Strands

Marking their second album Tannara, comprising Robbie Greig on fiddle, Owen Sinclair on guitar, Joseph Peach on accordion and Becca Skeoch on clarsach(harp), have been steadily making a name for themselves on the Scottish music scene during the past few years.

Strands sees them enlist Lau's Martin Green as co-producer and Mattie Foulds and Josie Duncan on percussion and backing vocals. ‘JC’ is a playful track punctuated by Skeoch's clarsach and led by Greig's fiddle. ‘Spent Lees’ is a sweet little piece of romance, while ‘Costie's’ makes fine use of the band's instruments in a splendid instrumental. Closer ‘Jutland’ – a beautifully tender and evocative tune – sees the band engage archive recordings, which are perfectly complemented by Sinclair's vocals.

There are some very interesting sounds here: the voices of the fiddle, clarsach and accordion are threaded through and balanced by synth. The result is never obtrusive and never simply done for effect. It's clear Tannara are not afraid of experimentation as well as being sensitive to the heart of their tunes. Exciting, dynamic, hypnotic and always fresh, Tannara are very much a notable addition to the Scottish traditional music scene, and most welcome they are too.