CDs of the week

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James Yorkston

Soulsavers

Joshua Radin

Sleeping States

Partisans

Debashish Bhattacharya

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POP
James Yorkston
Folk Songs (Domino)
****
Before pop music was the gleam in a marketing man's beady eye, there was folk music, which in modern times has always been something of a hard sell. James Yorkston (right) is an evangelist for the genre, promoting the primacy of a musical form which is commendably organic and free from additives. Setting aside his own compositions for the moment, he has gone right back to the roots for a collection of songs that were rediscovered in the folk revival of the Sixties — by the likes of Anne Briggs and Shirley and Dolly Collins — but are again in need of a thorough dusting down.

Melodically, the songs are simple affairs, with verse and chorus in rigorous procession, disrupted very occasionally by an outbreak of fiddling. The initial interest lies in the lyrics, which are miniature narratives involving poachers, shipwrecks, hunting, gamekeepers, strong ale, fair ladies, sadness and violent death. Gradually, on repeated listening, the words and music come together to recreate a lost world in a forgotten soundscape. Your heartstrings are well and truly plucked.

Folk Songs gets stronger as it goes on. The absolute highlights are Little Musgrave, a tale of daring love gone wrong in a big way, and Sovay, that chronicles the short but exciting life of a female highwayman. Your average pop song has nothing to compare with this level of distilled gut feeling.
Pete Clark

Soulsavers
Broken (V2)
***
Their profile may be low bordering on anonymous, but British production duo Soulsavers have friends in high places. On this third album, they're further moving away from their electronica roots and towards the mainstream and as with 2007's It's Not How Far You Fall, But the Way You Land, they're joined by a slew of guest vocalists. Mark Lanegan (whose Gutter Brothers project is clearly the sonic template here) is again their chief collaborator and All the Way Down is the most menacing of his nine contributions, but Faith No More's Mike Patten, Spiritualized's Jason Pierce and Butthole Surfers' ever-entertaining Gibby Haynes turn in fine cameos too. It's not quite the major work it purports to be, but certainly has its moments.
John Aizlewood

Joshua Radin
Simple Times
(14th Floor)
***
Every song on Ohio singer-songwriter Joshua Radin's second album has been licensed to a film soundtrack — so if they conjure up images of glossy Hollywood actors staring moodily into the middle distance, that's understandable. Radin is a pal of Zach Braff — whose endorsements have already given career boosts to bands such as the Shins — and his whispery folk-pop tunes have already appeared in the actor's hit TV show Scrubs among many others. The overly twee jangle of Sky and Vegetable Car are the kind of songs you might also hear in the Gap changing rooms — perfectly pleasant but just as forgettable. You Got Growin' Up To Do, a country duet with Patty Griffin, offers a little more substance.
David Smyth

Sleeping States
In The Gardens Of The North
(Bella Union)
***
Sleeping States is the musical project of Markland Starkie, a Bristol-based boffin with a penchant for experimental folk music. His second album references everyone from WG Sebald to Kafka but it's the sound, rather than the subject matter, that's most intriguing here. Breathing Space features the squawk of seagulls over delicately plucked guitar, while A Spiral Not Repeated begins with the distant hum of children's chatter. Starkie's velveteen croon, which echoes the bruised heroism of Jeff Buckley, sews this odd patchwork together. When it works, as on the outstanding Showers in Summer, it's strange, seductive and utterly original.
Rick Pearson

JAZZ
Partisans
By Proxy (Babel)
****
Founded with a late-period electric-Miles ethos, this London quartet have clocked up 11 high-energy years and still sound remarkably fresh. Their spiky jazz-rock has always leant more heavily on the jazz side for inspiration, which helps. Then there's the steadily growing technical ability of its co‑leaders, guitarist Phil Robson and saxophonist Julian Siegel. This has clearly benefited both their improvisation and their writing, a sinuous balance between which adds interest to every track. Years of onstage time has also grooved bassist Thaddeus Kelly and drummer Gene Calderazzo into a formidable rhythm unit. Intelligent, varied and often dazzling music, this is Partisans' most accomplished album yet.
Jack Massarik

WORLD
Debashish Bhattacharya
O Shakuntala! (Riverboat Records)
****
Calcutta-based slide guitarist Bhattacharya is forging a personal path in Indian music, drawing on the country's rich musical traditions and presenting them in a contemporary way. This third solo CD is a poetic meditation on an epic Indian love story. The first track, Megha Re, is full of deep slides and longing, opening a disc which moves through a spectrum of emotions embracing celebration and despair. It has the flavour of Call of the Valley, a groundbreaking instrumental disc in the 1960s (by Hariprasad Chaurasia and Shivkumar Sharma) which had an underlying narrative, but stood up as glorious music in its own right. The same with this — a seductive musical performance executed with real artistry.
Simon Broughton

 

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