61 f


There is much on Locks that is lovelorn: splendid harmonies make I Wish That The Wars Were All Over and Come To My Window all the more bittersweet, the former with a gorgeous floating keyboard and beatboxing providing sharp, shattered rhythms. All kinds of sampled lines and repeats abound throughout Jute Mill Song which stylistically could have come from Jim Moray circa Sweet England. Industrial, metallic, it ends almost with a resigned sigh. As a concession to those who prefer things unplugged there’s a crack- ing a cappella Dives & Lazarus nestling away in the running order, though to these ears the most successful mélange comes with Farewell He. Yes you guessed right, it’s the root of All Around My Hat, but don’t expect that familiar chugging, bounce-along Steel- eye treatment. Rather Solarference strip the song right to the core and construct a miasma of fragile sounds, hard beats, recrimination and revenge which was always there, just not highlighted, and end it with gorgeous vocals and snatches from other songs. Very clever and evocative, Locks & Bolts shows them to be artists of promise and consequence.


www.solarference.com Simon Jones


CILLIAN VALLELY The Raven’s Rock The Raven’s Rock


Armagh-born Cillian Vallely has occupied the uilleann piping seat in Lúnasa since his intro- duction to the band in 2000. His presence is an assured one and while he may not possess the flamboyance of his predecessor John McSherry, his individuality has accentuated the positive group togetherness Lúnasa excel in. Having made Callan Bridge with his broth- er Niall and On Common Ground with Lúnasa flautist Kevin Crawford, his solo debut The Raven’s Rock has that same sense of purpose and identity. Having come from the piping dynasty that is the Vallely family of Armagh his playing has the rhythmic qualities and melodic flow of a musician as comfortable within a band scenario as a solo one.


Musically the stock is large and expansive


as depicted in The Bull’s March, a compulsive opener, and The Cottage In The Grove, a pipes extravaganza driven by guitarist Paul Meehan, himself no mean rhythm driver. His locality is the birthplace of many tunes such as the title track The Raven’s Rock and his personalised Eimear’s Shuffle highlight a strong melodic compositional bent. He han- dles the classics well too, imbuing the air Port Na bPucai with an appropriate solemnity while ripping through The Leitrim Thrush –a favourite of Seamus Ennis – and Willie Clancy’s Reel while the closing set, Keep It Up, races for the finish line. A stylistic and accomplished solo debut, The Raven’s Rock has been a while coming but proves worth the wait.


www.cillianvallely.com John O’Regan


MAMADOU BARRY Tankadi Label Bleu LBLC 2605


Mamadou Barry hails from Guinea, one of the great old musical nations of Africa, and he is one of the great old musicians of the nation at 69 years of age. Raised in a musical family and taught to play instruments in his childhood, the influences and culture of West Africa are soaked deeply into the music and captured well in this album.


Although some songs are jumpy and live- ly while others lull you into a trance, there is a gentle rolling feeling that carries through all of them, a thread most likely woven by the light but tight rhythm section and guitars. The guitar playing is exceptional. The riffs are sim-


Emicida


ple but addictive – you are presented with the melody, you know it’s going to repeat, but it still leaves you wanting to hear more each time. The guitar chords and rhythms are cre- ative, sometimes unexpected, often artistic.


For example, take the track Gonga. After a little flourish of an intro, it jumps straight into a hauntingly beautiful Mandingo poly - rhythmic loop, which pretty much carries on for the whole three-and-a-half minutes, but always holds the interest. In some tracks, it’s the little things that count. Within the verses of the afrobeat groove of Félenko, there is a simple, subtle little muted guitar lick that could actually be classified as addictive.


There is a healthy range of musical styles


on the album Tankadi. The track Soumbara is like a palm wine afrobeat song, sunny sound- ing and with expressive flute melodies played by Mamadou. Café Café, meanwhile, is afro- lounge – a floaty coffee-themed rumba that has a few interesting guitar chords thrown in to keep it edgy.


The production of the album makes it good for listening at home in a quiet environ- ment, but the sound often comes across as a bit airy and metallic. This is especially notice- able on the horns, which sound like they have been recorded in a gigantic bathroom. When they come in on Mousso Kelen they are so harsh it makes them hard to listen to.


Tankadi is one of those albums where the age and wisdom of the music softly glimmers through, and it is decorated with some won- derful vocal and instrumental performances.


www.label-bleu.com Josh Coppersmith Heaven


EMICIDA


About Kids, Hips, Nightmare and Homework Sterns STCD2026


The problem with rap performed in a lan- guage you don’t understand is an obvious one: it’s not understandable! Which for an art-form that’s all about the words is a bit of a difficulty, but not, as it turns out, an insurmountable one. In truth, some of my favourite rap is incomprehensible to me. Just as long as there’s enough else of musical interest in the mix, I’m happy to go along for the ride.


Brazil’s Emicida is a case in point. My mastery of Portuguese doesn’t stretch beyond ordering a custard tart, but this twelve- track album has got more than enough catchy hooks and imaginative back- ing to hold the attention.


Recorded mostly on a trip to Cape Verde and Angola (hence, presumably the interest


of African music specialists Sterns), it features contributions from Kaku Alves, formerly gui- tarist in Cesara Evora’s band, amongst other local musicians, with Brazilian vocalists Vanes- sa De Mata and Caetano Veloso also making guest appearances. High-spots include the catchy kick of the opening Mufete and the closing Salve Black ‘Estilo Livre’, plus the easy reggae roll of Passarinnhos (the tune that features De Mata).


And what’s Emicida going on about?


Well the album’s title should give some idea of the lyrical concerns. Social comment seems to be his stock in trade and the album is, in part at least, a musical travelogue of his African adventures. I know this because, after a few plays, I ventured into the CD booklet and discovered translations of all the lyrics, allowing subsequent enjoyment of the album all over again on a totally different level.


www.emicida.com Jamie Renton


COSGRAVE & BANKS Warp & Weft Cosgrave & Banks CABCD01


Cosgrave & Banks are accomplished multi- instrumentalists with fiddle and accordeon to the fore. They have impeccable credentials and between them have played in a number of influential and prestigious bands such as Sin É and The Carnival Band. But CDs do not stand or fall on credentials alone, so I am happy to report that their debut is very good indeed.


If chamber music had a folk end to its spectrum Cosgrave & Banks would be firmly lodged within it. They take traditional tunes, songs and motifs and weave them into exhil- arating new compositions which strongly remind me of the brilliant Danish fiddler Kris- tine Heebøll both in sound and approach. This is particularly noticeable on the Scandi- navian tune Tjønneblomen but is a constant thread throughout the whole CD. The singing on this disc maybe less assured than the play- ing but the songs are surrounded by such sup- portive and sympathetic arrangements which they redeem any limitations.


Cosgrave & Banks draw their source material from all over Europe and the UK and, for me, the British, Breton and Scandinavian sets come off best. Oddly enough I feel that the opening track, a Russian/Macedonian set does not sell them as well as the rest of the CD, but openers are often problematical so if you are interested give more than the open- ing track a listen or better still, catch them live.


www.cosgraveandbanks.com Mark T


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84