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| Track list: 1. Jordan - Bellowhead 2. Bricks - Tuung 3. Bitter Boy - Kate Rusby 4. Flapjacks And Firesticks / The Minor Rigged Ship - Spiers & Boden 5. The Here And Now - While & Matthews 6. Never Any Good - Martin Simpson 7. Are We Alright - Show Of Hands 8. Dad's Gonna Kill Me - Richard Thompson 9. The Cruel Ship's Carpenter - Jackie Oates 10. Hinba - Lau Running time: 44 minutes Released: 2008 |
Disc 2 of the 2008 BBC Folk Awards box (Disc 1 here). Looking at the list I think I might keep more of this, but there are at least four tracks (the first 4, in fact) that are duplicates.
It has been a busy week, out the past three nights, a devil of a Bloodbowl game this evening, and off down to Surrey first thing tomorrow to see family for the day. I am looking forward to Sunday, but I thought it good to squeeze something in tonight. Jordan, from Burlesque is a track that I have seen performed live a number of times over the year, and the recording never compares. Bellowhead are right up there with my favourite artists, and this song is a good example of why. Big sounds, harmonies, melody and mood. It is far from their best, and I do not need multiple versions of it, however. The contrast with Bricks - from Good Arrows - is quite stark. This is the Tunng I fell for, found sound, kooky lyrics, fun stuff. I know they got tagged with "Folktronica" at this point, but I laugh at the idea they were up for a folk award, it just seems so out of step. I do like this song a lot, mind, with the highlight being the captured speech which is somehow masterful despite being so bland.
The Rusby track was on Awkward Annie which I listened to relatively recently and I do not have much to add. Somewhat frustratingly for my sense of correctness, I did not scrobble the last couple of listens so I have double checked that this one is being recorded. I do not know why I care - it is recorded here anyway! - but I like the idea, however fanciful, that this journey that I am taking will be (almost) fully reconstructible were anyone to go back through the tracks. Stupid, because not even I am that sad, honestly. The fourth (and possibly final) duplicate of a tune I have on its original recording is the Spiers & Boden tune, a pair of dance tunes, the first at least is not traditional as I have heard them describe its conception - I seem to recall motorway service station flapjacks being part of their touring diet. I must just not be in the mood for this right now as the tune is just bouncing off me tonight... or it was until the switch. The second tune in the set is much more of an easy appreciation - something about the cadence of it lifts my mood and the various lines going through it are a joy. It is not the last of familiarity but it is the last of the stuff I have bought more than this once.
I am not sure about this next song, a standard duet with a softly bland arrangement that I have apparently heard six times before (at least), which I do not buy. This does nothing for me and I am glad when it is replaced with Martin Simpson. I am not a great fan of Never Any Good (which I do recognise, and which somehow was voted best original song at these awards) and listening to it again now has not really changed my feelings on it, so that tells you something about how I did not like The Here and Now. So far, this disc is not looking good for a retention rate. Simpson's song is too boringly repetitive for me, and the picking of his guitar is a style that just irritates my ear. The backing vocal is Rusby, but even her angelic tones cannot lift it for me. At least you know what you are going to get with Show Of Hands... except it turns out I have Are We Alright on the one album of theirs I own (admittedly its a greatest hits so that is not a great surprise), so far all seven tracks are for the chop. There is a nice volume to this song though, big vocals to carry it. Oh, now this I will keep. Richard Thomson's effort is not a fantastic track, but it has a bluesy undertone and a catchy title. There is just about enough arrangement over the guitar bass and drums to lend some structure and distraction to the track, and hint at the folk roots that have it included here, and in places it reminds me of Thea Gilmore in terms of the tone of the piece, which is not generally a bad thing in my book. It could do with being a bit shorter, and with ending properly rather than fading out, but it is listenable enough to ensure this whole disc is not going in the recycle bin.
I knew Jackie Oates' name, and that she had sung with the Unthanks, but not that she is Jim Moray's sister. Music is a profession where everyone seems to be connected somehow. I did not know this song either as she is not someone I have ever listened to. I can hear call backs to the Unthanks' style here but it does not really do it for me as a one off. I was expecting not to like the Lau track (I have never known whether that is meant to be all caps either) from previous exposure to them, but expectations are there to be dashed upon the rocks of experience. It is an upbeat, quick and tuneful number (or set) that is actually pretty welcome, bar one discordant bit in the middle somewhere.
The time has gone rather fast as I got through this disc but I have not really enjoyed much - either turned off by the fact I have the tunes elsewhere or simply not taken with them. Only 2 tracks stand after this and the combined leftovers from the two main discs from the 2008 awards are slim pickings. I wonder if the third disc (I think young musicians, but I cannot remember) will have a better hit rate?
It has been a busy week, out the past three nights, a devil of a Bloodbowl game this evening, and off down to Surrey first thing tomorrow to see family for the day. I am looking forward to Sunday, but I thought it good to squeeze something in tonight. Jordan, from Burlesque is a track that I have seen performed live a number of times over the year, and the recording never compares. Bellowhead are right up there with my favourite artists, and this song is a good example of why. Big sounds, harmonies, melody and mood. It is far from their best, and I do not need multiple versions of it, however. The contrast with Bricks - from Good Arrows - is quite stark. This is the Tunng I fell for, found sound, kooky lyrics, fun stuff. I know they got tagged with "Folktronica" at this point, but I laugh at the idea they were up for a folk award, it just seems so out of step. I do like this song a lot, mind, with the highlight being the captured speech which is somehow masterful despite being so bland.
The Rusby track was on Awkward Annie which I listened to relatively recently and I do not have much to add. Somewhat frustratingly for my sense of correctness, I did not scrobble the last couple of listens so I have double checked that this one is being recorded. I do not know why I care - it is recorded here anyway! - but I like the idea, however fanciful, that this journey that I am taking will be (almost) fully reconstructible were anyone to go back through the tracks. Stupid, because not even I am that sad, honestly. The fourth (and possibly final) duplicate of a tune I have on its original recording is the Spiers & Boden tune, a pair of dance tunes, the first at least is not traditional as I have heard them describe its conception - I seem to recall motorway service station flapjacks being part of their touring diet. I must just not be in the mood for this right now as the tune is just bouncing off me tonight... or it was until the switch. The second tune in the set is much more of an easy appreciation - something about the cadence of it lifts my mood and the various lines going through it are a joy. It is not the last of familiarity but it is the last of the stuff I have bought more than this once.
I am not sure about this next song, a standard duet with a softly bland arrangement that I have apparently heard six times before (at least), which I do not buy. This does nothing for me and I am glad when it is replaced with Martin Simpson. I am not a great fan of Never Any Good (which I do recognise, and which somehow was voted best original song at these awards) and listening to it again now has not really changed my feelings on it, so that tells you something about how I did not like The Here and Now. So far, this disc is not looking good for a retention rate. Simpson's song is too boringly repetitive for me, and the picking of his guitar is a style that just irritates my ear. The backing vocal is Rusby, but even her angelic tones cannot lift it for me. At least you know what you are going to get with Show Of Hands... except it turns out I have Are We Alright on the one album of theirs I own (admittedly its a greatest hits so that is not a great surprise), so far all seven tracks are for the chop. There is a nice volume to this song though, big vocals to carry it. Oh, now this I will keep. Richard Thomson's effort is not a fantastic track, but it has a bluesy undertone and a catchy title. There is just about enough arrangement over the guitar bass and drums to lend some structure and distraction to the track, and hint at the folk roots that have it included here, and in places it reminds me of Thea Gilmore in terms of the tone of the piece, which is not generally a bad thing in my book. It could do with being a bit shorter, and with ending properly rather than fading out, but it is listenable enough to ensure this whole disc is not going in the recycle bin.
I knew Jackie Oates' name, and that she had sung with the Unthanks, but not that she is Jim Moray's sister. Music is a profession where everyone seems to be connected somehow. I did not know this song either as she is not someone I have ever listened to. I can hear call backs to the Unthanks' style here but it does not really do it for me as a one off. I was expecting not to like the Lau track (I have never known whether that is meant to be all caps either) from previous exposure to them, but expectations are there to be dashed upon the rocks of experience. It is an upbeat, quick and tuneful number (or set) that is actually pretty welcome, bar one discordant bit in the middle somewhere.
The time has gone rather fast as I got through this disc but I have not really enjoyed much - either turned off by the fact I have the tunes elsewhere or simply not taken with them. Only 2 tracks stand after this and the combined leftovers from the two main discs from the 2008 awards are slim pickings. I wonder if the third disc (I think young musicians, but I cannot remember) will have a better hit rate?
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