Sometimes musical genius just rears its amazing head, and it cannot be ignored. Connecticut based Semaphora recently dropped their exciting disc Sister Administrator into an unsuspecting music scene. It will go over big, especially when local music fans realize that the multi layered album is the product of one mind. Semaphora, actually the name for composer-multi instrumentalist Lydia Arachne, offer an aural extravaganza of fantastic songs, arrangements, and a handful of fine singers.
Arachne is also very literate. The album title Sister Administrator contains a double meaning. A sister, as shown on the album cover, can be a nun administering medicine. An “administrator” can be one who manages a computer system. This concept album focuses on how modern technology has transformed our society, to the point of being treated as a religion.
Opening track “Another Mundane Tuesday” features vocalist Elizabeth Ashkins spreading her silky smooth voice over a lively, peppy track that, ironically, sings of the tedium of the second day of the work week. The vocal charm is supported by a multitude of instrumentation. Horns, keyboards, synths, supported by a snappy bass guitar line turn a concept into a sweet confection one cannot stop listening to.
“Scomberdae” features more sweet female lead and harmony vocals over an all encompassing soundscape. A persistent beat, jangly melodic lines, and a sublimated bass guitar line makes this piece come to colorful life. There is a pacing to the lead vocal, punctuated by the groove, that adds extra allure to this tune. Mellifluous horns chime in, and their waves of melodic swoop keep the interest level high.
After the first two tracks one wonders how Arachne can keep so many melody lines, harmony lines, and instruments in one head. “Mobilnik” takes things slow but maintains Arachne’s penchant for twisty vocal lines, voices asserted over a wide sweep of horn. A lively piano line tap dances its notes across the sonic landscape with aplomb, fitting in well with the other sprightly notes from the other instruments while supporting the lead vocal. It’s another trick in Arachne’s magic bag to have an instrument line fulfill a double duty.
Skipping along to a lively beat, “Bajir” entices with its bright piano melody and its wave of horn magic. This one moves like a magic carpet ride over its traveling groove. This gives the song two motions at once, one above, one beneath. Throw in a honey smooth vocal glide, and the listener is treated to a stream of pleasantly moving parts.
“Bakelite” moves to a mild funk groove. Jazzy horns and a rhythmic keyboard line keep this light and bouncy. The bass guitar makes the most of these trappings, strutting its way through this danceable piece. Lead vocalist Gina Rizzo sends her voice on a mild sway through the hopscotch of movements, adding another layer of jazzy fun atop of everything else going on here.
“Matanuska” makes a pretty entrance with a couple of mild melody lines from busy but understated horns. The horns are supported by a polite keyboard rhythm. Together, melody and rhythm make for a sweet segue into “Paperclip.” Here, Semaphora unwind with jazzy piano and a strutting groove. It helps to have vocalists like Elizabeth Ashkins, Gina Rizzo, Alyssa Morin, and Monica Rizzo adding their high harmony lines. Man y elements come together in this light, breezy, yet complicated piece. It must have taken Arachne a great deal of time to record all of her instruments and then to mix them together. Just when one thinks this song has reached great heights, a flute appears and leaves its melody line hovering sweetly above all. Variations in tempo also intrigue by forcing the instruments to converse with one another at brisker clips.
The upbeat stride of “Pencil” immediately tugs on the ear. Its infectious beat and intriguing horn line keep one following along. Singers Ashkins, Morrin, and David Reeves offer a fine combo of lead and cooing vocals that flow as smooth as the playful instrumentation in this tune. Eventually, it all evolves into a flavorful instrumental portion that finds s clarinet tap dancing with a sax, a sax line spiraling upwards, and a drummer guiding it all home with plenty of fills around the beat.
“Broomsticks” begins with a subtle piano line and few other unobtrusive instruments. Its simple beat engages while somehow leaving space open for the upper registers, including the vocalist. Everything eventually widens into a much wider sound, including a forlorn cello as the song focuses on a witch’s preferred mode of travel. The myriad of motions within this piece requires the vocalists and their smooth voices to travel in the fast lane. And they do.
Closing track “Ray Cat Solutions” says goodbye to the listener with this ode to a shiny, dangerous cat. Again, dual vocals and lively melody instruments weave an upbeat texture that keeps things in motion.
Semaphora(Lydia Arachne) will make a splash in the New England music scene with this Sister Administrator album, with Arachne becoming known as a local Alan Parsons. Only her project is all her on the instrumentation in the studio. Recorded at Long Island Sound Studios in Stratford, Connecticut, Sister Administrator’s songs are engaging, playful, and involving.
