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Rough Music

by

Eliza Carthy

 
Rough Music
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Avg: 4.0 (34 ratings)

An acoustic disc from one of the leaders of the new folk generation.

  • We Say...

    Being the daughter of Martin Carthy and Norma Waterson puts a heavy weight of expectation on a folk performer, but Eliza Carthy has borne it well. She's done plenty of experimentation in the past, but this deliberately raw, acoustic disc might be the strongest of her career. Backed by a small group, the Ratcatchers (including Spiers and Boden), there's a ramshackle elegance to the music — the "Upside Down" set moves along at a cracking pace — and a focus of purpose. She even manages to give a traditional sheen to Billy Bragg's very '80's "King James Version." Her voice has rarely sounded better or more emotional (as she shows on "The Unfortunate Lass"), and the lineup gives the feel of a raunchy (but talented) rural orchestra — or country dance band — on "Scan Tester's Country Stepdance." She's become one of the de facto leaders of the new folk generation, and on the basis of this, it's a well-deserved title.

  • They Say...

    Eliza Carthy officially inherits the British folk crown from her parents with the willfully traditional Rough Music. Described in the liner notes as "a form of community punishment practiced all over England" (basically a public beating for a heinous social crime), Rough Music sounds like a lost pre-percussion Steeleye Span record filtered through A.L. Lloyd's whaling collection Leviathan! Carthy's strong fiddling and powerful vocals -- she really is beginning to surpass Norma -- are ably enhanced by the chiseled performance of her backing band, the Ratcatchers. Together they celebrate longstanding English traditions like public execution ("Turpin Hero"), syphilis ("The Unfortunate Lass"), and alcohol ("Tom Brown") with equal parts reverence, earnestness, and mischief. Primarily arranged for violin, viola, double bass, and melodeon, Rough Music also features lovely a cappella cuts like "Maid on the Shore" and enough fiery instrumentals to keep your feet on the cobblestones during the long walk home from the pub. In fact, there's not a moment on Rough Music that isn't essential listening. Highly recommended.

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