Paul Brady
Maybe So
Proper Records
★★★

PAUL BRADY has veered away from his folk roots a little since the sad demise of his former outfit Planxty in 1975, and the Strabane-born performer is now firmly established as one of Ireland’s most impressive songwriting talents.

He has a notable body of work under his belt which includes compelling ditties such as Crazy Dreams and Nothing But The Same Old Story, to name but a few.

Brady’s new Proper CD mines a rich vein of distinctive soft-rock melodicism as he returns to the fray after a five-year break with a generous helping of the mellow and occasionally plaintive balladry which has become his trademark in recent years.

Newcomers to Paul’s instantly identifiable sound would be well advised to lend an ear to freshly minted gems such as Nothing Is As It Seems, To Be The One and The Shape That I’m In.

KEVIN BRYAN

Laura Pauna
Prismatica: Contemporary South African Piano Music
Vektor Productions
★★★★

FOR many in Europe, contemporary music and South Africa sounds like an enigma — or at the very least a strange microcosm, when in reality like many nations there is a rich tapestry and variety of music which sadly does not get to be heard.

This album, performed by Laura Pauna, is a wonderful introduction to music in South Africa.

The variety of concerns, and variety of aesthetics — handled wonderfully by the pianist — shows the nation as a whole deserves deeper investigation.

Personal highlights include Umdlalo Emlanjeni (Games by the River) by Bongani Ndodana-Breen with its charming sense of whimsy and playfulness, the second movement of which is so striking in its beauty, like a fond memory.

Conrad Asman’s Liquid from his collection Simple States of Matter has a great richness to it, and skilfully exploits the piano to feel liquid, without relying on hackneyed gestures like tonnes of pedal.

BEN LUNN

Dave Gisler Trio With Jaimie Branch And David Murray
See You Out There
Intakt Records
★★★★

HERE is a quintet who unleash their artistry like a storm of pent-up sound, as if the lost months of the pandemic have boiled inside them, setting free a rage of notes.

The Zurich-based trio of guitarist Dave Gisler, bassist Raffaele Bossard and drummer Lionel Friedli join up with the veteran Californian tenorist David Murray and the blood-red trumpeter Jaimie Branch.

Perhaps the raucous beauty of Murray’s solo on Medical Emergency expresses most pointedly the agonised frustration of Covid lockdowns, while Bastards on the Run must have been written for Johnson, Trump and their mildewed cohorts.

The sense of musical release is full-on and untrammelled in this album. Hear Murray and Branch on the blues-soaked final track Better Don’t Fuck with the Drunken Sailor to sense an “at last” sensation of new freedoms.

A record of its times certainly, anticipating with an intense energy fresh sonic newfoundlands.

CHRIS SEARLE

Michael McDermott
St Paul’s Boulevard
Pauper Sky Records
★★★★

CHICAGO singer-songwriter Michael McDermott has attracted a rather unlikely cheerleader for his work in the shape of none other than Stephen King.

The prolific master of horror fiction certainly knows how to assemble a gripping narrative when the occasion demands it, and he recently hailed McDermott as “possibly the greatest undiscovered rock and roll talent of the past 20 years.”

I for one couldn’t disagree with this genuine paean of praise, and St Paul’s Boulevard supplies an ideal introduction to Michael’s musical world.

The contents chronicle the trials and tribulations of a cast of characters living out their lives on a fictional street somewhere in the American heartland and the results are typically memorable and compelling, with Sick Of This Town, All That We Have Lost and the anthemic Marlowe emerging as three of the stand-out tracks.

KB

Latvian Radio Choir, Sigvards Klava
John Cage Choral Works
Ondine
★★★★★

WITH all the lazy stereotypes about John Cage’s compositions, Cage the “choral composer” is not one that took off, despite the plentiful collection of works for singers.

To put into words the effect of the music is a troublesome task, as Cage himself was for too Zen for such concerns.

The Hymns and Variations are akin to listening to religious music and not knowing the language being sung — your ear catches the phonetics and desperately tries to make sense of it, while tones hang in space free from time.

The Latvian Radio Choir perform this masterfully, as is the norm for the ensemble, and the choice to produce an album like this must be applauded.

I think for those who are worried about “contemporary” or “experimental” music would be instantly put at ease; while making sure the nerds/connoisseurs have something meaty to sink their teeth into. Well worth a listen.

BL

Nduduzo Makhatini
In the Spirit of Ntu
Blue Note Records
★★★★★

SOUTH AFRICAN pianist Nduduzo Makhatini says of his album, In the Spirit of Ntu: “This project was conceived at a difficult time in South Africa, a time of confusion and conflict … of burning fires, riots and massacres.”

Nduduzo sees his music as a restorative force, the power of sound to reconcile and heal.

His pianism carries power and a groundswell upsurge from the first notes of the opener, Unonkanyanga, with Linda Sikhakhane’s eloquent saxophone.

Robin Fassie Kock’s burnished trumpet choruses and percussionists Gontse Makhene and Dane Paris in dauntless fettle.

The prayer-like melodies and relentless rhythmic energy of these Cape Town-recorded tracks seek curative answers to intense problems assailing Nduduzo’s great nation.

Emlilweni features the US saxophonist Jaleel Shaw in a contribution of warm musical solidarity.

Nduduzo’s piano rings out its unifying message as if it too is another drum of Africa, played with a joyous and loving heart.

CS

Rod Picott
Paper Hearts and Broken Arrows
Welding Rod Records
★★★★

NEW HAMPSHIRE-born and Nashville-based Rod Picott is one of the most prolific writers and performers operating in the Americana genre today, delivering a compelling brand of blue-collar balladry which sets him apart from many of his contemporaries in this increasingly crowded field.

This refreshingly raw and unpolished package is the 14th album that the former construction worker has released during the past 20 years, boasting some arresting subject matter which runs the gamut from the usual Picott tales of heroes and villains to affecting ditties such as Sonny Liston, a heartfelt exploration of the legendary heavyweight’s ultimately tragic life and boxing career.

Picott has rarely been captured in better voice, and as this rough-hewn musical storyteller himsef declares: “I don’t know if ‘Paper Hearts and Broken Arrows’ is the best album that I’ve made, but it might be.”

KB

Exaudi Vocal Ensemble, James Weeks
Book of Flames and Shadow
Winter & Winter
★★★★★

PAIRING old and living composers is always a fascinating endeavour, especially when it comes to underappreciated figures like Jacques Arcadelt or the living James Weeks.

After the evocative Fantasie the appearance of the first book of madrigals of Arcadelt feels profoundly jubilant though playing to the theme, joyous and upbeat madrigals often have ruder things hidden away.

There is a lot to take in with this wonderful album — though both composers demand very different things from the ensemble, the singers glide through it like the very swans on the album cover or sung about in Il Bianco e Dolce Cigno.

Lume from Weeks’s Libro di Fiammelle e Ombre is another standout work in this album, though the whole album must be merited on its skill and beauty.

For an ensemble celebrating their 20th anniversary this is quite the remarkable achievement — so here’s hoping for at least another 20 years.

BL

Jacqueline Kerrod
17 Days in December
Orenda Records
★★★★

NEW YORK-BASED and classically trained harpist Jacqueline Kerrod made her solo album alone in her basement during the worst weeks of the pandemic.

They were “born out of a fundamental need to discover who I really am as an artist” — an impulse answered by many writers, artists and musicians during those isolating and desperate Covid times.

Her duo with the legendary improvising saxophonist Anthony Braxton partly inspired her own solo improvisations. His influence was a profound provocation for her album.

Kerrod recorded a daily improvisation throughout the month of December 2020 in her homemade studio.

An often eerie quality invests her invented music on acoustic and electric harp, with a lonesome, introverted spirit powerfully present.

This album is more than sounds seeking comfort through an agonising winter.

It carries the sonic history of a grim era brilliantly articulated, a musical story and harrowing chronicle played by an audacious virtuoso.

CS