Full Review

The Trouble Notes, Ballad of Trouble Review

The Trouble Notes are a Berlin based instrumental world folk band comprise of Bennet Cerven – Violin; Florian Eisenschmidt – Guitar; Oliver Maguire – Percussion and Stefan Bielik – Bass. They aim to use music’s power to reduce cultural barriers and have made it their mission to create their own artistic universe, mixing influences from all over the world into their songs. Their musical origins began on the streets of Europe, performing daily as buskers to build their audience and keep their dreams alive. Each year, they saw more success: viral videos amassing millions of views, EPs charting, sold-out concerts, films scored, and awards won. Even after much success, they still maintain a strong work ethic and hunger to create music with heart and soul. Cerven, the violinist, explains, “After everything we accomplished with this group, what I hope most is that we are remembered for our grind. I believe we are one of the hardest working bands on this planet.” The hard-working band is now set to release a series of singles in the second half of 2020. Each song was self-produced and recorded during their quarantine in the forest of Northern Germany at a yoga studio turned into a recording studio. The new single is titled “Ballad of Trouble.”

Positives: A dynamic song that will uplift and invigorate as The Trouble Notes continue their destiny of connecting with people via music.

Bottom Line: “Ballad of Trouble” is the first of a series of singles scheduled for release in 2020. The song tells the story of the past months and reaffirms the band’s commitment to its mission: to tirelessly connect cultures and share their energetic music with audiences. The sounds pull from folk and indie influences along with dance styles from their home city of Berlin. The recording has a minimalist, organic feel, representative of the band’s origins as street performers. The Trouble Notes said: “We feel that now our mission is to spread a message of hope. In the past few months, we have been on the receiving end of incredible acts of kindness and generosity, and we hope that our music and message will resonate and unite everyone during these tough times. By sharing our energy and passion with our friends and fans, we want to uplift anyone who needs it and motivate you to overcome any challenge that stands before you. Most importantly, we hope that our music will take you on a journey, make you smile, and provide you with some much-needed positive energy.” Set to an energetic beat driven by Bielik’s bass and Maguire’s percussion, Eisenschmidt’s guitar provides a strumming pattern for Carven’s expressive melody on the violin. The B section has a feel change that adds interest and a sense of a breath. The riff in the lower register gives the space to build and layer back to the original feel and melody. The upbeat, positive energy of the melody and mix of electric and acoustic instruments yields and enjoyable world music sound that is sure to put a spring in your step and smile in your heart. That’s the short of it!