Nightnoise Album: “At the End of the Evening”

This CD is one of the best Nightnoise has out, and it defines the meaning of early Nightnoise. A soft flute, an even softer fiddle, clear guitar...keyboards and piano, and very suddle synthesizers comprise the CD. It is new age with a slightly Celtic twist. But I cringe at using the term new age, because this is most definently not your typical new age. It's much better than that. And even adding "the Celtic twist" seems a bit unfair. It is not something I would group under a Celtic music profile, but if I close my eyes and listen I see a Celtic forest at dusk.

This is one of the few Nightnoise CD's that has a very Windham Hill feel to it. While "White Horse Sessions" is in my opinion a better CD, the two are so different that its almost unfair to compare them.

"At the end of the Evening" is the most aptly titled CD I think I've ever heard... it is something that you will play at the end of the evening, to sooth and comfort you, but not to put you to sleep.

I'm amazed there are a paltry 6 reviews for this masterpiece, which for me has transcended time and space, remaining one of the most timeless, enjoyable albums I've ever heard, years and years and years after most other albums would have been tossed aside.

This album is worth mention for many reasons, but the standout for me is the song "Snow on High Ground"--unquestionably the most moving song I have ever had the privelege of listening to. Unbelievably sad, unbelievably touching, and still as stunningly beautiful as the first time I listened to it. This is the song I want played at my funeral--the song I wish everyone on earth could listen to, just once.

Do yourself a favor and pick this up; Hugh, Her Kansas Sun, Windell, At the Races, and The Courtyard are all quite excellent, and Snow on High Ground may be one of the best songs I've ever heard. Also check out Nightnoise's album "A Different Shore", more even in terms of quality as well as being far more excitingly crafted (much lusher sound than this)!

Everyone should hear Nightnoise. Don't hesitate to drop this in your cart!

I was first introduced to Nightnoise via the early Windham Hill "Winter Solstice" compilations. "At the End of the Evening" is the first Nightnoise I ever purchased, and I have been in love with it ever since. I'm a seasonal-music kind of gal, and this CD is the favorite in my Autumn rotation. Soulful, stirring, profound ... words are really inadequate to describe the emotions this music evokes.

I am writing this as a sum review of all of Nightnoise's work. Their music was the first thing my parents ever played to me, so I know every song on every album. But every time that I sit down and listen, something new happens to pop up. This is the first band to ever really actually move me emotionally, and it has ultimately heightened my musical experience through my entire life. That is an important thing, when you find a piece of music that is so emtionally verbose that it can take you away......

That is something truly special.

AT THE END OF THE EVENING (1988) was the third album by Nightnoise, and the second as the full band of guitarist Mícheál Ó Domhnaill, violinist Billy Oskay, keyboardist Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill and flautist Brian Dunning. These players continue exploring the then-new New Age genre, drawing from Irish traditional music and chamber music. While their first recording together as a quartet sounded under-rehearsed, here they manage better to stay in sync across the many transitions in their instrumental suites.

This album brings in a couple of new things for Nightnoise. One is real songs: hitherto the project had been purely instrumental, and it is mostly so here too, but on "End of the Evening" Triona sings with a vibrato so strong that it's hard to make out the words. Also, a few tracks have Triona playing a synthesizer instead of acoustic piano or harpsichord.

While Nightnoise was once a highly original act, New Age music exploded in the years to follow, plus if you ask me that whole genre is somewhat suspect anyway. I think Nightnoise were at their strongest 1) when they approached the Irish traditional music that the Dohmnaills had recorded to enormous acclaim before they joined Nightnoise, and 2) when they could show off some virtuosity and not just lull the listener to sleep with ordinary New Age tranquility. Thus "At the Races", "Bring Me Back a Song" are pretty satisfying songs. Of the New Age fare, "Snow on High Ground" is one of the band's most memorable tunes.

Still, it's hard for me to feel any especial excitement about this album, however, and I think the band's best work came later.