The Forge Players String Quintet

This haunting album should mesmerize Jeff Buckley, Elvis Costello and David Bowie fans as much as it does classical aficionados. John Dowland (1563-1626) was one of the greatest Elizabethan songwriters, full of lament and angst—über-emo in overdrive. These dark songs are not for polite, post-19th-century, operatically trained-cum-Elizabethan voices. Play “Flow My Teares,” perhaps Dowland’s most famous song: Sung without accompaniment, its starkness touches the subconscious, an ancient echo of Ralph Stanley’s “O Death.” The Forge Players, a Scandinavian string quintet, were joined by two non-classical art-rock singers, Mikael Samuelson and Freddie Wadling. Here, you’ll discover why Costello sang “Flow My Teares” at Buckley’s funeral. If Dowland is new to you, let this be your introduction.