The Bassist

Lawrence Salvador Duke: Vocals, Bass guitar

"The hand that signed the paper felled a city;

Five sovereign fingers taxed the breath,
Doubled the globe of dead and halved a country;
These five kings did a king to death.

The mighty hand leads to a sloping shoulder, 

The finger joints cramped with chalk; 

A goose's quill has put an end to murder 

That put an end to talk

The hand that signed the treaty bred a fever,
And famine grew, and locusts came;
Great is the hand that holds dominion over
Man by a scribbled name.

The five kings count the dead but do not soften

The crusted wound nor stroke the brow;

A hand rules pity as a hand rules heaven;

Hands have no tears to flow"

"The Hand That Signed the Paper" by Dylan Thomas
Sourced in "Miscellany" J M Dent and Sons 1963
Courtesy J M Dent and Sons Ltd, Aldine House, London
Photographs courtesy of Ed Sprake 2012
Studio shot courtesy Danny the Red 2011

The Keyboardist

Eden Ellis Duke: Keyboards, vocals

As it happened... one night in May 2012
Photographs courtesy of Ed Sprake 2012. All rights reserved.

Review (I) Fire - EP

Sloucher.org has provided a fine review of Trojan Horse's new EP.

"Trojan Horse - EP

Once upon a time, a good friend of mine observed that the two persons that have treated me the worst were Sagittarius. I’ve never believed in Zodiac mumbo jumbo, but it is a strange coincidence (disproved by the fact that I have some very good friends that are also Sagittarius).

Anways, if I were to believe in Astrology, I’d say that Fire by Trojan Horse (#IFOWONPRO!) is a Gemini.

Ah, fuck that Zodiac bullshit, this EP is actually Harvey Dent (if you need explaining, congrats, you have a real life).

Let’s toss the coin… Ah.

It all kicks off with the extremely exciting (and infuriatingly short) ‘Fire’, which manages to cram in less than 2 minutes the intensity of Trojan Horse with their penchant to deftly jump from genre to genre. Punk, rock, ambient and even some fashionable post punk for you indie lovers (love the drum attack). Just one nitpick, it’s 01189998819991197253 , not 999.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young is such a good band and their song ‘Ohio’ is a fantastic condemnation of a horrible incident. Kudos to Trojan Horse to go for this often overlooked track and adding their own flavour to it. Some may say that the incident at Kent State is water under the bridge, but I implore you to read about the current situation in México and you’ll understand why I think this cover is something that still reflects real life. The actors change, but the brutality is still present.

‘Disciplining the reserve army’ was an amazing track from their previous LP and the acoustic version losses  [sic] all effects but none of the emotion. The odd time signatures survive any stripping and you get extra atmosphere courtesy of a melodica that steals the show.

Let’s toss the coin again.

Time for the remixes and this is where results may vary. Remixes can be like covers: you can stay to close to the original, adding almost nothing to it or you can just deviate as wildly as a meandering river, ending up with something akin to what comes out of a cocoon after a caterpillar takes a big nap.

‘Reggae’ comes courtesy of From the Kites of San Quentin and you can tell: the glitchy bits, the slightly unnerving atmospheres and the occasional industrial beat (slowed down). It’s all there and it’s the darker of the three remixes. ‘Fire’ gets a remix by DTR (the producer of the EP) and continues the dark atmosphere laid out by ‘Reggae’. The smouldering drone marches on and small variations and incidental stings swoop down, altering the mood and leave just as fast, letting the mesmerising creation continue to slowly crawl forward. That lovely synth (the one that sounds like a keyboard/Theremin thingy) does lull our senses. Chill out music with an edge.

The last remix, courtesy of Zoir is called ‘(Earth, Wind &) Fire’ and is the happier of the three, although it’s also the one having the most fun with the glitches and arpeggios. When the percussion crashes the party, the song really lifts off. If you like stuff to be less abstract (like the other two remixes), this is the meat closest to the bone.

Fire EP. One half offering Prog Nouveau loveliness (#IFOWONPRO!), the other one offering progressive electronica at its glitchiest. Which face is the dashingly good looking attorney and which one is the crusty deep fried and battered face with wavy white hair? Results may vary, but I like variety, me…"

Words: Sam J. Valdés López

Review courtesy of Sloucher.org. For the original words go to 'Trojan Horse - Fire EP'.

Welcome to the club

Trojan Horse: Fire EP

Welcome to the Trojan Horse blog.

Habitués to this site and votaries of this lively prog-quartet will be able to reap from a crop of regular and authoritative articles, miscellaneous musings and band-centric ephemera.

In this the first of many postings, we'll be focusing on the band's first non-album release which has been a long time in the making and releasing. We refer of course to Trojan Horse's pristine six track EP 'Fire'. The release has been plagued with delays due to issues centring on such trivial matters as licensing agreements and the production of the CD artwork.

Fans of the band will know that they are obsessively compulsive about the recording process. Their first album 'Trojan Horse' was three years in the recording and mixing. They are perfectionists and ambitionists. Recording requires that the construction of multi-layered soundscapes by necessity involves specific elements: it's about positioning, churchwarden pipes, arrangements, pewter, patience and a willingness to regularly adopt the posture of a jester. Yet, despite the band's insistence on detail, one or two of these tracks depart from this more usual approach, with tracks two and three being laid down pretty much live in the studio. The title track at 1:40 is a firestorm of sound.

Not only will the purchaser of this fine compendium enjoy several original compositions but will  encounter a harmony-laden rendition of Neil Young's 'Ohio' knocked out on a one-string banjo and a de-tuned bassdrum played with a stuffed sock. The intensive audiophile will be able to while away the hours basking in a Salford sunshine of several fine remixes inaugurated by the substantive and elaborational From the Kites of San Quentin who have tackled the bare Billy-bones of a new composition 'Reggae'. This will, in its more elaborate form, be included on their forthcoming Long Player currently under construction. This is coupled with a rather fine remix of Fire by the highly original and innovative Zoir. For those with a keen eye, the expansive artwork is accompanied by the fine photographic endeavours and accomplishments of Ed Sprake.

In line with our policy of anti-parsimony, we would encourage dedicated followers of Salford's finest to check out these outstanding bands/artistes.

For the kingly ransom of £5, a copy of this masterpiece on Compact Disc, non-warts 'n' all can be yours.

Tracks

Fire
Ohio
Disciplining the Reserve Army
Reggae (From the Kites of San Quentin Remix)
Fire (DTR Remix)
(Earth, Wind and) Fire (Zoir Remix)

Trojan Horse firmly believe in making their music available to listeners. In order to help the band continue in their quest to produce music and compositions of the highest quality and length, visit the band's Bandcamp website and  purchase their debut long player entitled in the longer tradition 'Trojan Horse'.

Don't just listen to it - buy it!

Above photographs courtesy: Ed Sprake & Gary Paul Duke

Make contact kingpolydektesdaughter@gmail.com