(PLAENE RECORDS)
The folk-rock loving Oysterband have been roving around for the best part of two decades, and this new 10-track album that comprises 8 original songs and 2 deft re-workings of traditional numbers re-iterates the blaring fact that this quintet are the cream of the folk-rock field, forever with poppy melodies carrying their songs with anthemic glee.
Fronted by the enigmatic John Jones with just as distinctive a voice as Billy Bragg or the Levellers' Mark Chadwick, this album was actually recorded at Brighton's Metway studios - also 'the home' of the Levellers.
Opened by 'The Soul's Electric' that out-stands for its catchy chorus, guitarist Alan Prosser's skill in creating melody further shines on 'Uncommercial Song. 'Everybody's Leaving Home' drips with atmospheric melancholia ('The more you look the more you travel blind'), whilst 'Wayfaring' catches them as upbeat as can be.
In this day and age, they're hardly a fashionable band. In a Status Quo sense-of-security, the fans always know where they are with the band and what to expect, so the style of songs that they're producing today is almost exactly the same as the style with which they first started out. Forever glorifying folk-rock roots, it's actually their versions of the traditional 'Blackwaterside' - complimented by its lush acoustic guitar and Ian Telfer's violin's tunefulness - and the acappella 'Bright Morning Star' that are the most unforgettable highlights, the latter proving that these guys are superbly harmonious when singing together simultaneously.
For what the Oysterband are worth in pearls, these are rousing, feel-good sing-alongs from a tragically under-rated band.
(Steve Rudd)