The Pines Of Rome is a slowcore band from Providence, Rhode Island, who’ve been exploring the frontiers of Cosmic American Music on and off for the past twenty seven years, first emerging in 1999 before disappearing in 2003 before re-emerging in 2023 with `The Unstruck Bell` and now release `When You Are As Full As The Moon` this month. The album title comes from a Zen Buddhist poem by Theri Punna: “Fill yourself with the dharma. / When you are as full as the moon– burst open. / Make the dark night shine.” It starts with the death of a parent and ends with the recognition that past mistakes might actually have saved us from a far worse fate.
The album opens with `New Zealand` which swirls along with a chugging rhythmic guitar refrain and accompanying drumbeat with quite reflective vocals shared atop. A number that hints at the drudgery of everyday life after the death of your mother and reflecting on the reason behind where you currently are, possibly the other side of the world. The lyrics are simple but so profound and come out of dealing with grief but not quite realising it. There`s more of a stop/start slow burn texture to `Kali’s Tongue` with lyrics that seem to reflect on travels taken and encounters experienced. A delightfully introspective, pensive but dreamy offering with some intricate chords shared on route.
`Holler Gold` is a further introspective composition about how youthful dreams become dimmed by life experiences leaving one with just a yearning for what maybe is still out there. The classic phrase “It’s the hope that kills you” which captures the agonising vulnerability of expecting a positive outcome, only to have your expectations dashed by an inevitable letdown came to mind here. We have a rolling pulsing beat as if driving or moving at pace throughout `Brass Knuckles`. The title`s implements culturally symbolise toughness, rebellion, and working-class defiance and here it does encompass a lot of that but the narrator reflects on a lost love, having departed because of his disruptive behaviour and with maturity is now looking for that second chance. A tale of potential redemption.
`Last Leaf Left` may have been inspired by O. Henry’s short story “The Last Leaf” about a young artist who regains the will to live. There`s a recurring shimmering guitar riff and rhythmic drum beat that permeates this contemplative submission which occasionally bursts out of its nigh on magnetic tome. It might refer to a kind of skewed resilience of holding onto life, a survivor among peers with some glimpses of hope possibly. The final chapter of the number becomes instrumental and has some delightful percussive chimes. There was an atmospheric melancholy to `Pawns` which builds up in tempo and sound with a powerful and commanding resonance throughout. It appears to be a resume of somebody`s life which almost seems predetermined to fail from a young age. It concludes with whether this life and that of their father`s before whose path was different was one of manipulation or cowardice.
The final cut `Bad Timing` is the longest piece on the album running at over nine minutes in length but doesn`t feel overly long. It addresses missed opportunities, misalignment in life stages, or unfortunate synchronicity. It`s quite philosophical or learned and seems to have come from lived experiences. It`s delightfully introspective and quietly saunters along but just before the midpoint we have some illusory guitar chords that guide us along and out of this contemplative and meditative opus.
Matthew Derby (vocals and guitar), Steven Kimura (bass), John Kolodij (guitar) and Rick Prior (drums), the quartet who come together to form The Pines Of Rome have created an overwhelmingly intense work of art with the release of `When You Are As Full As The Moon`. It has an enticing trancelike illusory otherworldly
attraction with lyrical content that is quite poetic, spiritual, and open to interpretation. I was at times pleasantly lost in my own thoughts and imagination, disconnected from my immediate surroundings.
To sum it up `When You Are As Full As The Moon` has a delicate beauty and I encourage you to spend time to allow it seep into your soul.
Rating 9/10
