THIS is becoming something of a habit. Having previously recorded albums in a church and a copper mine, Seth Lakeman has now chosen the august setting of a Jacobean manor house.
It certainly saves on studio bills; not sure if the atmosphere captured is quite as ethereal as he claims, though. But none of this really matters because Lakeman has a sound all his own; wild fiddling, strident electric tenor guitar and an ability to tell stories like few others.
On Ballads Of The Broken Few he is joined by fellow Devonians, Wildwood Kin, whose clotted cream harmonies provide a counterpoint to Lakeman's Dartmoor granite-hardened vocals. Fading Sound being a good example.
Elsewhere the partnership does a fine job on Child Ballad #4, The Willow Tree, by actually adding something to this over-interpreted song, while Anna Lee will stop the audience texting in their tracks when performed live. Utterly spine chilling. In fact everything is pared to the bone, making this a brave new world for Lakeman. It will be interesting to see how fans react.
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