Colganology2: A Folk Sampler #2

Some more Folkie treats for you today.

We start with Songs of Separation. This was a music project created in the aftermath of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. The idea was to explore ideas of separation through the medium of traditional music. It was organised by double-bass player Jenny Hill and it brought together ten female folk musicians from Scotland and England for one week in June 2015 on the Isle of Eigg in the Inner Hebrides. The resulting recording won the Best Album category in the 2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.

The musicians were: Eliza Carthy (fiddle, Indian harmonium, percussion and vocal), Karine Polwart (Indian harmonium, percussion, tenor guitar and vocal), Hannah James (percussion, piano accordion and vocal), Jenn Butterworth (guitar and vocal), Hannah Read (fiddle, guitar and vocal), Hazel Askew (flute, harp, melodeon and vocal), Jenny Hill (double bass and vocal), Kate Young (fiddle and vocal), Mary Macmaster (clarsach, wire harp and vocal) and Rowan Rheingans (banjo, fiddle, percussion, viola and vocal).

Each musician was asked to bring three songs from their own tradition that explored the theme of separation. The arrangements and the recordings were then completed in just three days at Eigg Studios. The two a capella tracks were recorded in the island's Cathedral Cave, used for secret Roman Catholic services during the 18th century, which can only be accessed at low tide.

The whole album is on YouTube (here) and there's a nice little documentary film about the project here. Meanwhile, here's Track 1 to give you a taste - Echo mocks the Corncrake (Karine Polwart lead vocals).

Next up we have another Scots/English band - Lau.

Formed in 2005 and named after an Orcadian word meaning 'natural light', the band consists of Kris Drever (guitar, vocals), Martin Green (accordion, piano, electronics) and Aidan O'Rourke (fiddle). To date, the band has released five studio albums, several EPs, and two live albums. Again, they are a band that mixes up traditional music and virtuoso playing with modern arrangements and electronics.

Here's a track called She put on her Headphones.

Now we come to Kan. The band consists of Aidan O’Rourke (fiddle) from Argyll’s Isle of Seil, Brian Finnegan (whistle and flute) from Armagh City in the North Of Ireland, and two Yorkshiremen, Harrogate’s Jim Goodwin, (drums and percusiion) and Ian Stephenson (guitars) from Selby.

Aiden is also in Lau and Brian is in Flook, a much-loved folk troupe.

Here's a Kan song called Mangatakk.

And here's some Flook:

Next up is Devon's Seth Lakeman.

Seth is part of an entire dynasty of folk artists. He and his brothers, Sean and Sam, grew up playing traditional music with their parents - his father Geoff is an established folk artist. As The Lakeman Brothers the siblings released their first album, Three Piece Suite, in 1994.

Later that same year they were invited by two Yorkshire based singers - Kathryn Roberts and Kate Rusby - to join them as a backing group on a tour of Portugal. After the tour the five musicians became a permanent group and called themselves Equation.

After three full albums Seth left Equation to go solo. Meanwhile, his brother Sam Lakeman married folk singer Cara Dillon who joined Equation to replace Kate Rusby, and Kathryn Roberts married Sean Lakeman.

Here's Seth with Kitty Jay: