal lines wrap their sonic qualities in songs like "Grey and Green" or "Kamehameha". It is also impressing how well this duo uses dynamics. The best way to describe Basque´s musi is with the sentence that appears in their website: "The objective of Basque is to give silence its place in music - to create space and let people´s minds breath" . Favorite tracks: "Falling Forward", "Grey and Green" and "Inheritance".

Starvox -- April 2001

Basque Falling Forward ~reviewed by BlackOrpheus Maryasque and Brandt are god's mouthpiece, instruments of divine revelation. What they can convey in the echo, swell, and fade of Basque is nothing short of the mysteries of ones own soul. It's hard to imagine the otherworldly sound of Basque having its inception in the babel that is New York City. That is the wonder of omnipresence. The band has been together for about four years now. They have three releases out; their self titled debut, Radiate, and their current release Falling Forward. I culled most of my information from their website. I'd like to tell you a little more about the band, but regretfully their bio page was not so much a bio, as a mission statement. While this isn't bad in and of itself, it does complicate my job. I'd like to see this remedied, and I think a page with song lyrics printed would be helpful as well. What I can tell you is this, Falling Forward is a work of uncompromising beauty and intelligence. It wraps its wings about you, sheltering you within this place of safety and fortifying the spirit for its inevitable re-emergence. In the tradition of Dead Can Dance, and Loreena McKennit, has emerged another voice that is fluent in the language of our inner selves. I can and do recommend Basque's Falling Forward. There's a great deal of choice out there in the marketplace. There is music to entertain, and then there is music that exists for no other purpose than to edify. This is Basque, don't be content until you've shared in this experience.

Starvox -- April 2001 also :)

Basque Falling Forward ~reviewed by Kevin Although I live in New York, I hadn't yet heard of Brooklyn-based ethereal duo Basque when Blu sent me Falling Forward. After listening to their CD a couple of times, I'm sorry I missed them. They are a band with a mature, quirky and deceptively simple vision, and Falling Forward is definitely a worthy effort. The CD opens on a breathtaking note with "Somefire." Brandt is one of the most creative bassists I've ever heard: I'm reminded of mid-period Robert Fripp taken down an octave. Maryasque's vocalise fills the spaces between his occasional notes like Gordon Haskell's trumpet playing on Eno's Ambient albums. From that auspicious beginning, things only get better with Falling Forward. A reviewer from 'sup magazine referred to Maryesque's voice as "Sinead O'Connor meets Enya." It's not a bad comparison, particularly in this title track. In "Kamehameha" and "Inheritance" Brandt makes his bass sound like a Digideroo, providing a World Music flavor to the proceedings. "In the Hollow of your Hand" continues on in this vein, while "Orange Colored Sky" closes things on a whimsical a capella note that once again shows off Maryesque's considerable vocal talents. This is definitely a CD which rewards repeated listens: hell, I'd go so far as to call it a CD which requires repeated listens. My first impression was that they were making pretty but not particularly adventurous or interesting music: only after I gave it a second, serious listen did I realize just how *good* these guys really are. Like Henryk Gorecki or Anton Bruckner, this is subtle stuff. Some critics have called it "ambient," but that is misleading. Ambient music is intended to function as a backdrop and not as a *ding an sich*; Basque's music, on the other hand, demands ... and rewards ... close attention. This one is highly recommended.

Spoon Fed Amerika -- April 2001

Falling Forward is the third recording by the New York-based duo of Brandt (bass) and Maryasque (vocals and guitar). Between the three elements—voice, bass and guitar—they sculpt a sparse sound that relies as much on silence as it does noise. It's a sound that mixes the ethereality of the Cocteau Twins with the 'emo-core' aesthetic championed by Low. It's a hybrid sound: lo-fi New Age. The opening track "Somefire" sets the contemplative mood, with a dark blue bass tone, over which a lone soprano wordlessly soars. It's a not-quite soothing track, one that avoids New Age schmaltz by telegraphing actual loneliness. The title track is an autumnal pop song, complete with a catchy (if indecipherable) chorus. Brandt augments his bass playing with audible, rhythmic clicks, while Maryasque's guitar forms a gentle circular pattern. It's like an Innocence Mission song stripped down to the blueprints. "Grey and Green" evokes those colors perfectly, with a hesitant verse cascading into a rich, rewarding bridge. Notes and space between them are given equal illumination. Maryasque's take on 'glossolalia' is unique: her words are supremely important to her, her conversational phrasing reminiscent of confessional singer-songwriters like Suzanne Vega and Jane Siberry, while still retaining an unearthly edge. Call it earthy-ethereal, the union of Liz Fraser and Phoebe Snow (on the low end notes). In short, she achieves vocally the inchoate, open-ended quality of Vega's and Siberry's lyrics. Another model for this approach is the novel cover of Talk Talk's song "Inheritance." Talk Talk's Mark Hollis' singing is impressionistic and intimate, relying more on nuance than meaning; Basque's version of his song is an appropriate tribute. A miasma of bass-drone rumbles, while the song is sung in minor keys. Phoebe Snow's influence emerges with the jazz-scented song "In the hollow of your hand." Balancing out the straightforward songs is plaintive chant "Kamehameha" and the multi-tracked acapella "Orange-Colored Sky," which sounds like a cross between the Roches and Meredith Monk. Falling Forward does not so much move forward as move further within.

Mish Mash ezine -- April 2001

"Impressions of Falling Forward" What makes Basque so unique? Perhaps it's the simple combination of vocals and bass, or the talents behind that said voice and instrument. Either way, the music that Maryasque and Brandt make is quite remarkable, even in its simplicity. It paints aural pictures that are ephemeral and mist-like, or impressionistic, for lack of a better term. Maryasque's voice sounds like a soft stringed instrument, more so than someone singing. Her vocals lift and lilt above the tone-setting bass of Brandt, which are sometimes a barely audible undercurrent and sometimes plucky and bright. Their latest album, Falling Forward, is full of these abstract examples, a melange of sounds which seem to rely more on what's not there, rather than what is. As their music is somewhat difficult to comprehend, it also seems to be equally hard to get a grasp on how these artists think, as I found out in an interview with the enigmatic Maryasque.

Bleeding Minds Ezine #6 -- March 2001

"Falling Forward" If I could only use one word to decribe this cd, it would be "enchanting." Once again BASQUE has managed to produce a fine collection of hypnotic songs that simply capture your complete attention. Mellow sounds and entrancing vocals, this is a listening experience that will do more than just provide you with audio stimulation, it will reinvent you. This is the kind of music will comfort you when you cry and soothe you when you pain. One of those most emotionally electrifying cd's I've heard, Falling Forward is nothing less than incredible. Highly recommended!

i-muse @ mp3.com -- January 2001

Basque is your lunar spaceship of sound, taking off and landing in sonic swirls and afterthoughts, waves upon waves, notes upon notes. They're kind of like Enigma without so much percussion, loops or heavy production. Elegant and stately, Maryasque (songstress) and Brandt (bass alchemist) create music that takes its own time leisurely, that’s as natural as breathing.

Not unlike Siouxsie Sioux or Liz Frazer, Maryasque enunciates every syllable of every word in a luxurious, glorious way. I hesitate to tell you much more, but just know that she speaks a language of her own, using her voice as an instrument while Brandt's bass is like a subtly haunting vocalist. If you are into the Cocteau Twins, Dido or MP3.com's Should, you will enjoy Basque. Extra-neato trax include: "swollen stranger" and "Orange Colored Sky"

We think this was in the Philly citypaper :) Aug 2000

"Radiate" (Lacqua) Bass-ing a decalogue of suggested stories and open-mouthed chants on a series of percussive tribal taps and rythmic rumbles, BASQUE combines the airy, flyweight vocals of Sinead, Bjork, Enya and even Streisand with the at times ultra low-end pulses and sweeps of Warr and other guitars. Except for such complimentary low-high strains, "Chaos" isn't chaotic at all, but rather repetitive and comprehensible. Similarly, the watery bass of "Thunder" is actually light and clear, allowing the vocal to float on top in a way not unlike a tight-bodiced Jewel's "Angels Standing By." "Make Me Speak" is again titulary ironic in its lack of coherant lyric. It's foriegn-ness is almost alien, and just as intriguing. The two-tone "Aboriginal Lullaby" radiates a lyric that is not fully expressed. Even when the duo tries to express itself verbally, however (as in "The River is Flowing"), they are ineffective to a point which would be aggravating were the delivery not so hauntingly beautiful. - Matthew S. Robinson

Sup' Magazine -- April 2000

"Basque's sound consists of Brandt on bass and the voice of Maryasque. It's all about setting the mood. Whether you are wanting to create the perfect make-out session, read your favorite book to soothing music, take a bath surrounded by candles or fall into sweet dreams, this album will do the trick. It's really hard to tell what language the vocals are in, but whatever it is, Maryasque will definitely speak to you. I keep thinking Sinead O'Connor meets Enya, but a little simpler. This whole album is just really beautiful and will swoon you into a state of relaxation. Anyone want to give me a back massage?" mb

Bandradio.com -- January 2000

Swollen Stranger by Basque

A fantastic mood setting song that truly takes you away to another place. Fantastic vocal work with powerful dynamics build upon the moody and though provoking bass line.

The Album

This is something really different. Vocals and bass. That's it! Don't let that fool you though, this 8 song cd is a true testament to the voice and simplicity that can drive you as much as a five piece band. Fantastic disc.

ChangeMusic.com -- November 1999

mariposa by Basque

"Mariposa" is too lush to be considered minimalist yet too simple to be baroque. Basque believes music is a kind of spirit surrounded by silence. Vast sonic spaces and sparse instrumentation let the haunting, powerful voice of Mary Asque come to the fore, reminding us of just what a magnificent instrument the human voice is.

MISH MASH ISSUE # 11 OCTOBER '99

"I knew I was in for something different when I opened the package from Basque and saw a CD, a candle, and a customized book of matches all packed up in a purple ziploc bag. Basque is made up of Brandt on bass and Maryasque on vocals--basically a Tuck & Patti with a twist: subtle and soothing new age sounds that seem to float from your speakers.

The songs are complex in their simplicity; the vocals float effortlessly across the dancing bass lines, painting pictures with rising and falling sounds. Maryasque's vocals are less lyrical than they are instrumental. There are words here and there, but they are delivered as if they were mere musical notes. The end result is unexpectedly beautiful in its sheer bareness--revealing a depth that you would not expect from just a bass and vocals.

This is a remarkable piece of work, and has to be heard to be believed and fully appreciated.

MISH MASH Mandate: Defies description"


Electron music Sept 99

"This Alternative Dynamic Duo will hold you spell bound with Brandt's haunting bass and Maryasque's exotic voice. They will take you to a place of red and yellow sunsets with incense and candles somewhere far from where you are."