Sol Invictus
All Things Strange And Rare

Thank goodness for Tony!

"All Things Strange and Rare," released in 1999, is certainly not an essential episode in the discography of Sol Invictus, but it would be a real shame to overlook it, especially for those who have always followed with affection the artistic adventure of Tony Wakeford, articulated in a myriad of projects, collaborations, solo albums, and, of course, releases from his main band.

The collection in question scrapes the bottomless barrel of Wakeford's discographic production, offering us alternative versions of already known tracks and episodes scattered in compilations and ultra-limited editions. It shows us, above all, a new face of the English minstrel.

Indeed, we find an abundance of oddities, like the 15 minutes of "A Palace of Worms," in which practically anything can happen (among dark industrial visions, ambient, usual neo-folk, we even find glimpses of flamenco!), or the Beatlesque "Hedda Gabbler." The former, taken from the compilation "The Lamp of the Invisible Light" (from 1992), is actually a hallucinatory journey that gathers multiple tracks like "The World Turns" and "Now" (signed by Wakeford) and "Panamampan" (by Blake), not forgetting the voice of Aleister Crowley reciting the second part of "Hymn to Pan." The latter, originally present in the compilation "Im Blutfeuer" (from 1993), is a reinterpretation of a John Cale track.

But the most delicious core of the collection consists of the triptych "On and On," "The Coffin Road," and "Above Us the Sun", which are nothing more than the complete re-presentation of the mini-album "Above Us the Sun," a small but significant discographic gem originally released as a supplement to the book of the same name, published in 1994, which enclosed all the texts by Wakeford, accompanied by illustrations from his painter friend Tor Lundvall.

The tracks belong to that era of the band when the formal quality of Our Hero was significantly lower than what was proposed from the second half of the nineties onwards, a period when the compositions staggered uncertainly and drowned sadly in the executional imperfections of an overbearing ego that could not yet be called a skilled musician, nor a sublime builder of apocalyptic scenarios. An era, however, in which the tracks shone with a different light, sounded more naive and sincere, ultimately pulsing with a fertile and fruitful heart, capable of offering emotions without the need for lavish orchestras and excellent musicians. Worth mentioning are the radiant "On and On", a lively and carefree folk-song with a breezy attitude, and the poignant title track, a twilight ballad that presents us with the best Sol Invictus: two tracks that, despite their striking simplicity, demonstrate what Our Hero was made of; two tracks called to represent the ineffable Wakefordian vision of the world and history, made of poignant melancholy and heroic abnegation, a sense of defeat and disillusionment, of pessimism and hope: the hope that a new cycle interrupts the phase of decadence experienced by humanity.

Completing the picture, alternative versions of known songs are not missing. The album, for example, opened with a more overtly industrial version of the classic "Looking for Europe" (taken from the 7-inch "Looking for Europe"), reinforced by a solid slapped bass; while after "Above Us the Sun" there is still room for a succulent ghost-song: the rereading in a cacophonous key of the intense "Tooth and Claw" (from "Lex Talionis"), here crossed by acid noise lashes.

Noteworthy, in conclusion, is the choice to connect all these tracks, very diverse from a stylistic point of view, with a single leitmotif, namely an elementary piano loop that introduces or traverses many of the pieces present: a gimmick that underscores Wakeford's totalizing need to give a conceptual meaning even to a simple collection of unreleased and rare tracks.

Not everything is of inestimable value, of course, but in the melting pot, it's possible to come across authentic gems; for this reason, the most unyielding fans of this man who has made the history of apocalyptic folk won't be disappointed.