By Ash
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| BRYNN – Querencia |
Querencia (que-ren-cia)
(v) a metaphysical concept in the Spanish language. The term comes from the Spanish verb “querer,” which means “to desire.” Querencia means to haunt somebody in Spanish.
Querencia (que-ren-cia)
(n) A querencia is a place the bull naturally wants to go to in the ring, a preferred locality… It is a place which develops in the course of the fight where the bull makes his home. It does not usually show at once but develops in his brain as the fight goes on. In this place, he feels that he has his back against the wall and in his querencia, he is inestimably more dangerous and almost impossible to kill.
Querencia (que-ren-cia)
(n) A transcendent assortment of lyrics and sounds moulded perfectly to fit one powerful album.
The band comprises of a perfect mixture of SA talent: Jules Terea, Hezron Chetty, David van Vuuren, Alex Smillie and Eddy Kriel – all bringing their complete set of musical skill and flavour to the table and creating a certain kind of Querencia of their own.
Who You Are starts off with a bang! The opening of the song immediately reveals what the vocalist is capable of – this with the accompaniment of an arrangement of powerful drums creates nothing less than a mesmerising tune. The lyrics forced me as the listener to question not only my reality but what we put ourselves through when we allow others and our environment to dictate our reality. Every lyric is not a continuation of words trying to fill empty spaces, but rather a story in which the vocalist holds a conversation with his listeners and is shouting – OPEN YOUR EYES! BRYNN asks “this is not who you are, how could you let yourself come this far?”
Claire has a much more folkish vibe with a magnificent violin symphony which took me on an ear-warming journey into a story-telling melody with no words. This song has a very Mumford and Sons feel to it, with an uplifting vibe that leaves you wanting more.
Vultures kicks off with a groove – smooth and sensual, the song can be compared to John Mayer concert of panty dropping. The bass drops in at just the right time to keep power in such a delicate song. Echo effects create an eerie feel that touches each vertebra of my spine.
Noose Knot is completely different to the first three tracks of the album as it’s a lot more upbeat. It can have anyone bobbing their heads back and forth to a jiving rhythm. The electric guitar riffs in the background of the song fuel a sense of magnetic energy accompanied by the violin booming in again, but this time with a lot more power. The vocals of this song breakthrough and demands the attention of the listening – all intelligently composed to create a banger of a track.
Already Blind, however, is a lot more raw and rough than the previous songs. Once again, the violin softens up the melodies giving it a more rounded sound.
White Collar Kings’ vocals are a lot more audible and the lyrics speak of the trap that society has put us in and I immediately get goosebumps. The words coming out of my headphones bring tears to my eyes as I’m reminded of the constant internal battle that is faced with awareness and ignorance. “Do up your tie, pay the train fare for the ride – let it pull you to a place where old souls go to die and don’t forget to remind yourself that you are free – cause after all isn’t that what you read in your subscription magazines?”
The band manages to encompass all the styles portrayed in the album into one song, Querencia. Suitably titles, the song is the Querencia of the entire album.
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| BRYNN |
I love the way that About Time starts out, I’m immediately transported to a live intimate show where the guitarist is showing off his tricks. A beautiful introduction of a trumpet and harmonic vocals creates a Pharyll Purkiss sort of vibe. “You don’t have to be so afraid to allow yourself to let go, because that you love are right there behind you and they will catch you if you fall.”
This album was exactly what I needed to discover, an arrangement of not only fantastic lyrics and incredible instrumentals – but something completely different to what I usually listen to. A constant craving to hear and discover new music was blissfully satisfied by Brynn’s Querencia and what I experienced through my headphones was a little insight into my own Querencia.
