7 / 10
Facts about this album:
* Lau are Kris Drever, Martin Green and Aidan O'Rourke.
* 'Arc Light' is their second album, following 2007's 'Lightweights And Gentlemen'.
Album review:
Despite the classic folk line-up of fiddle, accordion and guitar, and the fact they’re as tight-knit as your granddad’s Fair Isle sweater, Scottish trio Lau are far from traditional. Pushing aside convention
in favour of semi-improvised reels and jiggery, ‘Arc Light’ is woven with unconventional patterns and intricate arrangements that scurry into psychedelic and jazz territories. ‘The Burrian’ and ‘Stephen’ sound as wild as the Outer Hebrides in December, with melodies that swell and ebb restlessly. The frantic fiddlework can begin to grate, but all is restored when the melancholic ‘Temple Of Fiddes’ lurches in, with all the heart wrench of Angelo Badalamenti’s soundtrack to The Straight Story.
Tessa Harris
More on this artist:
Lau NME Artist Page
Lau MySpace
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