First utterance

"Comus' first album contains an imaginative if elusive brand of experimental folk-rock, with a tense and sometimes distressed vibe. Although there are elements of traditional British folk music, there's an edginess to the songwriting and arrangements that would be entirely alien in a Fairport Convention or Pentangle disc. At times, this straddles the border between folk-rock and the kind of songs you'd expect to be sung at a witches' brew fest, the haunting supernatural atmosphere enhanced by bursts of what sound like a theramin-like violin, hand drums, flute, oboe, ghostly female backup vocals, and detours into almost tribal rhythms".

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"In the midst of the modern 'folk revival' and 'New Weird America' (read: weird folk revival), bands like Comus seems more relevant than ever. In the '70s, they established a foundation of sprawling, untraditional arrangements and used them as spring boards for even stranger lyrical and musical themes. They set up a fairly base convention only to break it down. Looking back, it's hard to believe an obscure progressive-folk act from 1971 could gain a context to thrive 30 years after their prime. Though to be fair, be it '71 or '05, I can't imagine a record as beautifully odd as First Utterance ever losing its appeal".

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