permission
review page
CrossRhythms magazine - Issue 58 - Aug/Sept 2000 p64
Helen Turner - Permission
Tollbooth Music CD Mail (£10.00 from Helen Turner, c/o St Martins-in-the-Bullring, Bullring, Birmingham, B5 5BB
I witnessed the launch party for this album in Birmingham and so my first taste of ‘Permission’ was to hear the songs in a live setting. Live, she seems shy yet self-assured when she’s singing. ’Permission’ sees her finding her way as a singer, writing material from a Christian standpoint without the pressure to always be trying to communicate a message.
The result is a wonderful collection of songs which mix autobiography and fiction, and once I stopped trying to guess which were expressing Helen’s life experiences, this became an intriguing, enjoyable album. But, then again, surely an angst-ridden post relationship song like ‘Stuff It’ has to be poured out from a genuinely broken soul. She certainly sings it like she means it – an excellent performance.
Mainly working in an acoustic roots environment with real instruments – strings, accordion but few drums – ‘Lye-Di-Dy’ is playful and light relief next to some of the passion expressed here. I love ‘Extremes’ with its choppy rhythms matching the changing emotions expressed. In this context, ‘Helium’ stands out for its ambience and alternative sounds – plenty of E Bow and vibe and drum loops. A certain highlight.
Vocally, Helen manages to pull out all the stops, and isn’t afraid to swing from vulnerable and lost to angry and indignant. A stunning performance! I even get the feeling that she enjoys messing with her audience by hiding herself in her words and leaving us guessing. If the current crop of female singer/songwriters are your bag, add Helen into your CD changer because you’ll find she can look after herself!
9/10 Mike Rimmer
Britlinks Indie Album of the Month - July 2000
Independent Album Of The Month
Once lead singer with The Rumours Are True, Helen Turner's first solo album doesn't move a huge way from the jazzy folk that her former band used to deliver. Her versatile, earthy vocals lie on top of a carefully textured backdrop.
The first release from the newly formed independent Tollbooth Music, run by
Paul A Davies of Eve And
The Garden, Permission clearly demonstrates that there is still inspiration to be found in folk music,
without limiting its sights to traditional sounds. The lyrics are intensely personal without being exclusive
and are delivered with powerful emotion.
The CD is available from Tollbooth Music.
There's a review of the album at The
Phantom Tollbooth (no relation).
The Phantom Tollbooth - July 2000
permission
artist: helen turner label: Tollbooth Music length: 13 tracks / 66.44 minutes
The debut release from the new UK-based Tollbooth music (no relation, they just have excellent taste in children's fiction) is a folk album full of carefully woven textures and spacious arrangements.
As fans of her former band, The Rumours Are True, will testify, Helen Turner's vocals are extremely versatile and have a rich quality across a broad range. Those vocals are underwritten with organic instrumentation drawn together by multi-instrumentalist producer Paul Davies (Eve and the Garden).
The overall feel is not too distant from the jazzy folk which The Rumours Are True were known for, with Jason Bell's chapman stick and Steve Gale's bass driving much of the material. There's an ethereal quality in places, but more often the arrangements keep closer to the earth than bands normally associated with that term. Another good reference point would be the producer's band Eve And The Garden, but with less rock edge and more folk than classical in the vocals.
There are a few rough moments, like the slightly grating edge to some of the vocals on "stuff it!", and the album has a slightly dreamlike quality in places which allows a few of the tracks to drift into one another which can be a little disorienting. But overall this is a very promising first release from a label which we're likely to hear more from.
James Stewart 06/17/2000
CrossRhythms Magazine Article Oct/Nov 2000
GAINING PERMISSION
One of the brightest and best new singer/songwriters is Birmingham based Helen Turner. Mike Rimmer met her.
In a bar in Birmingham's Irish Centre, Helen Turner uncorks a bottle of wine. Surrounded by family and friends, she celebrates the launch of her album 'Permission'. Backed by a small band, she sings us new songs, jokes shyly between songs and leaves us to enjoy it all.
Helen also finds time to talk to me and explain the album title, "Mostly I used to write songs about God and often felt it 'unworthy' to turn creativity, that I perceive a God-given gift, to other subjects. 'Permission' was about allowing myself to write about everything... and considering that legitimate enough to let others hear. I don't think getting hung up on everything being directly about God is helpful or even honest. When it comes down to it, of course it's about faith, but God already knows that, without my constant reminder. It's about balance and responsibility. I may need your permission to be wrong here but I won't be praying about what cereal to eat in the morning, although I may have considered if what I have bought to eat was fairly-traded."
If you have a long memory, you'll know that Helen is the former lead singer of Christian band The Rumours Are True. But, since that band broke up, she's spent six months travelling round the world, moved house twice, and written a whole pile of songs reflecting her experiences. Eventually she hooked up with her producer Paul Davies who is the guitarist with Eve & The Garden. "We met in a field! Greenbelt actually!" Helen remembers, "Paul was just setting up Tollbooth Music and was keen to try out new equipment on a familiar voice. I was recently bereft of my band, The Rumours Are True and had songs that I didn't know what to do with - or indeed if they were any good! The album grew out of many weekend trips to Paul's. We never intended it to be... it was a demo that simply wouldn't settle at four tracks! Working with Paul really has made this album - although I have written the songs, he has brought them to life and played many of the instruments too! He listened to what I wanted and was very patient with me when I insisted on real strings and not a string patch. He also didn't kill me when I said 'No' to mixes he'd spent hours putting together! His commitment, his enthusiasm, encouragement and constant energy for the project will never to amaze me."
Helen leads worship in her church, the famous St Martin's in the Bullring. She doesn't discount the possibility that in the future she write material which is more worship oriented. But for now she says "I play with words and images and see what happens. I am happy when that is focused on my faith but sometimes I just see where the muse takes me! Other times I focus on a real life situation and work hard at describing it how I see it. In a way that view is bound to have God in it somewhere since God is a major influence in my life! There are a few songs that may not be perceived as being about my faith - but I know they are. I don't feel a need to dictate how it is listened to or interpreted - that's not my job as an artist. I won't deny an audience their right to own their meaning of a song."
One of the most stunning songs on the album is 'Helium' which has plenty of atmospheric E-Bow guitar from Davies. "It's my 'God speaking to me' song... 'Could be your happening / could be your helium / chance me' - the idea that God takes you above things, as if in a helium balloon - to get a better view. This is my favourite track also because it has a really ambient feel and programmed drum track. I've never had the chance to do this sort of music before and I am very excited about exploring some more of this new territory in the future."
One of the things that strikes me about Helen's performance, and the songs on the album, is that she has a tendency to leave a great deal of the narrative of her songs unresolved. She agrees, "Life is open ended, not everything resolves, certainly not immediately, sometimes never. Not everything works out or can be explained. Not every emotion is positive or 'nice'. And we change as we experience our own life, and live the results of our decisions and as we see and feel the effects of others' lives. And that ability to change, to not have it all sown up is brilliant, wonderful and scary. It allows us to discover more of who we are and who we could be... doesn't it?"
I am left agreeing. 'Permission' is packed with emotionally charged material but I suggest there is always the danger that people may think it's autobiographical and worry about her. She responds, "If people care to pray for me, that's great! But the album is 'permission' to write fact and fiction. No-one expects a murder mystery writer to have acted out the plot to see what it would feel like! It is bizarre that everyone assumes a songwriter only writes from experience. Besides, I feel very protected behind a little ambiguity - it means I can write intensely personal stuff and you'll honestly never know which songs they are! Happy guessing!"
Mike Rimmer is the Assistant Editor of Cross Rhythms magazine