Tag Archives: Honey and the Bear

Latest folk reviews: Honey & The Bear, Holly & The Reivers, Gavin Marwick, Tom Houston and Colin MacDuff

Album reviews, Folk music, , , , , , ,

Honey & The Bear – Away Beyond The Fret

Away Beyond The Fret is the third album from husband-and-wife folk duo, Lucy and Jon Hart, and the follow-up to the highly-enjoyable Journey Through The Roke, which I reviewed back in 2021.

Lucy Hart: “Many of the songs on this album focus on our Suffolk home and the close bonds of family, friendship and community.”

Fresh-sounding, slightly genre-hopping and once again deeply rooted in the history, culture and landscape of their Suffolk homeland, Away Beyond The Fret is delivered with the duo’s characteristic elegance and beauty. The highly-talented duo of Lucy and Jon Hart continue to delight and this, their third album, is proof that Honey & The Bear have blossomed into something truly magnificent on the UK folk scene.

Released: 3 November 2023 https://honeyandthebear.co.uk/

Holly & The Reivers – Three Galleys

Three Galleys is the debut album from Holly & The Reivers, a project formed back in 2017 that brings together Holly Clarke (vocals/guitar), Merle Harbron (vocals/fiddle) and Bertie Armstrong (vocals/banjo).

Holly & The Reivers: “Three Galleys reaches into the depths of the darker side of folk song and brings forth the messages in the songs that are deeply rooted in human experience through history. Each track has been meticulously arranged to help interlace the story with a musical setting that enthrals listeners to submit and be swept away in a journey of rich storytelling.”

This is an older live video but still carries their instantly-recognisable  signature sound based around the trio’s banjo, fiddle and guitar and their contrasting but complimentary vocals. Beautifully atmospheric soundscapes combine with stunning interpretations of traditional ballads that tend dwell on the darker side of human existence, borne of an enduring fascination of folk horror cinema. In Three Galleys, Holly & The Reivers have served up a highly impressive debut album.

Released: 15 November 2023 https://hollyclarkemusic.com/

Gavin Marwick – Quarterdays: Martinmas

Martinmas is the fourth and final release in Gavin Marwick’s Quarterdays series, and this one sees the Scottish fiddle-player and composer team up with pianist and accordion-player, Phil Alexander. The two have played together both socially and professionally over a number of years.

Gavin Marwick: “Martinmas celebrates the life of St Martin of Tours, the only actual historical figure to appear in the Quarterdays canon. Born in what is now part of Hungary, serving in the Roman army and ending up as Bishop of Tours and ultimately one of the patron saints of France, Martin offers a very broad European vision of the spread of the early church across the continent during this long ago fourth century period.”

Marking the final season of the year and celebrating the life of St Martin of Tours, whose feast day is marked on November 11th, the six tune-sets, all composed by Marwick, distil Scottish, Eastern European and French traditional influences alongside more contemporary ideas. Once again, Marwick hits us with more wonderfully expressive fiddle and he and Alexander deliver some nicely evocative tunes that perfectly capture the time of year. Quarterdays has been a fascinating project and Martinmas is a worthy finale to the series.

Released: 11 November 2023 https://www.gavinmarwick.co.uk/

Tom Houston – Everything In The Delicatessen

Playing in bands such as Paper Tiger, Unspeakable Acts, Delicious Houdini, Bamboozle, Tom Houston and the Keltic Band and davesnewbike as well as working as musical director in theatre, Tom Houston has also had a prolific solo career and Everything In The Delicatessen is his sixth solo album. His current work encompasses spoken word, soundscapes, stories and songs.

“Everything In The Delicatessen attempts to give the listener that ‘up close and personal’ experience with ‘local produce’ of high quality,” promises the accompanying press publicity.

An album that transcends musical boundaries and is brimming with drama and musicality, great lyrics and great melodies, Everything In The Delicatessen is the kind of album you’ll come back to again and again and always find something new.

Released: 13 October 2023 https://www.tomhouston.org/

Colin MacDuff – Separations

Aberdeen-based musician and songwriter, Colin MacDuff, says he “dabbled” in music and poetry when family and career commitments allowed time but things got more serious upon his retirement when he enrolled on Boo Hewerdine’s and Findlay Napier’s mentorship scheme for aspiring songwriters. With their encouragement he soon found he had more than a dozen original songs and his debut album, The Past In The Sky, was released in 2022 to positive reviews. Separations is the follow-up.

Colin MacDuff: “During the past year I wrote a lot of new songs and got thinking about whether some might fit together in an album. At first, I thought they were very disparate. But, aided by a glass or two, I had the revelation that they were all songs about different aspects of separation.”

The theme of separation in the songs extends across a range of subjects, from relationship break-ups, to bereavement to economic displacement. The main accompaniment is MacDuff’s own acoustic guitar-playing but he’s joined by Angus Lyon (accordion),  Jenna Reid (fiddle) and Hugh Halton percussion, with pianist Maria Quinn also providing some beautifully eloquent piano on three tracks. With his gentle vocal and engaging storytelling, Separations acts as an excellent showcase for Colin MacDuff’s fine songwriting.  

Released: 8 December 2023 https://www.colinmacduff.com/

#FolkForChristmas the top 10 folk / acoustic / Americana albums of 2021 on Darren’s Music Blog

Album reviews, Folk music, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The #FolkForChristmas hashtag came about last year as a means of supporting artists whose income had been hit by the impact of the pandemic, with people being encouraged to support independent artists and, in particular, order directly from them this Christmas rather than head off to Amazon. In putting this list of recommendations together I’ve again used the not exactly scientific method of ranking them in order according to the number of hits each of these reviews received on my website.

No. 1: Ninebarrow – A Pocket Full of Acorns

With a mix of original song-writing, covers, traditional numbers and musical adaptations of classic poetry, the duo apply their trademark harmonies to produce eleven tracks of exquisite contemporary folk. Highlights include the haunting but utterly beautiful ‘Cold, Haily, Windy Night’ a song about migration inspired by the scenes of destitution at the Calais refugee camp.

Full review here

No. 2: Steve Tyler -The Enduring and the Ephemeral

Steve Tyler is a renowned hurdy gurdy player and from early music to traditional folk to industrial electronica he is at home playing within a variety of genres. The Enduring and the Ephemeral, however, is Tyler’s first album comprised fully of his own original material. The unique, utterly mesmerising sound of the hurdy gurdy takes centre-stage in this album of rich, layered, experimental prog-folk subtitled ‘Hurdy gurdy based multitrack music for the end of time’.

Full review here

No. 3: John Edwin & the Banjodasha Hillbillies – Divine Life of Punarvasu

Swedish singer-songwriter-instrumentalist, Peter Danielsson, had spent time on the road performing in a variety of different outfits. Around a decade ago he felt it was time to go solo and that a change in musical direction was in order. He bought himself a banjo, taught himself to play clawhammer (the distinctive banjo playing style common to a lot of old-time American music) and reinvented himself as bluegrass performer, John Edwin.

Full review here

No. 4: Màiri MacMillan – Gu Deas

The themes range from mythical creatures to long lost love to banishment to battle laments. An especially poignant moment is at the end of the first song ‘Wily Margaret’ where a few verses from an original field recording of the song, now in the custody of National Trust for Scotland, are spliced into MacMillan’s own version. A beautifully-made album that will find a suitable home with anyone who has a love for Gaelic songs and traditions.

Full review here

No. 5: Milton Hide – Temperature’s Rising

I’ve much enjoyed seeing this husband-and-wife acoustic duo, Jim and Josie Tipler, out on the live scene here in East Sussex on a number of occasions. Their thought-provoking, observational and often humorous self-written songs were always a treat to witness and it was a delight, therefore, to get my hands on their debut album.

Full review here

No. 6: Seth Lakeman – Make Your Mark

The album is not a leap into the dark musically but from his early days as ‘the poster boy of English folk’ through to now, Seth Lakeman’s albums have demonstrated a quality and consistency in delivering fine folk songs, superb musicianship and those instantly-recognisable vocals. Fans will not be disappointed.

Full review here

No. 7: Sons of the Never Wrong – Undertaker’s Songbook

Formed in Chicago almost thirty years ago Sons of the Never Wrong are an alt-folk trio with a signature sound of soaring harmonies and lush acoustic arrangements built around  of thoughtful, witty song-writing. Their ninth studio album, Undertaker’s Songbook is something of a celebratory release as  the band approach their 30th anniversary.

Full review here

No. 8: Fine Lines – Deadbeat Lullabies

Put together by singer-songwriter David Boardman back in 2016 there’s harmony vocals, exquisite pedal steel, infectious fiddle, great melodies and heartfelt lyrics. The song-writing is a joint endeavour between Boardman, who cooked up the tunes and the band’s drummer, BBC presenter and all-round music maestro, Mark Radcliffe, who came up with the lyrics. Radcliffe proves himself to be a talented lyricist. His observational storytelling perfectly captures the overall mood that the album evokes.

Full review here

No. 9: Ronan Gallagher – Time Waits For No One

Ronan Gallagher has the sort of rich, seasoned, easy-going vocal delivery that makes it sound like’s he’s been performing around the pubs and bars of Ireland for decades. Married to some irresistibly catchy melodies, some thoughtful every-man style lyrics and a great cast of supporting musicians who deliver a fine blend of Celtic-infused Americana, it’s a sure-fire winner. Incredibly, however, Gallagher did not begin singing or learning to play the guitar until just over five years ago.

Full review here

No. 10: Honey and The Bear – Journey Through The Roke

Honey and The Bear are folk duo and singer-songwriters Lucy and Jon Hart. The Suffolk-based couple originally met at a song-writing event, began writing and performing together and spent several years touring the folk circuit before releasing their debut album Made in Aker, back in 2019. Journey Though the Roke is the follow-up, ‘Roke being an old East Anglian word for the evening mist that rises from the region’s marshes and water meadows.

Full review here

Related post:

#FolkForChristmas Top Ten 2020

Folk: album review – Honey and The Bear ‘Journey Through The Roke’

Album reviews, Folk music, , , , , , ,

Honey and The Bear are folk duo and singer-songwriters Lucy and Jon Hart. The Suffolk-based couple originally met at a song-writing event, began writing and performing together and spent several years touring the folk circuit before releasing their debut album Made in Aker, back in 2019.

Journey Though the Roke is the follow-up, ‘Roke being an old East Anglian word for the evening mist that rises from the region’s marshes and water meadows. As with so many other musicians these past twelve months, many of the songs on the album were conceived during lockdown. We are presented with eleven original songs as well as the duo’s adaptation of a traditional Irish ballad.

Of the former, the beauty of their Suffolk coastal landscape and richness of its history is at the core of many of the songs, from the jaunty ‘Freddie Cooper’ celebrating the heroics of the Aldeburgh lifeboat crew to the utterly haunting ‘The Hungry Sea’ that tells the story of Violet Jessop who incredibly survived the Olympic, Titanic and Britannic maritime disasters, before eventually dying in Great Ashfield, aged 83.

Of the latter, the one non-original song on the album is a tender version of ‘My Lagan Love’. It’s a song that has been performed by numerous artists from The Chieftains to Kate Bush but fans of Sandy Denny and Fairport Convention will also immediately recognise the tune given it was repurposed for Denny’s cover of Richard Farina’s ‘The Quiet Joys of Brotherhood. ‘My Lagan Love’ makes for a lovely addition to the album, laying down some deep folk roots amongst the new compositions.

The duo meld together a range of folk, Americana and pop influences to produce a sound that’s both original and creative and very easy on the ear. Lucy Hart has a clear, distinctive voice that’s perfectly suited to such a fusion of musical influences and husband Jon’s harmony vocals are also equally suited. Unusually for a duo, both play guitar, bazouki and double-bass and there’s quite a bit of toing and froing between the two of them across the dozen tracks as they swap instruments and show us what talented multi-instrumentalists each of them are.

As well as the duo themselves, Evan Carson, Archie Churchill-Moss, Graham Coe and Toby Shaer from Sam Kelly and The Lost Boys provide additional musical backing that’s every bit as captivating as their playing with The Lost Boys.

A beautiful and highly listenable album and a wonderful celebration of the East Anglian landscape and history from an extremely talented duo, Journey Through The Roke is highly recommended.

Released 23rd April 2021

Visit Honey and The Bear website here