Upcetera

His first solo work in four years could easily be subtitled ‘Jim Moray with Strings,’ with the multi-tracked cello and violin of Jo Silverston and Anna Jenkins, and Liam Byrne's viol de gamba featuring prominently on ‘The Flying Cloud’ and the trio of opening tracks ‘Fair Margaret and Sweet William’, ‘William of Barbary’ and ‘Another Man's Wedding’, on which the strings mass like cloud over the ill-fated lovers’ tale. ‘Fair Margaret’ is carried by a minimalist/systems music piano figure, while ‘Edward of the Lowlands’ sports Moray's electric guitar along with double bass and drums, propelling the tale into territory Moray has successfully explored recently with the band False Lights. Upcetera began originally as a set of Child Ballads, and eight of the collection feature here, alongside two originals – ‘The Straight Line and the Curve’, about John Dee, and ‘Sounds of the Earth’, drawing inspiration from the audio disc in the cone of the Voyager space probes. Moray's music brings new sounds into the folk tradition, making ancient songs flourish in fresh new airs – whether that's grime, electro, or drum’n’bass – and Upcetera's sometimes minimalist, often unexpected and always singular settings reaffirms him as a contemporary, innovator reimagining the folk tradition for the here and now.