Mircan with Limbo – Numinosum (Uncatalogued Music Productions)
"Turkish vocalist / songwriter Mircan Kaya apparently
grew up in a mountain village in theBlack Sea Region,
singing traditional songs at weddings and ceremonies
from an early age, before her later years at university
saw her singing and playing guitar in a number of
indie-rock bands. While Kaya’s two preceding albums,
2005’s ‘Kul’ and 2006’s ‘Sala’ saw her working primarily
with traditional Turkish music, this fourth artist album
on UCM sees her collaborating with Bristol-based
six-piece Limbo (whose ranks include trumpeter
Roger Mills and Portishead alumni Jim Barr) for ten tracks
that see her singing completely in English for the first time.
Opening track ‘Waif’ almost suggests an ambient / World Music-centred listen ahead, as Kaya’s reverb-heavy vocals soar out from a backdrop of sampled rain and thunder, the beatless and slightly ominous setting providing the perfect counterpoint to her eerie high notes, before the title track injects a sense of Balkan forlorn-ness, complete with weeping violins, piano keys and bass clarinets as Kaya’s folk-tinged lyrics detail the story of a lover passed – indeed, the whole atmosphere generated particularly recalls Dead Can Dance’s re-reading of ‘I Am Stretched On Your Grave.’
From there, ‘Tonight I Long For Rest’ sees proceedings getting smokier and more jazz-centred, as muted trumpets and slow brushed snares trace a path beneath Kaya’s vaguely Grace Slick-esque delivery,"
By Chris Downton August 25, 2008