Posted on November 6, 2008 - by Halina Rifai

David Holmes – The Holy Pictures

Let me set the scene Salford, Manchester, 1st year university exams. I am studying furiously, David Holmes plays in the background.

Can I just interject here and mention if you are going to get a Holmes remix please, please purchase the remix of The Manic Street Preachers ‘If You Tolerate This…’ it is one of the greatest remixes in my collection. As you were.

When I went to Salford to study music, recording and the like I got caught up in a music scene that made Manchester some of the best years of my life. There was Holmes, DJ Shadow and Mr Scruff. That was the trio and they were my sanity and awakening to a style of music that was different from anything else that I had previously recognised. Yeah, I had Bjork but she was a stepping stone in a way to the 3 amigos.

Ten years or so on and Holmes has produced a record that I deem as near perfection. Yes, to others they may gasp and exclaim but Halina! Perfection? Calm yourself now, you are getting all melodramatic again. No, no I am not.

The first time I heard “Theme/I.M.C ” or as I knew it “McCready Rides Again” I had the fucker on repeat. I then had a train journey down to London to do the “Listener’s 6 mix” and I had the fucker on repeat again for almost the entire journey. Can I just say if you are on a train journey going by the west coast of the country. You are in a valley and you have built up hills on either side and within a split second the hills open and out of the window opens a vast drop fall containing a wide ocean.

Upon that ocean the grey sky in the background but those few important bold streams of sun that are so warm that almost blind you but you have to look because you would be too afraid to miss the views before you, as if never to see them again. The light bulbs of the sea all switching on at once and the reflection of your eyes in the window containing bemused feelings of wonderment as you listen to your chosen record.

*sigh*

So I played it on air and it sounded even better than I had ever heard. At about 1 minute 33 the beat starts, you then have a second beat coming in and then at 2 minutes 1 you have this almighty crescendo that you have to contradictorily close your eyes to. That was the initial taster of the album and so the finger biting began before it was released.

Dave...

Unbelievably, I have had people offering copies, I have seen the torrents but I held off. I felt like a junkie with a gram of your best being waved in front of my face but I went cold turkey.

It came, I downloaded at 5am (I am laughing now because I feel like a dick for admitting that) but hey I did, I sat listening to the whole thing before work and it was so uplifting that I have not been able to get enough.

I Heard Wonders. You know when you are really happy with your life and you are walking with your headphones on and you couldn’t care less what passes you, who looks at you, nothing. You have that one song in your ears that adds to that happiness and manifests itself in a way that you cannot quite place your finger. This is it, its like a definition of happiness. ‘

“I see your face when I close my eyes“ .It is love revoked from the ungrateful and promoted.

I will not document song by song, I just want you to know that if you trust me…

I know you do- wry smile – you will listen.

I will say however that “Melanie” is another track full of complete exuberance, nay mirth, merriment pleasure and sheer gratification.

I am glad he added his voice to this because it makes it so much more personal. You can always tell a Northern Irish singer, please don’t hate me for stereotyping here but there is this endearing lilt that you pick up on from time to time.

The Scots do it too, actually all the Celts do it. I think, actually no, I know we have more passion than most. That combined with the voluptuous sounds makes the music so much more honest. Honest in a way that you know exactly what was aimed for and they, themselves would not try to hide behind any impediment.

Well up. NOW!

I have mentioned in a prior blog “The Ballad Of Sarah and Jack”. We know I am emotional, lets cut the bullshit but this song makes me well up instantly. You know you have perfection when just an instrumental song can weave a story of one’s life. This is a song of fondness and remembrance. Well to me, I can only interpret but, that is what we are here for. To listen, to make things translate to our own thoughts and feelings.

Holmes helps create a haunting yet believable musical telling and I solely believe this is because this has come from his heart. Everything that is done with your full being and most importantly your heart is always a masterpiece. The importance being that you believe in it yourself and your satisfaction makes it unique.

This is going in my top 5 albums of the year.

Don’t worry Glasgow, Belfast has not got my heart just yet, maybe just booking in a room for  a while though.

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