I sit in the darkness with only the flicker of a candle to illuminate my senses. I blow dust off the record player and place a marbled vinyl onto the deck.
The floor boards creek as I step back into my worn armchair. The scene perfect, the atmosphere set. I like to listen to music in these surroundings for this is when the connection to the music is at its strongest.
At times I am distraught, at times I am mesmerised, at times I am sad, but finally I am in awe. After closing your eyes the images cast by the voices and words of the Smoke Fairies, Jessica Davies and Katherine Blamire, telling stories that swirl around your mind, creating a sound that is hard to place both in time and genre, will leave you needing a second ride.
I open my eyes; the candle has blown out, with only the distinct smell of smoke affecting my surroundings. My immediate instinct is to pull the needle back and do that again. It’s been a while since I have been hypnotised by a sound that takes you on a journey, where at the end you feel a sense of loss and happiness at exactly the same time. I’m used to being confused but this was a totally different experience and strangely comforting.
Ghosts is a mixture of the songs the Smoke Fairies have released over the past few years. The harmonies and guitar work is hard to place and I don’t want to put them somewhere they don’t belong – they are different, they are talented and as far as I am concerned original. 
I particularly over indulged in “When you grow old” “Living with Ghosts” and “Sunshine” which all give you a deep feeling that these girls are bursting with memories that transcend time – who were they in a past life?
However, they will have to be careful and not fall into the trap of becoming content and stale, fore if they continue to grow and develop they will have a sound that will last the test of time. I can only imagine where there next release will take me……on a steam boat up the Mississippi, lonely and lost in the wilderness of a Southern city or a mystical meander through the ancient forests of the Emerald Isle . Jessica and Katherine have a sound like no other at the moment – and you can tell that the buzz around them is intensifying.
It will be autumn when “Through Low Light and Trees” is released and I will certainly be in the armchair with the crackling of the fire and sound of rain preparing me for the next ride.
Through Low Light and Trees is released on September 6th 2010. Special Edition available through Rough Trade Records. http://www.roughtrade.com
Ghosts is available through the Smoke Fairies Website. www.smokefairies.com
They are playing at Dingwalls, London on the 21st of September.
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