M.R. James - Count Magnus LP on sale now
Cadabra Records has just released a beautiful M.R. James release in the form of his classic tale Count Magnus as a vinyl record!
Robert Lloyd Parry gives a stellar reading of Count Magnus, hitting all the right notes of this great short story.
It was a fantastic experience to collaborate with Pentagram Home Video on the haunting and atmospheric soundtrack set to Parry’s performance.
Matthew Jaffe’s incredibly vivid and dreamlike art greatly elevates the overall experience of this release and perfectly compliments all aspects of this production.
S.T. Joshi has written excellent liner notes that are within the deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.
I’m so glad that Cadabra Records label head, Jonathan Dennison is delving further into the amazing work of M.R. James.
More details about this release from Cadabra Records below:
M. R. James, Count Magnus LP - Read by Robert Lloyd Parry , score by Pentagram Home Video & Chris Bozzone
Details:
* Limited pressing on 150 gram vinyl
* Printed on a deluxe heavy weight gatefold tip-on jacket
* Includes liner notes by S. T. Joshi
* Newly commissioned art by Matthew Jaffe
* Includes an 18" x 24" promotional poster
About:
M. R. James' Count Magnus, as read by Robert Lloyd Parry and scored by Pentagram Home Video and Chris Bozzone, makes for an intriguing listen. Given Parry's quite conversational tone, mixed with the paired musicians' score, it's as though one is hearing this well-documented chronicle related while seated at the bar of some fascinating club. It's a late-night tale, told with the enthusiasm of a knowledgeable man who's been waiting ages for someone to whom he can relate all of this weirdness.
As Parry comes from a journalistic background and has covered many a fascinating story in his career, it should come as no surprise that he reads with a great deal of skill. For those who have read his 2011 book, People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman, it's a bit of specific and special joy that Parry is once again telling the dark and terrifying story of a journey gone awry.
That said, Parry is not just content to tell the story, however. The reporter's skill for creating voices for James' varied characters allows him to convey both Mr. Wraxall's "man past middle age, possessed of some private means, and very much alone in the world," but also that of the landlord of the inn where Wraxall stays, Herr Nielsen, and even that of his grandfather of 92 years prior to the story being told. It's a talented piece of reading, and the journalistic nature of Wraxall's writing is given the gravitas required, while also knowingly nodding to the man-of-leisure aspect to the travel writing of a travel book.
Given the myriad timeframes in which Count Magnus takes place, it is of utmost importance that the musical pairing of Bozzone and Pentagram Home Video delineate the eras into which the listener is taken. By means of acoustic and electronic instrumentation, the pairing places the listener in a very specific locale with each musical milieu. Flute scores a trip back to the story of Herr Nielsen's grandfather, and synthesizer presages it, making the temporal switch clear.