Paul Mounsey
Nahoo Too

Paul Mounsey, a Scottish artist, lived for 10 years in Brazil.

Keyboardist, vocalist, and composer. He has played with artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Etta James, Antonio Carlos Jobim, and has composed numerous pieces for chamber groups and orchestras.

This "NAHOO TOO" (or NAHOOTOO) from 1998 (17 tracks), is the second CD of a trilogy that began in 1994 with "Nahoo" and ended in 1999 with "Nahoo3: Notes From The Republic".

It is a CD, rich and intense, which has Scottish folk music as its base, but not only that; it is also "mixed" at times with Brazilian music. But the true essence of this CD is electronics, with a decidedly rock vein, with a string orchestra and a touch of atmosphere and jazz; in short, there's a bit of everything, skillfully mixed to evoke various emotions.

It is predominantly a musical CD, where Mounsey sings on some tracks (the songs seem to have come out of the latest productions by "master" Peter Gabriel) with Gaelic or Brazilian female singers (the most ethnic parts of the CD, yet always with a rock or electronic atmosphere). In my opinion, a great CD in general and for all the instruments, including the orchestra, but the main protagonists are the bass, drums, and electric guitar.

Now the songs: it starts with "Remembrance" and, together with "Mhairead Og Part I and II" (respectively the 12th and 13th track) are the most ethnic female vocal forms, but as I said, without neglecting electronic and rock. The first is softer, and the 2nd "Mhairead Og" (the 1st part is an intro) features singing on a rock base, with great atmospheres, and a guitar that penetrates you without letting go: superb.

The second track, "Wherever You Go" (classic Peter Gabriel style) that, together with "Infinite Contempt" 4th track (here a mid-tempo rock with a violin solo first and then guitar, includes choirs that in the end lead to a rock à la Roger Waters of Radio Kaos), "Kaiwa Farewell" 6th track (a beautiful slow piece that makes us miss the great The Alan Parsons Project with Eric Wolffson) and "Nahoo" 9th track (another "Alan Parsons..." with shades of Gaelic/Scottish singing and a Pink Floydian guitar solo) represent the male vocals.

"North" the 4th track (with a hard rock central solo à la Steve Vai) together with "Another Clearance" 5th track (ethnic/Brazilian solo), "Psalm" 7th track, "The Field of Robert John" 10th track (here the art of mixing Scottish ethnic with Brazilian, and a great guitar solo à la Mike Oldfield), "Fall" 11th track (an intimate start with keyboard and two notes on the piano, then evolving into an airy melody with orchestra and drums, always maintaining the two piano notes "suspended in the air" and an accompaniment with a closed-mouth choir: moving, touching masterpiece between chill-out and pop) are the slowest, most atmospheric, and melodious songs on the CD.

The 8th track "Turned On The Dog" along with "Hope You’re No Guilty" are the hardest-hitting tracks on the CD, especially "Turned..." a hard rock track that seems to have calmly come out of a Steve Vai CD, granite drums, with heavy and distorted guitars (in fact, the track includes drums, bass, and two guitars, a guitar solo and vocals) while "Hope..." starts with a Brazilian tribal chant and then enters into a baroque-like keyboard within a few seconds, exploding into an ethno/techno dance/rock that you can't help but keep the beat to and start dancing along, a great melody with electric guitar, and structured with singing and choirs like a song from Roger Waters' "Amused To Death".

In conclusion: the 14th track "Red River", seems to be straight out of the Braveheart film soundtrack, the only acoustic moment on the CD with just an orchestra, something to dream about and then the 17th track "Lullaby" just for keyboard, orchestra, and great choir. The other two "Nahoo..." CDs are more "monochromatic": the first more pop, the third more pop-rock, always jewels.

In 2003, he released "CITY OF WALLS" a worthy successor to "NAHOO TOO", but with slightly more pop/rock/celtic/country/jazz undertones and thus, in some respects, somewhat "softer". Also in 2003, a CD with the Runrig (a legendary Scottish pop/rock group) "PROTERRA", and then in 2005, "THE DAYS FLASH PAST: Tha Na Laithean A'Dol" a more intimate, darker CD, almost entirely sung in Gaelic with a pop-electronic musical backdrop and jazz undertones, in the style of Capercaillie.