f74
2 Bright Season Bright Season Own Label, no cat no). Michael J Tinker (guitar), Ella Sprung (fiddle, nyckelharpa) and Simon Dumpleton (accordeon) guide us through a bright, alert and naturally eclectic menu (sacred harp, trad and tunes to Shenandoah, Strange Fruit and Robb Johnson), reworked with imagination and dispatched with insight.
www.brightseason.net
@ Yinon Muallem Rast Ensemble Funky Dervish (Ahnek 8680114940663). Bland, for- gettable combination of Jewish and Turkish music from Israeli percussionist Muallen and his Istanbul-based group. Not in the least bit funky, nor particularly dervish-like.
www.rastensemble.com
1 Damian Helliwell Damian Helliwell’s Metta (Eigg Records 041401). Debut album from Dàimh’s mandolin/banjo maestro. All- instrumental and all self-composed, mainly in Scottish traditional style, with some enjoy- able East European pastiche tunes in The Slovenian and Chessmaster Vlad. Quietly hyp- notic mandolin/banjo loops supported by fid- dle, piano, double-bass and percussion.
www.metta-music.com
1 Steeleye Span Live At Last!/Sails Of Silver (Beat Goes On BGOCD1147.) Why? Both are part of recent EMI set Another Par- cel. Live has the edge, bags of pace and ener- gy, as, ironically, Steeleye wound down. Sails Of Silver saw reunion but its impact lost in Gus Dudgeon’s slick production.
www.bgo-records.com
1 Frankétienne & Mark Mulholland Chaophonies (Cannery Row Records CRR 1418). Leading Haitian writer-playwright- painter-musician-political activist Frankéti- enne teams with Glasgow guitarist-singer- songwriter Mark Mulholland in a growling rendition of Frankétienne’s schizophonic spo- ken-word poesy. Compelling Celtic-Créole conception, awaiting wider translation.
www.canneryrowrecords.com
2 Gipsy Burek Orkestar Gipsy Burek Orkestar (Innacor INNA 11410). A hugely ambitious meeting of traditional Breton music and Macedonian brass. Both subtle and thrilling throughout, there’s an admirable rejection of pride and obviousness. Always eclectic, occasionally electric, it’s the genre- defying brainchild of excellent saxophonist Fanch Martres, who lives in both vital tradi- tions.
www.innacor.com
1 The Devil Makes Three I’m A Stranger Here(New West W6282). High energy original American music from Vermont trio trying to make their name in higher circles. Interesting songs and ambitious arrangements to add to their own guitars and voices. One outstanding song would help.
www.newwestrecords.com
1 Johnny Pacheco Pacheco Y Su Cha- ranga Vol II + Pacheco Y Su Charanga Vol I (Malanga Music MM825). Dominican flautist-bandleader and Fania legend Johnny Pacheco crafted a unique New York pachanga sound, retooling Cuban charanga and cha- cha for 1960s aficionados, an important chap- ter in Latin music when the Anglo majority was oblivious to the cultural and demograph- ic changes to come. UK Distribution via Dis- covery Records –
www.discovery-records.com
2 Various Artists For The Love Of The Music: The Club 47 Folk Revival (Kingswood Records 888295017343). Com- panion CD to the excellent documentary film of the iconic 1960s Cambridge, Mas- sachusetts, folk mecca (reviewed in fR 372) featuring live performances by Tom Rush, Peter Rowan, Tim Eriksen, Hayley Reardon and more. It’s good, but the DVD is even bet- ter.
www.loveofthemusic.com
@ Captain Cougar Åkerblomrörelsen (Pinetree Records PINECD06). Concept album about a 1920s evangelical cult leader and ‘sleep preacher’ by “Finnish folk/post/prog- rock quintet” with kantele, synths, program- ming, guitars, drums and banjos. Melodic gloom which somehow evokes both Abba’s The Visitor and Aphrodite’s Child. Heavy jelly!
www.captaincougar.net
1 Duo Jansen/Jüssi Mängleik (Own Label JJ1401). Fiddle duets from Johanna-Adele Jüssi and Jo Einar Jansen. What distinguishes this in the fine-fiddle-album mountain is that it mixes tunes from Jansen’s native Nord- Trøndelag in Norway with waltzes, polkas et al from Jüssi’s less explored Estonian dance-tune tradition.
www.facebook.com/duojansenjussi
1 Josephine Anthony & The Last Ones Left Spaces In Between (Nitebird Records 643157429432). Glasgow-based trio peddling gentle, acoustic singer-songwritery and a decent version of The Snows They Melt The Soonest. Plenty to catch the ear at an open mic night, but not enough to stand out from the CD crowd here.
www.thelastonesleft.co.uk
2 The Quiet American Songs From A Rocking Chair (Own Label, no cat no). Back- to-basics, heart-gladdening American folk music. Few surprises, but there’s a hugely appealing generosity of spirit inherent in this husband and wife duo’s lovingly hand-crafted simplicity. Check their website for some won- derful free banjo and ukulele resources.
quietamericanmusic.com
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