FolkWorld #76 11/2021

CD Reviews

Anna Ekborg "Solo"
Kakafon Records, 2021

Artist Video

www.annaekborg.com

Swedish fiddler Anna Ekborg walks on water - or so it appears from her striking album cover, and listening to her play it is tempting to believe she has such superpowers. One third of the innovative trio Northern Resonance, and a well known artist in her own right, this is her solo debut album and it's jam packed with old Swedish dance music on solo fiddle. Some of the material comes from Anna's degree studies at the Royal Music College, and some comes from her personal upbringing with rural fiddlers, so there's a wide range of tones and textures in tunes and versions from the 18th century right up to the 21st, and even from the time of Hadrian. Solo means solo - nothing but a lone fiddler here, but the sound is rich and full from start to finish.
Ekborg is known for her interpretations of new Scandinavian music on viola d'amore with Northern Resonance, but for these older pieces she sticks to four-string fiddle, possibly with some traditional tunings. She employs all the rhythmic tricks of dance fiddlers - double stops, ringing strings, percussive bowing, and intricate ornamentation. Polska Efter Bud Olov has the raw melancholy sound of old Shetland or Norwegian tunes - the creaking of ship's timbers, echoes of whalesong perhaps. The joyous Pistvalsen owes its name not to Swedish drinking habits but to the skiing which is a part of life in most Nordic regions. The stately walking tune Påhl Astrids Skänklåt is one of several pieces here from the repertoire of 20th century fiddler Dyrsmeds Olof Olsson, a famous Swedish tradition-bearer and composer. Polskas and occasional gangars are rounded off with a bridal march, Orsa Gamla Brudmarsch Efter Maklin, a haunting melody which Anna Ekborg interprets in her own style to end a distinctive and satisfying album.
© Alex Monaghan


Eiwor Kjellberg Band "Stand Out"
Kakafon Records, 2021

www.eiworkjellberg.se

Fiddler Eiwor Kjellberg and her band are great ambassadors for Swedish dance music old and new. From central Sweden, just outside the traditional music heartland of Dalarna, Kjellberg writes pieces in the old style - and sometimes in a new style - but every one is full of the spirit of Sweden and bound to set your toes tapping. This album is her twenty-somethingth in a recording career which spans six decades, but Eiwor's playing is still youthful and full of energy. Marches, waltzes, polskas, schottisches, wedding tunes, swaggering dances and the occasional sad melody, Stand Out is filled with outstanding music.
Three fiddles and a continental chromatic accordion deliver the tunes, backed by guitar, double bass, vocals, and a few anguished cries from the musicians. Proud Frihetsmarschen, zingy Bike Shop Man's Daughter, old-fashioned 3/2 Vilda Vackra Vän, beautiful Maya & Siggi, and dark grinding Från Vettet run the full gamut of Swedish fiddle music. The grand title track is more contemporary, as are Song for Dacha with its Ukrainian influences, and Knåpa Brudmarsch led by the inimitable Ian Carr on guitar. Waltzes, polskas, walking tunes, some of them quite Slavic in character, bring us to the final Tacksam farewell, a reluctant leave-taking. Perfect for listening or dancing, and with some catchy new tunes, Stand Out is a polished performance which does exactly what it says on the tin.
© Alex Monaghan


Eoghan Neff "Unrecalled"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.eoghanneff.com

Innovative would be an understatement in this case. Although Eoghan Neff's music is rooted in the traditions of his native Cork, his experimentation has taken fiddle music as far as it can go - and further! The opening fantasy on Jenny's Chickens could put a Michelin star chef to shame with its complex flavours, its pure ingredients, and its intense explosion on the senses. An eleven minute banquet of sounds, generated solely from fiddle and percussion, it conjures images of joy, of expectation, of destruction, of emptiness - not bad for starters!
Eoghan treats the fiddle holistically, as a mini orchestra, capable of many different sounds beyond the conventional bowed and plucked notes. His first solo album Week One was fiddle-only, almost all acoustic and recreatable live: this one ventures into recorded and processed sounds, and also adds a guest on each track - Lar Legido on percussion, Seán Mac Erlaine on heavily modifed car hooter (I kid you not), Germán Díaz on zanfona and Anxo Lorenzo on gaita drawing on Eoghan's long sojourn in Spain, Caoimhe Doyle on a Foley machine (google it - I did), Atli Örvarsson on "una corda" synthesiser, and Sean Carpio on something quite indescribable.
Each piece is grounded in Irish traditional music, but floats or soars or delves above, below and in between the basic theme. The fiddle technique is examplary, but in some ways it's just a tool, a weapon in Neff's arsenal, a way to make sounds which may or may not be music on their own, but which build into complex and satisfying compositions. Arú takes the buzz of the zanfona and crafts a cross between Tuva and Techno. Úr-shean almost talks, combining the voice-like sounds of the Galician bagpipe with fiddle effects for a very expressive conversation. Mud Turf is a little more familiar, part Denis Murphy, part Dar es Salaam perhaps. The final Is Cailín Beag Mise is mind-bending, dissonance piled on dissonance until it all squashes down into a composite whole. Unrecalled may actually be unforgettable.
© Alex Monaghan


Granny's Attic "The Brickfields"
Grimdon Records, 2021

Artist Video

www.grannysattic.org.uk

I have lamented online recently the tendency for instrumental bands to acquire a singer and become song-led in future recordings and performances. Well, I am delighted to say that here we have the opposite - a band probably more known for its singing which has released a 100% instrumental album. I can understand that they might not do many 100% instrumental gigs, but it's great to have a solid chunk of skilfully arranged tunes from three lads who write and play them so well.
I say lads - while they are horribly young by folkclub standards, and hardly bearded at all some days, Granny's Attic are certainly an established band by now, a well known name, and an obvious choice for major festivals and folk music events throughout England and beyond. Their focus is still English, I think - although it spans several centuries and cultures within the English tradition - but their appeal is probably much broader, and the instrumental side of their music may well open doors in France, Ireland, Scotland, Scandinavia, and other places where they appreciate a good tune.
Good tunes are here in plenty. The syncopated Cruds & Cream slides into the rollicking New Harmony Jig from an 1826 Indiana manuscript. Odd Thoughts and James' Maggot were published in the previous century - by Jane Austen's wicked aunt perhaps. Considerate Birders is one of two tunes by George Sansome, very pretty, Cunninghamesque. Rakes of Kirkby, from John Offord's latest book, gallops along until it is mercilessly mugged by the first of three pugnacious Braithwaite-Kilcoyne compositions. Highfield's Lament is a beautiful and gently swaying paean for a perished pub, and joins a more jaunty Lewis Wood opus for probably my favourite track here. The Playford-like title tune is topped off by a third belter from Wood to end a welcome and wonderfully well-played collection.
© Alex Monaghan


Mette Kathrine "Familiealbum"
Go Danish Folk, 2021

Artist Video

www.mettekathrine.dk

One of Denmark's finest folk accordionists, Mette Kathrine Jensen Stærk (Mette to her friends) presents fifteen of her own compositions on what is essentially an accordion album with friends and family adding to most pieces. The opening track is the only one to feature a medley of tunes, and it has quite a Celtic flavour - a jig, a polka and a reel, all ripe for adaptation to any Northern European tradition. Her Reel Emil later on has more of a Québécois feel to it, a brilliant showpiece in the style of Rimouski, Béatrice and such. In between are waltzes, polskas, schottisches, and some beautiful slow airs. Julepolonaise has something of an English character, as does Fars Jyske Fynbo, although both also remind me of P-Celtic tunes, showing once again the many points of similarity between all these sea-faring traditions. Spots of fiddle from Ditte Fromseier Hockings, guitar and mandolin from Johs Stærk, piano from Julian Svejgaard Jørgensen, and Norwegian fiddling from Vegar Vårdal enliven several of the arrangements here. Mette Kathrine ends with Helgesminde, a tune inspired by memories of accordionist Helge Sørensen, duetting with Kamilla Sørensen on church organ for a resonant finish to a very fine collection of new traditional music.
© Alex Monaghan


André Ferrari & Olov Johansson "In Beat Ween Rhythm"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.olovjohansson.se

This is an unusual album for me, more rhythm than melody, definitely on the edge of my comfort zone and probably not what most people think of as folk music, but it's a fascinating experiment and reading between the lines it could be the start of a bigger project between these two musicians. Ferrari is a percussionist, a master of many types of drum, and a man who dresses like a technomage from Babylon 5 so I would guess his stage shows are suitably explosive. Johansson is one half of the now reduced Swedish folk group Våsen, a nyckelharpa maestro with many serious recordings to his name and a wardrobe which probably owes more to H&M than Hogwarts. The two together produce a wide range of sounds, from the late medieval or Renaissance rhythms of Intekonsekvenskt to the ultra-modern mantras of Långharpan, and everything in between.
Percussion dominates most tracks, with the keyed fiddle coming through strongly on Torpet, Eriksdal, Jösse, and the final Viller. All eleven pieces here were written by André or Olov, or both. This is not dance music, except in the broadest definition: you certainly could dance to most tracks, but the rhythms are eccentric and often changing. The beat comes from a standard drum kit in many places, augmented by tuned and untuned percussion, and touches of electric bass from Ferrari. Johansson plays four different nyckelharpas here, sometimes simultaneously, and there are a few acoustic and electronic effects just to keep things interesting: drum distortion and shawm-like shaping of the string sounds on Skevschottis, overtones and underwiring on Dusch, and frantic furniture-moving on Short Beats. Folk, jazz, classical, and some stuff they made up along the way - Ferrari and Johansson's music is bedazzling, beguiling and bewildering by turns. Be amazed - be very amazed!
© Alex Monaghan


Egeland & Marin "Farvel, Farvel"
Taragot, 2020

Artist Video

bandcamp.com/...

Released on an interesting Norwegian label, this album is a collaboration between Norway's Ånon Egeland and Sweden's Mikael Marin. Both are well known in Scandinavian music, but Marin is probably more familiar to a global audience as a member of the seminal Swedish folk group Våsen. Norwegian and Swedish fiddles blend perfectly here: this is Marin and Egeland's third album together at least, and they produce a rich dark sound. As the detailed English and Norwegian sleevenotes say, "More sorrowful tunes to make your heart sing - and even a couple of almost cheerful ones too, believe it or not!"
All the material here is traditional, either from the southern tip of Norway where Egeland grew up, or from Marin's explorations of Swedish fiddle music. It is played on Hardanger fiddle and viola, both tuned down to give a more resonant and melancholy ring to the music. All bar two of the melodies here have words, provided in the notes but spared from the recording - religious poems, songs of doomed love, psalms, funeral hymns, and at least one happy ending which is a little out of character. Ei Rose tells of a love fulfilled, a life together, set to a bittersweet melody. Psalm 60 is perhaps the most upbeat track here, and may be a relatively recent composition from the early 1900s. Although many of the tunes were collected and recorded in the 20th century, there is evidence of some of these songs as far back as the 1600s. Whether they were ever played like this is a different matter, but certainly some of the tunings used here are ancient, and the dramatic Gorrlaus is well documented in a similar low tuning from the end of the 19th century. Farvel, Farvel is a fascinating and moving interpretation of great music, an intense and rewarding experience.
© Alex Monaghan


Baptiste Loosfelt "Mésun"
AEPEM, 2021

Artist Video

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Traditional French fiddle is a relatively rare beast, certainly compared to accordion, hurdy-gurdy or bagpipes, but it seems to be enjoying a bit of a revival with groups like Planchée and Dzouga! This debut CD is another fine example, a youngish player who learnt from local musicians but also plundered old recordings and manuscripts for the material here. Almost all of Mésun is dance music from the Poitou region, sandwiched between Limousin to the south and Brittany to the north. There doesn't seem to be any Celtic influence on the Poitou repertoire, but there are strong similarities with central French music: many of these tunes are familiar to me from the Berrichon tradition. One in particular will be well known to most listeners: titled Pas d'Eté de Martin here, from a local fiddler's notebook written around 1880, it is note for note the reel known worldwide as Soldier's Joy.
Although this recording is mainly solo fiddle, there is no lack of depth or rhythm to the music. As with English, American and other traditions, dance fiddlers in France are accustomed to making as much noise as possible, and providing a steady beat for the dancers. Loosfelt is also joined by other musicians on some tracks, including older Poitou fiddler Bastien Clochard and friends on accordions and hurdy-gurdy. There is also a fair amount of foot percussion, and vocals on a couple of tracks, plus one unaccompanied song strongly sung, presumably all additional strings to Baptiste's bow. Polkas and bransles, marches and schottisches, mazurkas and waltzes of course: not a bourrée to be heard, but plenty of the avant-deux dances from the southern edge of Brittany. Mésun is impressive without being over-polished, full of fascinating music extremely well played, a tantalising snapshot of a lesser known tradition which seems to be in excellent health and doesn't take itself too seriously!
© Alex Monaghan


Les Copains "Autour d'Anost"
AEPEM, 2021

Just three old friends who love playing music together - and having each played for well over forty years, they are now pretty damn good at it! From Morvan, an area on the northern edge of France's traditional music heartland of Auvergne, Les Copains play some of the common central French repertoire - in local versions of course - but mainly material unique to the Morvan tradition, much of it written by their butoon-box player André Chantreau. The instrumentation is exactly what you'd expect in central France, and the sound is fairly conistent: all three instruments playing together for the majority of this recording. There are excellent sleevenotes in French, and touches of humour splashed across the notes and the music.
Les Copains open with a classic entrance march, here called Y'ato lai Mère Angot but known by many names. Two bourrées are the first of many pieces attributed to the late Alain Vieillard. The charming Valse de Bussy introduces the composing skills of the group's accordionist, one of his eight originals here. Traditional treasures include the hip Polka du Polyte and the toe-tapping local versions of some well known bourrées. Polka du Dédé de Bussy is an absolute delight, another Chantereau composition with Gilles Desserprit's cornemuse taking flight above the melody line and Christian Citel's vielle-à-roue buzzing along beneath. Lots of fresh tunes, a large array of central French bagpipes, and some great arrangements make this album a very enjoyable experience.
© Alex Monaghan


Lucien Pillot "Musique Traditionnelle du Nivernais"
AEPEM, 2021

Article: Lucien Pillot

Le Nivernais, not the best known French region for music - or indeed for anything much - but this album seeks to put that right. Centred around the city of Nevers in the ancient Burgundy region, Nivernais is most famous for its pastry glaze. but this young hurdy-gurdy master has assembled a recording which suggests other passions. Every track here hints at romantic - or not so romantic - liaisons, from L'Etat des Filles au Couvent to Le Mauvais Riche et la Dame Charitable. Lucien Pillot concentrates on song melodies here, three of which he sings while accompanying himself: Le Moine Blanc, La Prise du Vaisseau and Les Mensonges. Most of the other pieces could be used as dance music, but some are played in a manner more suited to listening: Pillot gives his right wrist a rest, playing a smooth continuous drone and making his left hand do all the work on numbers such as Celle Qui ne Veut Plus Coucher Seulette, La Robe Couleur de Cendre, La Petite Allemande, Le Galant Mal Avisé and Mariée avec un Vieil Avocat - a cautionary tale about cooking with over-ripe pears. Some of these are performed on an instrument with a deep bass register which reminds me of the long bourbonnais bagpipes, some of the lowest in Europe. The mix of songs, stirring dance tunes with a strong rhythm from the right hand, and soulful airs in this deep melody-only style makes Lucien's music surprisingly varied for a solo album on a single instrument. There are some great tunes here too - La Fille du Prince, La Fille du Vigneron, and some I've already mantioned. The sleevenotes give references for the original versions of all this material, mostly collected around 1880.
© Alex Monaghan


Aly Bain & Phil Cunningham "No Rush"
Own Label, 2020

www.philandaly.com

Despite having released dozens of albums as a duo and collaborated with pretty much anyone who is anyone, Phil and Aly are still capable of surprising us with their music. No Rush was recorded for a tour of England and Wales in early 2020 which was canned quicker than you can say pork luncheonmeat - it then sat for eighteen months until the world was ready for live music again, and finally saw the light of day in October 2021. I picked up a copy on the second night of the tour, paying twelve quid for the privilege - didn't even get a discount - but I don't regret a penny of it. I hope it will be available after the tour, at least as a digital album. The material here needs no introduction, which is just as well because there's precious little info included with the CD. A photo of our two heroes in their work clothes, and a list of tune names - that's your lot!
Most tracks are slow, hence the album title, based on experience that audiences always request the slow numbers - perhaps because they know that box and fiddle will pump out reels whether they ask for them or not. I'm assuming that any names I don't recognise are Phil Cunningham compositions, one reason for the perennial appeal of this pair: there are some gems here certainly, from Lightly Swims the Swan to a moving lament for piper extraordinaire Liam Óg O'Flynn simply entitled So Long Liam. The waltz Dr Robbie Shepherd MBE commemorates a happier occasion, the conferral of an honorary doctorate on one of radio's best loved faces. The Golden Tooth and Irish Beauty are both brilliant examples of Cunningham's creativity. But it's not all about Phil - the fiddle performs fabulous versions of the Skinner lament Hector the Hero, the Hebridean air Sitting in the Stern of a Boat, and the final Dying Year which I first fell in love with on a Boys of the Lough album almost forty years ago. There's a Swedish tune or two, a touch of cittern and piano, and even a couple of guests, but the heart of this recording is the two-headed genius that is Phil and Aly, Bain and Cunningham, pearls of the tradition and always a joy to hear.
© Alex Monaghan


Jane & Kyle "Of Hills and Valleys"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.janeandkyle.ca

Partners in life and in music, Jane Cory and Kyle Burghout both play fiddle and piano, and more - although on this recording they have stuck mainly to strings, enlisting a brilliant collection of backing musicians to play some inspired arrangements. Based in Winnipeg in central Canada, they have each released solo recordings previously but I believe this is their first collaborative CD. It's a cracker - Christmas or otherwise! These two twentysomethings are multiple champions and master several different Canadian fiddle traditions - oldtime, Scottish, and their own brand of Western Canada swing. There's a solo track each, and eight fiddle duets - one with strong soulful vocals by Jane.
Close your eyes for Return to the Cape and you're in Mabou. Sink into the medley of Brian Pickell tunes and enjoy the best of Ontario fiddling. Jane turns to Alberta composing legend Calvin Vollrath for her solo - a typically sultry slow foxtrot from the oldtime dance tradition, rich with added resonances, and a rattling jazzy reel which would do for a Charleston at a pinch. The gorgeous if oddly named Jerry Holland waltz Boo Baby's Lullaby is a simple delight, Kyle layering viola on the superb accompaniment which enhances every track here. The Lucinda Williams song Side of the Road adds another tone to an already broad palette.
Half this recording is Jane and Kyle's own compositions. Creature Feature puts me in mind of Antonio Vivaldi, no slouch on the fiddle himself, with three majestic pieces in a Cory-Burghout collaboration. Kyle takes his solo on two of his own tunes, Sunshine Valley and Slippery Seaweed, inspired by different sides of the world, both bouncy numbers but with a contrast between the bright and brooding aspects of his fiddle. He also gives us impressive juvenilia from the Swananoa Gatherings of 2013 and 2014, and a couple of consciously complex compositions which leave you in no doubt as to the quality of both fiddlers here as they negotiate the treacherous Black Ice. The final Heading to the Hills is another joint creation, happy and carefree, a sort of backwoods barndance. Great tunes, great fiddling, and a great big smile on the face of any listener - I guarantee you'll like this collection Of Hills and Valleys.
© Alex Monaghan


Mel Biggs "From Darkness Comes Light"
Talking Cat Recordings, 2021

Artist Video

www.melbiggsmusic.co.uk

The sweet and gentle sound of the English melodeon. No - really! Mel Biggs plays button box with a subtle, almost hesitant touch. Gone are the brash blurred notes of many a beer-stained right hand, banished are those booming bass lines which mask what might be merry or mournful melodies. Instead, From Darkness Comes Light delivers a diet of clear dry-tuned treble tunes over a delicate accompaniment which reminds me more of a harmonium than an HGV hooter. Almost all the music here was written by Ms Biggs, who says she does her best composing in "the state between asleep and awake" - what I usually refer to as "work". She also arranged each piece for accordion, fiddle, and fretted strings, enlisting a band of English backing musicians who are mostly new to me. Guitarist Jon Loomes I know, but fiddler Bridget Slater and mandoman David Squirrell I'm sure I would have remembered. Mel's sister Kat ("the best" apparently - or is that cats?) plays piano box, and in addition to pushing all the right buttons Mel also vocalises a bit.
The vibe is definitely English - more soft centre than hardcore maybe - with gentle jigs, stately schottisches, the dreamy swagger of Shivelight in Spring and the swaying stomping waltz Katy's Theme. There are touches of French music in the opening waltz-like A New Day Dawns, although we are firmly back in Albion for Dream Big so that I'm tempted to quote "These aren't the druids you're looking for". There's a hint of Scandinavia in Oppland Upland, and a drift east towards the Russian steppes for Shimmer, before the bouncy Catching Flies brings Biggs back home. I'm sure you can find surer fingers and snappier tunes, but From Darkness Comes Light is a very pleasant interlude and a refreshing break from the rapid-fire rapscallions of Irish button box or the beat-boxing approach of so much Morris music and its offshoots. There are a lot of lovely new jigs here, and a couple of tasty older ones too, plus some interesting short segments which break up the flow nicely, creating little eddies in the jig-time continuum - always a good thing!
© Alex Monaghan


Old Blind Dogs "Knucklehead Circus"
Own Label, 2021

Article: Old Blind Dogs

Artist Video

www.oldblinddogs.co.uk

A very polished and upbeat album, full of that funky bluesy feel which has been a hallmark of OBD since Davy Cattanach's days, Knucklehead Circus has perhaps benefited from the between-gigs time of Covid and the failure to relaunch caused by Brexit, forcing bands to re-examine their music, their modus operandi, and where their next meal is coming from. The album title may even be a reference to UK politics and public health leadership in the last year or two - I couldn't possibly comment.
Whatever the reason, Knucklehead Circus brings out the best in the current line-up, stalwart Jonny Hardie joined by Ali Hutton on pipes, Aaron Jones on cittern and Donald Hay on banged things. The Dugs cast their net quite wide to fuel this collection - Brittany, Quebec, and even England - with mixed success. Homage à Edmond Parizeau is a glorious reel on the pipes, rivalling Battlefield Band's adaptation of L'Homme à Deux Femmes, and Suite Bretonne is a medley of great tunes on fiddle and low whistle which just needs a touch more swing to make it really special for my ears, but in the surprising choice of the traditional English John Barleycorn there is just no way to make "sore" rhyme with "over" in Scots. Other songs are powerful and timely - Harry Brewer who was lured to war for a cause not his own, and Here We Go Again on the seemingly never-ending theme of wealth versus exploitation.
Almost half this CD is songs, but it's the other half that makes Knucklehead Circus stand out. Both Jonny Hardie and Ali Hutton write a mean tune, as you'd expect from highlanders, and they've garnered great melodies from the likes of Jean-Michel Veillon and Gordon Duncan as well as some gems from the Scottish tradition. Although there are a couple of quieter moments - the charming Earl of Jura and the rolling Highland Lassie Going to the Fair - it's the more energetic numbers which really grab my attention. The title track, The Thin Man, and the final Lupin Drive are particularly compelling, an engine room sucking diesel and the two front men gie'ing it laldy - top notch Scottish music with just enough chilli!
© Alex Monaghan


Shane Cook & The Woodchippers "Be Here for a While"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.shanecook.com

A new release from one of Canada's finest! For the first time in my experience, this CD came with a crib sheet, so you might as well get the benefit of the band's view of each track. Here's what they say: upbeat and driving jigs, mid tempo swing, a relaxed reel and two high energy reels, a melancholic bluesy southern waltz, upbeat and fun piece, virtuosic double bass intro to hard-driving bluegrass, relaxed guitar-led Appalachian-style march, mid tempo country/swing vocal, fiddle and bass duet followed by playful reels, a Celtic ballad, Scottish-Canadian reels, and finally a Celtic air featuring viola da gamba from bassist Joe Phillips. There you go - and I thought it was just Canadian fiddle music! Seriously, the range of styles here is huge: Shane's fiddle leads a four-piece band of multi-talented musicians and dancers, with one or two guests on half the tracks - all are excellent, but the name that stands out for me is guitarist Quinn Bachand.
Choice of material is almost as important as arrangement and delivery, and The Woodchippers are spoilt in that department: alongside a good double handful of Cook compositions are pieces by the band's pianist/vocalist Emily Flack and guitarist Kyle Waymouth, several Brian Pickell originals from the heart of Ontario music, and tunes from farther afield including the traditional Captain Keillor and Allan MacDonald's wonderful Tatties and Herring. Emily wrote the two songs she sings here, both with a contemporary country feel, one leaning east to Ireland and the other more towards Western Swing. The Bill Monroe favourite Old Dangerfield adds a southern accent, but some of Shane's originals go further: Crossing the Avon could feature on the soundtrack for Deliverance II maybe, Kyle's Fiddle is funky enough for the Mississippi delta, and Close Friends even strays across the Rio Grande with its mix of salsa and sour mash. There's plenty of that virtuoso Canadian sound too, of course: Meander Creek mixes hornpipes and reels at breakdown speed, The Cottonwoods is such a chipper jig, and the final Born of a Summer's Day sets the cap on a magnificent selection of music. This quartet (or should that be double double?) has it all, and isn't afraid to flaunt it.
© Alex Monaghan


RÅ "Massiv"
Go Danish Folk, 2021

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Fiddle, clarinet and saxophone - an unusual sound in Danish folk music. To be fair, clarinetist Anna Frykstam and saxophonist Cecilia Moore are both from Sweden - only fiddler Christine Tilby is from Denmark - and this trio focuses on the Swedish repertoire of polskas, waltzes and the like. The opening five minutes of Polska efter Alfred Nilsson is a pretty good taster of the music on Massiv - an innovative arrangement with all three players twisting and turning together, combining their talents and their instruments to produce a compelling result.
There are no notes with this CD, so I'm winging it a bit, but I think Adam i Paradis is an old song melody, and Skjeftåsen & Polska från Glava are two polskas from Glafsfjörden in the south west of Sweden. In between are a waltz, a slow air, a catchy hambo and the very funky reel Böndernas Underverk. The clarinet often leads, and the sax is used rhythmically to great effect. I occasionally miss a bass line or even a drum beat, perhaps because I think like a dance musician, but Rå's sound is satisfying in its own right. The final Ljugaren sounds like another song melody, deep and ominous, reminding us of that dark edge which is just below the surface in the most powerful Scandinavian music.
© Alex Monaghan


Stundom "Må jeg Holde din Hånd?"
Go Danish Folk, 2021

Artist Video

www.stundommusic.com

When two becomes three, it's often a happy occasion: duo Elmøe & Hoffman added a bouncing piano-player in Julian Svejgaard Jørgensen (not to be confused with that other Danish pianist Kristian Jørgensen) to become Stundom. The music here is all composed by the trio, singly or together, and performed with a touch of instrument-swapping and a bit of help on percussion. It's gentle and savage by turns, switching between Villads Hoffman's cittern and Emma Kragh-Elmøe's fiddle, with all three taking melody and accompaniment roles in the closely woven arrangements here. While much of Må jeg Holde din Hånd? fits the forms and function of dance music, this is really a listening album, delicate and elaborate, dynamically varied, demanding attention for the full experience.
Stjerner i Par is a slippery 6/8 number, on icicle keys before adding an urban rumble and a modern jig melody on fiddle. Frigear is more dramatic, perhaps the grinding departure of a ship, with a more lyrical passage on the open sea. Spejlhuset reminds me of Valse des Jouets, hints of Tschaikovsky's Nutcracker in a crooked waltz, while Farvel til Fanø recalls those delightful Sønderhoning melodies and rhythms. Baronen is a sealeg-swaying march, full of lift and drive. The title track takes us back to basics with a delicate air on piano, adding gossamer strings for an emotional ending. All that is just the first half of a very fine album which shows off three excellent musicians as ensemble and soloists, dipping into jazz and Eastern European music, modern classical and ambient styles, but with a core of Danish folk. Check out Naveren and Belvedere for more familiar ground, and then branch out to appreciate the rest.
© Alex Monaghan


Terry Clarke-Coyne "Whistle Walks"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.terryclarkecoyne.com

An excellent idea by flute and whistle master Terry Clarke-Coyne from North Wales, this lockdown project has produced a great album featuring many world-class musicians. Whistle Walks is definitely one of those COVID silver linings, a quite unexpected delight. The basic idea was to record music out and about, on country walks. Of the 150 videos Terry made, all available via Terry's website or on YouTube, a selection of the material has added duets and accompaniment by some of the finest players in folk. To drop a few names - Mike McGoldrick, Natalie Haas, Cormac Breatnach, Will Pound, John Joe Kelly, Dave Munnelly, Gino Lupari, and Kevin Crawford will be familiar to most readers.
There's a wide selection of tunes here - no songs, another COVID silver lining perhaps, but plenty of reels and jigs, a handful or airs, a pair of marches, and a waltz. Most are traditional Irish, from The Bird in the Bush to Carolan's Concerto, and Coyne contributes nine of his own compositions. The emphasis is obviously on flutes and whistles, although other instruments make their mark - Will Pound cuts through on harmonica for Floating Candles, Natalie Haas' cello is deep and meaningful on Trim the Velvet, Mark Redmond adds a touch of the late great Paddy Moloney on pipes to The Jolly Tinker, and Dave Munnelly brings the button box to bear on the moving air Liverpool Remembers and the reel that comes after it. Bodhráns are tipped to perfection by those boys, with added percussion and guitars from Robbie Harris, Philip Masure, Aodan Coyne and Peter Rechsteiner. There's more: piano, bass, church organ, and even a nod to the great Liverpool band Garva in the final set of jigs. Whistle Walks is not without its rough edges, but it's a breath of fresh air and a rare treat - get a lugfull if you can!
© Alex Monaghan


The McDades "The Empress"
Free Radio Records, 2021

Artist Video

Artist Video

Artist Video

www.themcdades.com

From Canada, this established group combines traditional and contemporary songs with their own tunes in a wide range of folk styles. Willie Reilly and The Golden Willow Tree come from the Anglo-Irish ballad tradition, while Sundown and Lonely Road were shaped by the open country of Ontario. Les Trois Capitaines has all the elements of a great Acadian song - a low growling intro, toe-tapping rhythm, catchy melody, loose French grammar and looser morals. The McDades are inventive on fiddle, percussion and bass here, following the fine example of Vishtèn, and drafting in a couple of guests for authentic French vocals.
The core group consists of siblings Shannon, Solon, and Jeremiah McDade on fiddle, bass, woodwind and a few other things, plus guitarist Andy Hillhouse and percussionist Eric Breton. Most of these sing, with strong male and female lead vocals. Add a handful more guests in the rhythm section, and The Empress is equipped for pretty much anything. The instrumental tracks are all originals, a double handful of tunes tied to Irish, American and Oriental roots: slipjigs and reels, horos and freilachs, slow airs and more. The title track could be a Lúnasa reel, relaxed and flowing on low whistles, and The Oracle sparkles on dramatic Eastern European fiddle. Probably my favourite track is Nomadic Mood / Caroline's Reel, a mix of jazz and Celtic with a touch of Eastern mysticism, flutes and sax soaring over some delicate guitar and keyboards, with John Joe Kelly adding bite to the beat - a tasty combination.
© Alex Monaghan


Isla Ratcliff "The Castalia"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.islaratcliff.com

Named after a ship which sailed from Scotland to Canada, taking Isla Ratcliff's ancestors to a new world in 1873 at the end of the Highland Clearances, this debut album by a young Edinburgh fiddler follows that same path, visiting New Brunswick and Cape Breton on a musical voyage of discovery, bringing back new music and mixing it with her own tradition to produce an exciting and varied programme. Strathspeys and reels from Scotland, Ireland and Cape Breton are blended with Isla's compositions inspired by the mix of cultures on both sides of the Atlantic.
Enlisting the considerable talents of Cape Breton pianist Adam Young, New England cellist Ellen Gira (now based in Glasgow) and Celtic stepdancer Annabelle Bugay from Virginia USA, Ms Ratcliff has assembled almost an hour of excellent hard core fiddle music, most of it bearing the energetic stamp of Cape Breton Island. Paul Cranford's Jello Bass is bracketed by two of Isla's compositions, an MSR set with compositions by Abraham MacIntosh and Jerry Holland is leavened with the traditional Irish Julia Delaney, and a medley of four strathspeys shows the different tempos used for this versatile dance form. The modern march Kilts on Fire is perfectly paired with the ancient reel Elisabeth's Big Coat, and the final set of four reels combines new and old pieces from Scotland, Cape Breton, New Brunswick, and even Philadelphia.
The crunchy triplets and driven bow of Cape Breton fiddling are to the fore here, but Ratcliff's skills extend far beyond that. A Métis jig, a beautiful New Brunswick lament, and a couple of Irish American classics are joined by ten tunes penned by Isla at various stages of her Canadian adventure. I particularly like her slow air Memories of Cape Breton, and the slipjig Tune for Annabelle which I believe has been released as a single. There are also two pieces written for Isla by fiddler Paul Cranford and pianist Doug MacPhee, a great compliment to her standing on that most Scottish of Canadian islands. The Castalia should ensure that Isla Ratcliff is held in equally high regard on this side of the ocean.
© Alex Monaghan


Britt Pernille Frøholm "Årringar"
Kviven Records, 2021

www.froholm.com

Hardanger fiddle and double bass: breathtaking, hair-raising, otherworldly music by a mistress of the North West Norway fiddle style, ably assisted by bassist Sigurd Hole. This is a work for quiet contemplation, intense listening, and transports of the imagination. Årringar takes traditional themes and sounds, and stretches them, embellishes them, to create a musical landscape of icy wilderness, midsummer wonder, ancient magic and contemporary solace, something we all need. Named for the growth rings in trees, this album presents all four seasons of arctic Norway with resonant fiddle, booming bass notes, and a couple of pieces which sound like the dismantling of a wardrobe - IKEA springs to mind, but other self-assembly furniture is available! Frøholm and Hole use all the possibilities of their instruments as percussion, with plucked and scratched and pinched strings, to produce a huge range of sounds.
Starting from midwinter with the struggling new life of Snowdrop on harsh bowed bass and grinding fiddle, Britt Pernille moves to the gentler New Year Sun, some time in late January at the northern tip of Norway, a sweet refreshing sound. Erlerida has a mood of change, the melting of the ice, the creaking of trees as sap begins to flow and life starts to move again, ending with a fiddle warming up for the spring dances. Kvitveis and Dvergmål conjure the crisp air, the open spaces, the quality of light and sound in the wilderness, while Skyming celebrates the long midsummer days in a swirl of brilliant melodies.
Skrømt is pure noise, perhaps the fall of leaves, perhaps the haste of harvest, with not a conventional bowed note in its three minutes - a fascinating creation. Rimfrost signals the beginning of cold again, high notes of ice forming, rivers slowing, friction increasing between bow and strings, a beautifully evocative piece. The last three tracks are based on traditional songs of Michaelmass, the coming darkness, and the silence of winter as life shuts down again - high clear fiddle tunes with sympathetic bass accompaniment, dramatic low melody lines, and a final spine-tingling piece which combines whalesong with icebergs and the howl of the wind outside the little human islands of heat and light. Årringar is exceptional in its vision, its artistry, and its soul-piercing beauty.
© Alex Monaghan


Jydsk På Næsen "Kort og Godt" [EP]
Go Danish Folk, 2021

www.jpnmusic.dk

The title of this EP basically means "short and sweet", so it was a natural for a quick review of this iconic Danish band. The group name must be an old Danish saying, which provides evidence for the Life of Brian line "Blessed are the bignoses!" Our four facially distinctive folkies play twin fiddles, accordion and upright bass for a couple of their own compositions and four traditional Danish dance numbers. Fiddler Ivan Damgård's polska Christians and schottische Ranghild top and tail this selection, solidly in the style which Jydsk på Næsen have been performing since 1979: there's certainly a hint of Klezmer in the final piece. The cheery Madsbøls is somewhere between a march and a polka, the medley of seksturs shows why Denmark has a reputation for these, Ottetur is a lively reel which could easily be adopted for Scottish or Canadian dances, and Stille Ture is a medley of charming waltzes. All six tracks are superbly played, no fireworks but plenty of fine touches.
© Alex Monaghan


Marit & Rona "Nollaig" [EP]
Own Label, 2021

FolkWorld Xmas

www.maritandrona.co.uk

FolkWorld Xmas

Nollaig is of course the Gaelic for Christmas, and this EP presents four Christmas songs from the West of Scotland, sung by Rona Wilkie from Oban and accompanied by Scandinavian virtuoso Marit Fält on Nordic mandola and cittern. Rona brings Scottish fiddle to the mix, both as a backing instrument and as a lead on the mouth music medley Puirt Nollaig, and adds tasteful tuned percussion on a couple of tracks. Marit is no slouch on sleigh bells either! The celebratory Cridhealas na Fèise combines modern rhythms with the ancient modes of Gaelic song for a striking new composition by Rona. Its festive merriment is a perfect start to any Christmas concert. The lullaby Tàladh Chrìosda is more formal, more traditional perhaps, certainly more religious with its almost plainsong "hallelujahs" and sparse instrumental arrangement. An old puirt-a-beul A’ Mhisg a'Chuir an Nollaig Oirnn with the typical iconoclastic tone of Gaelic ditties is paired with an upbeat new tune and new words by Rona for the sweeter Mucan Sneachda, very Christmassy with chime bars and everything - although I seemed to hear the phrase "I'm in my underwear, and there is Santa!" The final Bha Sneachda na Chuibhrig, Gaeldom's answer to White Christmas, is a modern retelling of the nativity story by Ishabel T MacDonald and Donald John MacDonald of South Uist. Marit and Rona pack a lot into these four tracks - I wonder if they've considered developing them into a full length album.
© Alex Monaghan


Marvara "High On Life"
Go Danish Folk, 2021

German CD Review

Artist Video

www.marvaramusic.com

A collaboration between Danish, Swedish and Belgian musicians, Marvara's music is exuberant, dance-based, full of energy and excitement. The band was formed by Flemish bagpiper Marieke Van Ransbeeck after a two-year tour through the Nordic countries - she decided to start an "international folk party band", enlisting help from Danes Villads Hoffmann and Frederik Mensink on strings, Sweden's Mårten Hillbom on percussion, as well as her Hidrae bandmate and button-box bombshell Hilke Bauweraerts.
High On Life is indeed all party tunes, starting slow with Underground Schottisch which builds into a bouncy dance on pipes and box. Another great thing about this band - even though they aim at dancers, their arrangements are interesting and varied enough to make listening very enjoyable too! The title track is a punchy polska, alternating between dainty and driving moods, dazzlingly executed on pipes, box, drums and bass. The Danish Party Vibes introduce vocals, in a one-Carlsberg-too-many fashion, slipping into a jig which is a rather un-Danish rhythm but great fun. Much of Marvara's music reminds me of Northumbrian tunes, and this is a good example - the sound of the pipes of course, and the crossover between Tyneside and Scandinavia, but perhaps also the party atmosphere from Newcastle to Norham. Waltz for Rene provides an attractive moment of calm before the funky highlight Chokolade Pandekage which defies description.
It's dance all night with Devil's Polska, followed by the jaunty hop-step Snowscooter and the aptly named Polka Battle - Scandi polkas, not the Irish sort, although this track would not be out of place on Paddy's Day. And of course it isn't a proper party without that last slow smoochy number - again with echoes of Northumberland. Marvara make a great job of this finale: tasteful harmonies, slow drumbeats, swapping the tune between instruments, creeping up to a climax with high-pitched pipes and soulful fiddle, delicate guitar and a lingering outro. There's so much to like about this album, it comes close to my 2021 Top Ten.
© Alex Monaghan


Various Artists "The Rhythms of Migration"
Goatskin Records, 2021

Article: The Rhythms of Migration

Artist Video

www.freedomtoroam.earth

Think Afro-Celts, Riverdance, maybe even the Grit Orchestra - this is folk on a grand scale, in that vibe between Celtic and Eastern, drawing on jazz and classical. With seven different percussionists, flutes, fiddles, harp, cello, bass and guitars, there's no shortage of rhythm and a strong front line to carry the melody on more lyrical pieces such as Arctic Lament, Turning Tides and the final Coming Home. You can tell from these titles alone that there's a message here, a concern both for humanity and for the planet: much of this music emphasises the sad state of our world and the need for multicultural and multinational cooperation. With compositions by Eliza Marshall of Irish New Age folkies Ranagri,[69] classical harpist Catrin Finch, orchestral violinist Jackie Shave and Ranagri guitarist Dónal Rogers, a surprisingly white cast is augmented by Bhangra pioneer Kuljit Bhamra,[73] and there's no shortage of cultural crossover in the music. Bhamra's tabla and tampura pervade most tracks, and as well as Irish and Western Classical sounds there are resonances with indigenous American and African music on Freedom, tropical rainforest sounds on A Quiet Place, and a mix of gypsy and Indian influences on Leaving My Homeland. The almost unmusical style of modern classical compositions drives Brutal - threatening, violent, add your own subtext - before the nomadic scramble of Run Wild depicts a deperate dash through the souk or across the desert. Breathless, we come to the calm of Cherish, the Latin lushness of Seekers, and the final gentle Coming Home. It would be easy to point the finger of cultural appropriation here, and to miss the point that eight leading musicians have put aside their differences and attempted to inspire us all to stop and consider, to dream, to create a better world.
© Alex Monaghan


Fourth Moon "Odyssey"
Own Label, 2021

Artist Video

www.fourthmoonmusic.com

"International folk sensation" - well they certainly are international, their music is pretty folked up, and they are definitely sensational, so that seems a pretty fair description of Fourth Moon. Odyssey is perhaps a more difficult word to justify - after eighteen months without travel, without meeting up, without even one shipwreck, this has been a journey of the spirit, aspiring to Odysseus' story perhaps! Covid silver linings are becoming more numerous than pigs in Circe's parlour, but this album seems to be a notable one. Change is constant, as any good physicist knows, and Fourth Moon have grown somewhat during lockdown, like many of us. Gone is Mohsen Amini's handy hat-sized concertina, to be substituted by the powerful piano accordion of Andrew Waite. Ainsley Hamill has also added to the critical mass here, bringing Gaelic and English vocals. The atomic core of fiddler David Lombardi, flautist Géza Frank and guitarist Jean Damei is thankfully still intact. But enough about them - you really want to know about the music.
There hasn't been a funkier polka set than Open Seas since Alan Kelly's Trip to Dingle. The rippling jig and laid-back reel on North Star strike a less Celtic note, catchy but not as wild, technically brilliant with twinkling guitar and fiddle. The irresistible rhythms and cadences of Marine Clean showcase the accordion in smooth and staccato modes, and Borealis adds delicate low whistle on a sassy slipjig. All this material is written by the band, but Ainsley chimes in with two traditional mouth music pieces - husky vocals in the footsteps of Karen Matheson, subtly backed by the boys - and a pleasingly gruesome version of The Elf Knight with a medieval trailer park vibe. Apart from these vocal interludes and a cracking Quick Draw surreal by Mohsen, it's all Fourth Moon originals here from start to finish. Zenith is a high point, of course, box and whistle soaring together like two magicians. Trident reinforces the themes of the sea, the planet, quantum physics, and Hebridean teeth - well it works for Peat & Diesel! Now, Voyager reprises the relaxed cosmic view of North Star and Borealis before segwaying at speed into the final perky polska with all sails set for their next journey. Catch this band if you can - wherever they end up, it'll be epic!
© Alex Monaghan



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