Reviews:

From Head Heritage: (by Julian Cope)

  ...Next up, we stay with those good people at Cold Spring Records), who score again with WAYWARD SOULS by Splinterskin, a transplanted Scando-Germanic Hillman who looks as though he should be sleeping atop one of the north Netherlands’ ancient hunebeds. With his woody, eerie music so thoroughly wedded to his woody, eerie image, Splinterskin yowls out his mossy tales over exquisite Spanish guitar and a violin accompaniment that approximates lonely Banshees wailing of their love for some long dead human beau across some permanently drenched Argyllshire valley. The result is a delightful union of trollishness and archaic minstrelry, something like Cadaverous Condition’s epic experimental 10” EP with North American duo Changes. In this genuinely psychedelic record, Splinterskin convinces us that he is not the born again Wodenist ex-leader singer of some dodgy Black Metal band gone feral – he’s not, I just made that up – but an authentic Forest Father of the old times, one of the Moss Minnikins that suffered decimation quite soon after Humanity discovered tree-felling. If you need a shot of hugely evocative and archaic Ur-Følk with demented but delightful sub-sub-Kelto-Viking stylings, then be sure to grab this mysterious disc. Bravo, Splinterskin.

From Heathen Harvest: (by Perceptron)

  The flame-yellow cover strikes as well as this old wander man, archetypal figure haunting the woods... Also, the Splinterskin logo surprises, coming from a folk/neofolk band. “Wayward” is the first album by Splinterskin and it has been signed under Cold Spring, no less! But, the author seemingly is not unexperience.

  Howling wolves, owls and crows (12), rain and thunder sounds (1, 12) and old grating door (1) set a sinister atmosphere on this album... Apart from sporadic violin (as the lone on “Chanting Bells Call Shadows”) and as various as violin, dulcimer, hand drums or spirit shakers, a simple old classical guitar dominates this album. It has a pure natural sound (2), except its modification on “The Man on the Porch”.

  Guitar usually develops catchy arpeggiated loops densly filled with harmonious notes. Their intensity and fastness are sometimes really amazing, as on the wonderful “Wayward Soul” track, so that listener feels as transported by these melodies, as in enveloping and bewitching wreaths... Dissonance is also sometimes used (4), once really subtly (16), a well as higher notes (14) in a more epic fashion, with fast playing (5).

  Atmospheres range from melancholy (6) and sad melodies (2, 8), usually quite repetitive, or finding a narrative development, to a really story-telling style (8), filled with pathos of a grating dissonance (6), or towards more traditional-focused ones, closer to elements and nature's wildness (f.i. 15), without forgetting eerily humorous ones (14) or eccentrically bluesy others adorned with lunatic harmonies (13).

  We also note changes such as tempo acceleration as ending to the tracks (2, 3, 7) and intensity rising through loudness (12). Such a playfully impredictableness adds to the wildness of the music. Typically voice is rather sober and adopts a semi-whispered style, quite echoed (2, 3, 7), sometimes theatrical (12) and falsely poussive (4).  Voice gets sweeter, more melodic and sensitive on “The Eyes That Hide”. Voice fits the music, but it tends to remain free, voluntarily featuring inaccuracies (16). This keeps alive a raw, slightly “improvised” feeling, instead of a cold studio production.

  Lyrics deal with morbid (7) and symbolic (8), nightmarish (8), ghosts' (4), tales-like stories (2), legends like accounts (3, 14), metaphysical (6) themes. Texts are simple and don't seem to be searching to be really poetic, despite rhymes: their main effect is setting an atmospheres.

  A certain narrative intensity is present: sometimes there's a perfect convergence between the legend / folk tale and the music (8, 12).

  Let's forget the kinda catchy cover and its demonic figure with serpentine look and mansonian beard. Music is much more mysterious, intimate and sincere than we could imagine. Not without reminding guitar sounds and melodies of Empyrium, later period, apart from going forwards into English style, reminding also Sol Invictus. Some songs are quite short, and may seem to finish too soon.

  Bareness of melody doesn't mean guitars aren't elaborated. No need for more instruments or more guitars' layers: it's expressive and intensive enough. This album is a demonstration of both demonic skills' playing abilities and composition intelligence. Music and text merge organically on a few very accomplished songs.

From Hierphant Nox: (by Ellen Simpson)

  Splinterskin is a project that could just about define ‘weird and wonderful’ as a musical genre; a solo project which is, as its creator points out, equal parts song and storytelling, it broods in autumnal woods, dipping into the spirit world and bringing back secrets, wisdom and warnings through the medium of intimate folksong. “Wayward Souls” is a remarkable debut, mixing the ethereal with the earthy with such a delicate touch that you’ll be hard-pressed to stop the hairs on the back of your neck from tingling.

  Key to the untamed, elemental charm of Splinterskin’s sound are the enchanting, flowing, naturalistic patterns played out on acoustic guitar, which are secretive and warm all at once. A classical, finger-picking style predominates, but full strumming and some more progressive movements easily intertwine, accented by sparingly-used violins and hand-drums, along with sampled sounds from the wilderness, for a more eerie, ritual feel. Stalking gruffly yet gently between these layers are the deep, breathy male vocals, which summon images of “The Thing that Wasn’t” – beings which lurk at the edge of our own dimension.

  The whole album is a treasure, with each track setting out with a new creative urge and narrative earnestness, but some stand out – “Something in the Walls” is enchanting with its sweeps and trickles of guitar and sliding vocals exploring possession and the crossing of the veil, “The Thing that Wasn’t” is a glorious evocation of a deep forest, with its warm violin line sticking in the mind, whilst “Still at the Window Sill” is sadder, yet mournfully calm. “The Eyes that Hide” has fascinatingly uncanny lyrics, but it’s the title track that’s the pinnacle of the album, showcasing the very best of all of Splinterskin’s guitar techniques, and making sure the listener cannot depart from the world of “Wayward Souls” untouched by a good measure of awe.

  These compositions remind me of the gorgeously uncultivated sound of Arkansas musician Count Beetle – the musicianship has a similar oneness with the elements, and a familiar creepy, breathy, spooky, evocative approach, which takes its wide-eyed inspiration from the full moon over deep woods. That Splinterskin has spun this sound out to easily captivate for the duration of a full-length release is very impressive, the end result powerful, haunting yet weirdly reassuring. Experimental folk at its very finest – highly recommended. (92/100)

From Evening Of Light: (by O.S.)

  Ohio-based musician Splinterskin released his debut album on Cold Spring last summer, a full-length piece filled with moody and unnerving dark folk. The many short pieces on this record breathe an atmosphere of forest nights, creaking walls, and spiritual horror that is the lifeblood of that typical dark natural æsthetic that has developed over the past 15 years or so.

  The musical base consists of fingerpicked acoustics, sometimes calm, sometimes frantic and quick, with mystical and dark chords that form the melody of this record. Samples of nature sounds and other wayside encounters emphasise the context of the lyrics that deal with various subjects. Foremost are tales of terror and dark folklore: wooden puppets with a life of their own, hidden creatures, old gods. An at times welcome variation is provided by more personal reflections on tracks like “The Skarekrow (October Roads)”,  one of the best tracks on the album.

  Criticism can certainly be levelled at precisely these æsthetics. You have to be in a certain mood to appreciate these grim tales and the demented storyteller voice of Splinterskin, though that isn’t a problem in itself. Rather, both the musical and lyrical stakes seem to be in atmosphere only, while the underlying substance is rather meagre, a downside that occurs regularly in this area of thematics.
Still, what is there is consistent, moody and expressive, an enjoyable trip through magical autumn woods that will please lovers of dark folk in the vein of bands like the Empyrium of give or take ten years ago, especially with a touch of dark atmosphere added.

From Vital Weekly: (by NM)

  The logo of this project express the feeling that the music contained must be of the abrasive kind. The logo looks like the style that could've been used by an extreme metal or harsh noise band. The first minute does sound like something evil will occur with its rumbling noises wriggling along the dark sounds of church bells and field recordings of creaking doors, but shortly after the melancholic sounds of a violin closes down the first chapter "Chanting bells call shadows".

  From this moment forward the music turns acoustic and it works well! Splinterskin comes from Ohio and his musical approach belongs to the experimental folk scene with dark and momentarily sinister atmospheres saturating this debut titled "Wayward souls". The music is primarily built on acoustic guitar spiced with some interesting vocals. What makes this album such an alluring experience is the artist's obvious compositional skills combined with a dark and dramatic take on the neo-folk-scene and not least: The vocal variations spanning from gently mild to downright evil and creepy on a piece like "Broken down hearse". The pieces of the album carried by the talented acoustic guitar strums sometimes added other acoustic instruments such as violin and hand drums has a dramatic touch making the listener suspect something creepy to happen in the next second. But at the end of the day, Splinterskin let's the listener float into seventeen beautiful pieces of contemporary folk music. Excellent debut album that can be enjoyed be anyone generally interested in melodic beauty - this being folk music or else!

From Musique Machine: (by Roger Batty)

  Splinterskin is a one-man project who offers up macabre, horror fuelled, autumnal simmered & strummed dark folk. "Wayward Souls" is the projects debut album and it takes you deep into Splinterskin's sinister,atmosphric & at times darkly fairground wonky sonic world.

  The two primal sonic focuses of most of the tracks here are: Splinterskins’s often hushed, croaky & woodland roughed vocals. And acoustic guitars that take in folk & classical music hints; as well as the odd nods at more darkly fairground or freak-show minstrel strum, grimness & discordant. Added to the vocals & guitar  are touches of violin, a host of creepy & haunted house bound sound effects or field recordings, and eerier or woodland bound percussive trails & bangs. Lyrically the tracks sort of tread the line between woodland bound Poe tales of murder & creepiness, folklore & dark fairytales, and Splinterskin's creepy Wildman of woods persona.  Through it’s fairly sparse sonically the pace & pitch of the songs is varied & enjoyable through-out with Splinterskin managing to balance nicely between been memroble, creepy and at times a little tongue-in–cheek in his approach.

   The only thing that does let down the album as a whole is the often rather ham-fisted, badly placed & at times too loud creepy effects & sounds. Prime example of this comes with the intro track which sounds like a badly cobbling together of  Hammer horror weather sounds, bell tolling's, grave diggings & slow door creaks rolled over by wonky & wavering violin discord-truly it’s an awful sonic concoction. And through this is the worst example of this sound effect bound problem they still do pop up ever so often like sore thumbs through-out the tracks, rather ruining the atmosphere & flow of a few tracks. Anyway this aside Wayward Souls is an original & distinctive take on the dark folk genre & I look forward with interest to hearing what Mr Splinterskin does next

From Mass Movement: (by Doug Crill)

  To be original in a carbon copy world is a rare and refreshing treat. All too often, there is a glut of untalented individuals who are incapable of composing material with the slightest hint of originality. In today’s music, as well as cinema, virgin creativity is nowhere to be found.

  Such is not the case of Splinterskin’s debut CD – Wayward Souls. Unsophisticated and unpolished, the dark folk art represented on this opus is without a doubt some of the most original and inspired music that you will ever hear. Ever so slightly reminiscent of Tom Waits’s distinctively raspy style, Splinterskin’s whispers of haunting vocals flow alongside an unlayered acoustical guitar to give his work the feel of crude, yet, inexorable desolation. The tasteful use of violin and other eerie instrumentation is scattered about the seventeen title tracks as artful splotches of paint dripped over an uneven canvas.

  Especially effective are the poetic lyrics that seem to rivet the listener’s soul in hopelessness. While most of the compositions have an inner theme of impending doom and gloom, there; nevertheless, is a certain, indescribable sense of spirituality that exists throughout the CD. My personal favorite tracks are “The Thing That Wasn’t” and “The Skarekrow.”

  In addition to the magically alluring compositions, Splinterskin creates an interesting CD jacket of imaginative photographs and renderings that augment his unique storytelling. To those individuals who are looking for something dark and avant-garde, Wayward Souls is “the ticket.

From Psychedelic Folk: (by Simon V.)

  A site visitor recommended this item to me, and I understand why. At first I couldn’t get a grip on a deeper purpose of a certain theatrical aspect of the subjects, it was as if I was listening to someone who found another mirror shadowy world to identify himself with/in it, like a Sopor Aeternus identified with the woods, with an interest in that environment, the trees and hidden creatures and the smell of dead wood, with images of skeletons walking by like in an old scary B-movie, just for the art and visual aspect of it, desolate, but somewhere in the middle of oneself. There is in fact so much variation, in singing, in fingerpicking (even being Spanish at times), in mood this is also as much variation as a real life’s vision, where a tree is another one the next hour. The music thoroughly reveals its momentous variations of found situations within a certain frame. You can almost smell the humid fallen leaves of autumn. Some church bells, craws, wolfs or grind foot steps are added ; after a while they become like the accompanying visitors of this world. Pagan-folk lovers will find another variation in this, as well as the neo-folkies a theatrical footstep to something real, even remaining hidden in its form for how much this identification counts and works, it’s up to the next listener’s imagination and new images...

From Judas Kiss: (by Simon Collins)

  It seems like a while since Cold Spring released anything from an unknown artist. There was the Bleeding Heart Narrative album earlier this year, but that was a re-release, and BHN had already had a fair bit of press coverage on the basis of their self-released version. Indeed, I’d already seen them supporting Sol Invictus before the album appeared. It’s necessary to go back to June last year and I Knew Her, the album from Russian musician Alex Tiuniaev, to find a Cold Spring release that seemingly came out of nowhere. With Wayward Souls, the debut album from Splinterskin, though, Cold Spring have backed a winner, because this is a wonderfully atmospheric and absorbing work.

  Splinterskin is a solo musician hailing from Oregon, Ohio. The principal instrument used on Wayward Souls is nylon-stringed acoustic guitar, though the album also features violin, dulcimer, rattles and other hand percussion, and various field recordings of sound effects and nature. No electric instruments at all were used. The 17 tracks on Wayward Souls add up to minutes of playing time, with individual tracks varying between short, fragmentary instrumentals and longer, more elaborately structured narrative pieces. Songs were mostly recorded live on one microphone, without overdubs, resulting in a vibrant, intimate feel to the production. In some ways, these songs sound like demos or campfire songs, although there is a very sophisticated sensibility at work beneath the rough-hewn surface.

  Splinterskin’s music is raw, minimalist folk, with a distinctively dark, malevolent atmosphere. Imagine The Blair Witch Project realised as an acoustic folk album rather than a low-budget horror film – that’ll give you some idea of what I’m talking about. The horror-film feel to Wayward Souls is reinforced by the album artwork, an autumnal feast of reds and golds, with deep, looming shadows, and images of a ramshackle cabin deep in the woods, bone wind-chimes clanking eerily by its door, ghoulish death masks and a prevailing atmosphere of organic decay. Splinterskin himself appears on the front cover, perched on a log holding a battered guitar, and looking like a cross between Leatherface and a possessed scarecrow.

  Whilst the music of Splinterskin is American dark folk in the vein of Changes, In Gowan Ring, Steve Von Till and perhaps most particularly the ‘Samhain folk’ of Harvest Rain, his lyrics are something else entirely, a fetid phantasmagoria of corpse stench, funeral pyres, enchanted puppets, grave desecration, vampire-hunting, the living dead, forests, caves, bones, worms, buzzards, ravens and wolves, all flung together into grim little gothic vignettes with strong narrative threads, and related in a cloaked, confiding undertone quite reminiscent of Nicholas Tesluk of Changes. This kind of subject matter is well-worn in horror cinema, of course, but musically speaking, it’s more often the preserve of black metal or death metal, and hearing horror stories told well and convincingly within a folk music context is a much more special experience.

  After the short instrumental intro, ‘Chanting Bells Call Shadows’, an atmospheric sound collage of torrential rain, a tolling funeral bell and ominous sounds of digging and scraping, Wayward Souls really gets going with one of its strongest songs, ‘Dancing Dead Men’, the Tim Burtonesque tale of an old toymaker and the evil puppets he makes, which come alive at night and go out ‘searching for their youth, and their grave… or another child to take their place.’ Delectably shiversome stuff, which is instrumentally reprised at the album’s close.

  The opening of ‘The Crumbling Cabin’ borrows a little too obviously from ‘Willow’s Song’ from The Wicker Man, before the song veers in a more delirious, psychedelic direction. The queasy, hesitant bent notes of ‘Something In The Walls’ effectively evoke the disturbing, distorted feel of a bad dream, while the instrumental piece which follows, ‘Moonlight Rain’ conveys a subtler sense of melancholy and sorrow through its rippling Spanish arpeggios. The short but pungent ‘Broken Down Hearse’ is one of the album’s most graveworm-infested songs, crammed with morbid imagery of desecration, pyres, caskets and corpse stench, and narrated in the first person by an Ed Gein-like protagonist on a ghastly moonlit mission.

  The bright, cantering dulcimer melody of the instrumental ‘Hoofbeats’ exudes the mittel-European peasant flavour of Popol Vuh’s soundtrack to Werner Herzog’s 1979 remake of Nosferatu, and ‘The Eyes That Hide’ is another strong narrative piece like ‘Dancing Dead Men’, this time telling of ‘a race who avoid the light of day’, hiding in the forest, watching and waiting... The album’s longest song is ‘A Horrible Night To Have A Curse’, another great set piece which relates the tale of an vampire hunt which ends in disaster, the sparse guitar and voice arrangement accented by sound effects of rain, howling wolves, hooting owls and creaking doors – cheesy stuff, for sure, but somehow it works. Sound effects of heavy, crunching footfalls and rushing water are also prominent on the instrumental ‘A Trail Of Trees’, a lovely classical guitar piece, which provides some respite from the relentless horror-show of the album’s lyrics.

  The album’s title track is the last song before the instrumental reprise of ‘Dancing Dead Men’, and the crystal-clear production picks up every nuance of the fluid plucked guitar melody, every swoop of Splinterskin’s fingers up and down the frets. The music is as stark and bare as a tree in winter, yet marvellously involving.

  This review has included a lot of film references, but Splinterskin aims at accessing realms of the imagination which are more usually the province of film-makers, and his gift for narrative is so strongly developed. Splinterskin’s songs are generally too attention-grabbing to work as actual soundtrack music, but again and again whilst listening to Wayward Souls, I found myself storyboarding the songs, constructing lurid tableaux in my mind’s eye. This is an outstanding debut album, and one I will be returning to long after this review is over and done with. As the trees shed their leaves and the shadows lengthen towards Halloween, the damp evening air suffused with the rich aromas of leafmould, fungus and bonfire smoke, Splinterskin provides the ideal soundtrack for autumn. Take me to your backwoods now.

From Filth Forge: (by Simon V.)

  Music conceived in isolation and solitude, voluntary exiliated in the remotest depths of North American forests, where another strange entity known as Waldteufel dwells. Splinterskin, a strange and slightly disturbing figure, a cross between a demonic homeless and a woodlands watcher, reveals his existence with an extensive compendium of acoustic stories, recorded between 2006 and 2008 in Oregon and Ohio. "Wayward Souls" must not be approached like a neofolk album, because the music here presented has absolutely nothing to do with that genre: the simple acoustic sound, conjured by an old guitar and, occasionally, violin, is that of a 19th Century storyteller, narrating about the scary legends of wild lands and past times.

  The atmosphere is decaying, dusty and mournful, portraying images of cursed characters, doomed adventurers and supernatural creatures, while a cold, endless rain pours down, echoes from the forest and laments of animals suggest the presence of something we would prefer not to deal with. Vocals are eerie, sound like those of an old loner, or of an elemental wandering through the dark woods, warning human intruders to stay away from there at night.

  Splinterskin's debut is an interesting listening experience, a haunting journey that won't fail to fascinate different kind of listeners. The only turn off of "Wayward Souls" is represented by the high number of songs, seventeen, making the CD sound a bit repetitive after a while, since there's no significant variation in the sound between them. Anyway, we're definitely in front of something different and intriguing in a scene constantly at risk of stagnation. Give it a listen.

From Alternativmusik: (by Tristan)

  Nein, es ist beim besten Willen kein gutes Zeichen, wenn ein Album nicht mal zur Hälfte durchgelaufen ist und man eigentlich auch keine Lust mehr hat, diesem weiterhin zu lauschen. Umso schlechter wird es dann, wenn das Album es auch nicht schafft, gegen Ende das Ruder rumzureißen und den schon nicht allzu positiven Eindruck zu widerlegen. Zu diesen Alben gehört auch das erste Album Wayward Souls von Splinterskin. Beginnt das Album sehr viel versprechend mit minimalistischem Folk und einer durchaus markanten Stimme des Sängers, wird das Album, je länger es läuft, immer eintöniger, sodass man beinahe froh ist, wenn das Album letztendlich vorbei ist. Und das alles, obwohl durchaus gute Ansätze da sind, bei denen man sich dann auch noch immer wieder fragt, ob das Album nun doch was taugt oder nicht.

  Nein, Wayward Souls ist kein wirklich schlechtes Folkalbum, zumindest erwarten einen hier nicht derartige Katastrophen, in denen sich jemand nach zwei, drei Stunden Gitarrenunterricht hinsetzt und versucht, ein Folk-Album hinzuprügeln, das so klingt, als würde man im Wald stehen. Im Gegenteil beherrscht der gute Mann hinter Splinterskin durchaus sein Instrument, was gerade Stücke wie Moonlight Rain beweisen, das einen mit wunderschönem Gitarrengezupfe umgarnt.

  Auch die englischen Texte über Tod und Leben, Mythologie und Natur sind durchaus interessant und wert, ihnen genauer zuzuhören. Das Problem ist einfach, dass zu oft der Gesang nicht zu den Liedern passen will. Zu oft hat man den Eindruck, hier wurde einfach was eingesungen und dazu musste eine Melodie her – ob sie nun passt oder nicht.

  Die positiven Ausnahmen auf Wayward Souls kommen einfach zu selten und sind genau jene, in denen nicht nur die Gitarre auftaucht, sondern auch Geigen, Flöten und andere Instrumente. Außerdem werden schlichtweg zu oft immer die gleichen Akkorde gespielt. Dass das funktionieren kann, beweisen Bands wie Changes, aber hier will es einfach nicht klappen.

  Zu Wayward Souls hätte man gerne eine positive Kritik geschrieben: Der krächzende Gesang, der immer so wirkt, als wäre er dem Tode nur eine Daumennagelbreite entfernt, sorgt für eine düstere und unheimliche Stimmung und die wenigen Lichtblicke unter den 17 Liedern zeigen auch, was möglich ist. Da bleibt nur abzuwarten und auf ein weiteres Album zu hoffen, bei dem es hoffentlich dann etwas abwechslungsreicher zugehen wird.

From Obliveon: (by MK)

  „Wayward Souls“ ist eins dieser klassischen Apocalyptic Folk-Alben, wie sie in dieser Form fast ausschliesslich in den USA entstehen und dabei nicht selten die Einflüsse Changes’ offenbaren. Splinterskin können diesen Einfluss ebenfalls kaum verleugnen, doch die Art und Weise des Gitarrenspiels wie auch des Gesangs weisen eine archaische Komponente auf, die „Wayward Souls“ zu einem sehr eindringlichen und zudem sehr eigenen Album werden lassen. Das Erscheinungsbild Splinterskins besitzt zudem eine sehr kauzige Ausstrahlung, die sich in den Texten über Leben und Tod, die Natur und den Schmerz und das Leid wie auch über versteckte Weisheiten widerspiegeln. Das Gitarrenspiel ist klassisch beeinflusst, beinhaltet zuweilen sogar Komponenten des Flamenco, ist in seiner Summe aber immer noch folkloristisch genug, um Neofolk-Puristen nicht zu vergrätzen. Der Gesang wirkt gequält, scheint von den Erfahrungen des Lebens gebrochen und wirkt gerade deshalb so eindringlich und faszinierend. „Wayward Souls“ mag auf den ersten Höreindruck ein sehr sperriges Album sein, doch gerade diese vermeintliche Sperrigkeit ist sein grösster Schatz. Ein faszinierendes Album.

From Blow Up: (by Paolo Bertoni)

  L’uomo ribattezzatosi Splinterskin, dall’Ohio, prima si condanna ad un isolamento talmente radicale da esser tronfio, poi matura “Wayward Souls”. Lo vediamo ritratto in copertina avvolto da una luce aliena, eremita in una foresta che di esseri umani ne ha visti pochi. E questa solitudine profonda e beffarda gli impone l’essenza assoluta, il folk lividamente ancestrale, voce, chitarra, dulcimer, pioggia e tuoni, che guarda oltre l’orizzonte con la saggezza di chi vede e sa che dire a nulla serve, ché tanto esser ascoltati è somma utopia. Dancing Dead Men, Still At The Window Still, The Eyes That Hide, The Skarekrow, l’impetuoso strumentale A Trail Of Trees e l’inginocchio Drake di Wayward Souls raccontano di uomini invincibili nella loro sfida alla modernità tra lune, riti, morte e natura generosa e crudele, sfiorando senza curarsene verità dal nitore annientante, fuori dalle fatue esigenze dell’effimero. Inflessioni vagamente malvagie in Broken Down Hearse e sinistri riverberi in Something In The Walls sembrano comunque assumersi un vano compito monitorio, lasciare traccia di un avvertimento che si è consapevoli non sarà udito. (7/8)

From Darkroom: (by Roberto Alessandro Filippozzi)

  La titolata label inglese Cold Spring tiene a battesimo l'ennesimo debutto: stavolta tocca a Splinterskin, progetto di un misterioso 'uomo dei boschi' nativo dell'Ohio, dove l'album in questione è stato registrato fra l'autunno del 2006 e quello del 2008. E non è certo un caso che l'autunno sia stata la stagione scelta per registrare un disco il cui particolare suono è stato catturato in presa diretta col solo ausilio di un microfono (salvo rare eccezioni, come specificato), dei riverberi naturali della natura circostante e degli umori della stagione delle foglie cadenti, elemento importante anche nel concept grafico di Splinterskin. Ciò che dobbiamo idealizzare per calarci nell'opera in esame è l'immagine di un oscuro figuro che suona la sua vecchia e usurata chitarra acustica nei boschi, ispirato dai colori autunnali e dall'atmosfera da essi emanata: così sono infatti nate le 17 composizioni di "Wayward Souls". Il suono del disco, vista la modalità di registrazione impiegata, è inevitabilmente minimale e genuinamente sporco, complice la tecnica chitarristica del Nostro, il quale predilige un feeling autentico alla cura esecutiva, ignorando sbavature ed imperfezioni di sorta nel suo impeto artistico. Ciò che più caratterizza i brani è senza dubbio la performance vocale del Nostro: la sua è una voce roca, profonda e oscuramente sussurrata, altamente suggestiva e capace di generare una buona intensità, evocando a tratti quasi una sorta di McCoy intimista, passionale e solitario, a contatto solamente con la maestà di Madre Natura. Qua e là spuntano percussioni, violini, dulcimer ed altri strumenti rigorosamente acustici, purtroppo appena accennati e poco presenti in un tessuto sonoro che nasce e muore nelle corde della chitarra, talvolta capace persino di sfuriate che profumano di metal estremo ("The Crumbling Cabin", "Broken Down Hearse"). Fra taluni brevi episodi strumentali spuntano momenti notevoli come la suggestiva "Something In The Walls", la più cantautoriale "The Thing That Wasn't", l'appassionata "Still At The Window Sill" o la più teatrale "The Man On The Porch", sicuramente fra i brani migliori di un'opera che ha il solo limite di proporre poche reali varianti. Si tratta comunque di un debutto dotato di un misterioso fascino che troverà estimatori fra i seguaci del folk più oscuro, ma la speranza che in futuro altri strumenti trovino maggior spazio nelle trame sonore di Splinterskin è legittima. Passeggiando fra i boschi in autunno, attenderemo fiduciosi.