“One never knows what’s going to arrive from the prolific Scots singer; bleak antique balladry, self-penned songs, austere acoustics or, as here, a full band that combines cello, fiddle and flute with bass, drums and flashes of electric guitar. Roberts’s elaborate writing style – winding melodies, dense imagery, internal rhymes – means it’s folk that rocks rather than “folk rock”, though the group storm through ‘The Angry Laughing God’ and ‘The Downward Road’ (the latter complete with “canine yelp”). For contrast come observational pieces like ‘Scarce of Fishing’ and the reflective ‘Vespers Chime’, delivered in Roberts’s sharp brogue. Though it’s all new, the weirdness of ancient folk is ever present; he’s a true original.” (The Guardian)
"In 2012, two of Scotland’s favourite folk musicians, Màiri Morrison and Alasdair Roberts, released "Urstan", an album of songs in Scots Gaelic. In the intervening years, both Morrison and Roberts have been busy: Roberts is one of the most prolific collaborators in folk music as well as one of the most highly-regarded solo performers, while Morrison balances her singing career with a parallel life as an actress and playwright. Subtitled "Songs And Ballads From Nova Scotia", it came about after the pair travelled to Canada in 2023 at the suggestion of Nova Scotian musician Pete Johnston to work on a collection of songs with transatlantic roots. Many of these ten songs were originally collected by folklorist Helen Creighton and display the direct links between the history, culture and language of Scotland and eastern Canada. There is a split between Gaelic and English language songs; Morrison takes the lead on most of the former, while the latter are shared." (KLOF Mag)
Folky, virtuozer spelende, doch even bezwerende variant op Will Oldham. "De Schot speelt klein gehouden liedjes, beinvloed door Britse folkrock, die z'n stem alle ruimte geven. De archaische taal roept mysterieuze Schotse sferen op." (naar Volkskrant)
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