In 2023, Nick Fletcher, virtuoso guitarist, released Quadrivium, an exceptional album, and, as I wrote, a “work of art to be savoured”. 2024 sees the follow-up, A Longing for Home, once again joined by the special talent that is Anika Nilles on drums, alongside guests Jonathon Ihlenfeld Cuniado on bass; Jan Gunnar Hoff playing keyboards; the lovely Olga ‘Dikajee’ Karpova providing vocals on ‘To Hear the Angels Sing’, with co-producer Caroline Bonnett on keyboards and programming.
This is part of a trilogy of albums, The Cloud of Unknowing coming before Quadrivium, in which instrumentals explore the themes of philosophy, science, and spirituality. As with the finest instrumental composers and artists, words are not needed to touch the listener and place one in the realm of self-understanding and appreciation.
Released today (21st October 2024), you should absolutely visit Nick Fletcher - Musician and Composer UK (nickfletcherguitarmusic.com) to get yourselves a copy. Before we set out our thoughts, let’s look at the album teaser on YouTube.
So, ten tracks and almost an hour of music to savour. Let’s get into the detail.
We start with Satori, which is a Buddhist term for a sudden insight into our true selves, or enlightenment, and as such this is a joyful noise, jazz fusion at its most inspirational, Fletcher & Nilles driving the sense of self, but it must be said that the guests here contribute to a collective sound, the keyboards on this warm, and later with an incredible amount of solo intricacy, the bass melody complementing the drums so well. The main solo from Fletcher is gorgeous, a master at work. The final seconds are suitably contemplative.
The Secret of the Ascent follows, a journey, I believe, of self as opposed to a physical climb, and the melody here is suitably questing. The Hammond organ blast is a delight, bringing a strong classic rock sensibility to the track, as does the guitar solo. A fast-paced race to the metaphorical summit, a sheer delight, it is embedded below.
Joy Turning Into Sorrow is up next, a short almost interlude contemplative piece for acoustic guitar which definitely stands comparison to similar pieces written by Steve Hackett, who we know rates Fletcher extremely highly. The keyboard effects at the end are very effective and bring a natural sense of thought.
Sitting in the Sunboat is a lengthy piece, over seven and a half minutes. Close your eyes and see yourself in the mind’s eye looking over the endless river on a journey of discovery, or simply a break from the turpitude of modern work and life. The class guitar work here is backed by a fusion burst from the collective bringing joy to the listener. As with all such journeys, there are moments when the elements threaten to break the ambience, and the mid-section portrays this well.
Now, what follows requires a serious explanation. Until hearing Her Eyes of Azure Blue, I had settled on my “track of 2024” in the website’s annual awards, but Mr Fletcher has put me all of a tizz, because this love song is not only at the top of the tree for 2024, but in my collection. It simply must be a loving tribute to someone special in his life, her eyes that sensuous blue. I played this on my radio show at Progzilla Radio this past Saturday as the closing track, deliberately to send my listeners away happy knowing they had listened to something incredibly special. The dexterity of the playing, and the sheer warmth and emotion really is something, the soundscapes on the keyboards adding so much value, the percussion perfectly gentle and soothing, a beautiful bass melody. It is embedded here for you to enjoy. Whilst the entire album is a joy to listen to, this track is the embodiment of that well-worn phrase “worth the entrance price alone”.
A Pathway to the Hermitage follows, and these were places created by hermits and ascetics to escape the noise and temptation of the outside, material world. The piece puts this across very well, the journey one of necessity, a nice set of keys bringing a sense of calm to the guitars and drums beneath, and Fletcher provides for a lovely guitar solo which puts the destination in your sight, a place of joy.
The title track is up next. I now work from home, but prior to the pandemic, I would spend at least a couple of days a week travelling the UK staying at ghastly corporate hotel chains for utterly pointless meetings. The start of this wonderful track puts me in mind of those times so well, the plaintive guitar a cry for sanity in an endless round of movement. So well played, a joy to hear, a masterclass in how a solo guitar can hold the attention of the questing mind.
The Sage, The Monk, and the Scholar is a rare old title to contend with, and the freneticism puts me in mind of being a spectator at a deep intellectual argument on life, the universe, and everything between them, with some crunching riffs, both guitar-led and from the swirling Hammond. Heavy jazz rock, and it is class.
The penultimate piece is Crossing the Sacred Threshold, this being the space where you hold yourself as both whole and holy. Musically and in temperament, very similar to the opening delight on this album, I think that Fletcher in this album is telling us of the completion of part (spiritual journeys are never wholly over) of his personal spiritual contemplation, learning. It is, I believe, a good place, nourishing, and that is what is put across here.
We close with To Hear the Angels Sing, with guest Olga ‘Dikajee’ Karpova, whose own output I am so looking forward to. This is the perfect way to close a warm and intimate album, the voice ethereal against the softly spoken chords. A song of devotion.
A Longing For Home is an experience, not merely a music album. Nick Fletcher is an artist who our listening population needs to cherish and support. I have no hesitation at all in saying that this album is as good as it gets. A musical tour de force, reflecting much of my own personal spiritual journey, this is a nourishing work.
The music embedded in this review is reproduced by kind permission of Nick Fletcher. As ever, you are urged to support independent artists by purchasing their music directly.