Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey

Subject: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 04:35 PM

The UK folk establishment has been enthusing about this band, the members of which are graduates from the Newcastle folk degree course, and about this CD.

I asked my daughter to get it for me for my birthday and it arrived (belatedly, not her fault, the sender's) today, so I have been listening to it repeatedly as I thump the computer.

Yes, it's English traditional, and yes, it's harmony, and yes, it's fairly nice, but it seems rather twee. I could almost get the impression that the band members have listened to an awful lot of Kate Rusby, Kathryn Tickell, and Bill Jones.

The passion, fire, and even savagery of the Young Tradition (or some MacColl/Seeger stuff, mostly contemporary) is not even hinted at.

Promising, but must put in more effort....


I expect others will differ. Please do so!

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:03 AM

Hmm, huge lack of interest....

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: treewind
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:20 AM

I think you're confusing "have listened to a lot of..." with "have voices of a similar age to...", and especially in Jim's case even that isn't true. In fact they have all been listening a lot to much older singers than that, and I think that shows.

I don't think an attempt to clone YT or MacColl would be very imaginative. Their harmonies and arrangement aren't like anyone else's. Methinks you've set yourself up for disappointment by having too many (and too specific) expectations.

Anahata

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:22 AM

Nah, I've been thinking... I saw them live a couple of times, so my reference point is different. Yes, more fire and anger would be welcome, though I wouldn't call their performances twee. They could do with more light and shade. I can say the same for half the performers I have seen though, and it probably says more about me and my preferences. In any case, I find them enjoyable, and the fact that young singers like them are around to pick up the baton heartening. And I am sure they will improve with maturity, whereas I am not certain that Kate R has, she seems to have opted for trying new paths instead.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: treewind
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:28 AM

They're very funny live too. You only get the occasional hint of that in the CD.

Anahata

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: John Routledge
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:40 AM

Opportunity to hear them live at The Grove Folk Club on Fri 13 October and judge for yourselves.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 08:08 AM

Where is teh Grove FOlk club?

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 08:21 AM

Leeds, Richard. Or you can come to Herga in May (if memory serves) and catch Jim Causley solo.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 01:23 PM

Leeds too far!

Mind you once upon a time I had a girlfriend whose parents lived in Thorner.....I wonder......

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: The Borchester Echo
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 03:59 PM

Richard, they're doing Court Sessions on 6 October.
Then The Cellar Upstairs in two shifts, Jim on his own on Saturday 7 October and Lauren and Emily as a duo on the 14th.
They are an excellent live act who take great care in sourcing their material and I agree with Anahata that their harmonies and arrangements are unlike anyone else's. I saw them recently at a Prince's Trust gig where they did a carefully chosen set of their lighter and more humorous songs and had the entirely non-folky audience nearly roaring the roof off and stamping and shouting, usually before the song finished. Don't mistake them for 'lightweights' though, as anyone familiar with their Songlinks performances will testify.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST,Shimrod
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 03:38 PM

A friend played this CD to me the other day. Apart from the fact that I have a strong prejudice against singing English Trad. songs in harmony, I found it bloodless and uninspiring. No passion, no edge and a hint of rather tiresome young 'prodigies' revelling in their own cleverness. I get the impression that a lot of these younger singers are more interested in producing a novel (and commercial?) sound rather than putting across the songs.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST,Brian Peters
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 05:33 AM

"The UK folk establishment has been enthusing about this band..."

Well, as the author of the recent fRoots cover feature on The Devil's Interval (which I hope was noted by those who believe that the magazine never covers English traditional song), I suppose that makes me part of the UK Folk Establishment; I am duly flattered. Speaking as someone who would always vote for Ray Fisher in any poll for "Best Female Folksinger", I'm not about to be impressed easily by "tiresome young 'prodigies' revelling in their own cleverness", but The Devil's Interval are precisely the kind of act I've been hoping to see emerge for many years. Far better versed in the ways of traditional singers than most of their peers (and indeed many of their elders and betters), they are at the same time experimental in their approach - especially to harmony - and full of energy and fun. They listen to old singers (as Anahata rightly points out) but distil elements from their style without trying to sound old themselves. My belief that Peter Bellamy would have approved heartily of what they are doing was based on that combination of respect for tradition and experiment in arrangement, and not on a similarity of sound to the Young Tradition. Yes, Richard, passion and fire can be exciting, but Walter Pardon and Bob Copper demonstrated that it's possible to be passionate about songs without feeling the need to shout.

What certain posts on this thread seem to demonstrate is a reaction against the music media's (hardly new) preference for youth and beauty. Although kicking against this is understandable (one or two of the much-vaunted young stars leave me pretty bemused as well), lumping together Kathryn Tickell and Kate Rusby doesn't get us anywhere. Treat each on their own mertis. If you don't like The Devil's Interval that's your prerogative, but please don't dismiss them as shallow young trendies, because they aren't.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: treewind
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 12:51 PM

BTW, They're coming to the Everyman folk club at Saxmundham, Suffolk on 27 October. Not as far as Leeds for us southeners.

Anahata

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 01:06 PM

I enjoyed the CD, and so did my listeners. I played Long Lankin on the program yesterday.   As Brian Peters pointed out, each artist should be judged on their own merit and not by comparision to others.   I thought it was an inspired performance and a diverse collection of songs.   I hope they come to the U.S. someday.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: *Laura*
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 01:09 PM

I just listened to the CD - how strange...
I think they're better live. Much better live.
Their personalities and enthusiasm for the music don't really come through on this very lovely recording of their very lovely singing.

xLx

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST,Rebecca Mars
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 07:42 AM

How can you call The Devil's Interval twee and compare them to all those insipid girly singers?!

They've got balls and draw they're inspiration from real source singers not scrounging off older revivalists. You only have to read their sleeve notes to see that. And when they're performing live they make a point of explaining who and where each song came from which is something you don't hear Kate Rusby doing! just because they don't bleet through their noses doesn't mean they lack fire or passion, in fact they are one of the most passionate bands i have seen in ages!

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: LesB
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 10:39 AM

I completely agree with everything Brian has said, and if you want to see them in the Northwest then they are at the Bothy Folk Club Southport next year on 22nd April. And will be with Waterson Carthy at the Southport Art Centre on the 15th December this year with the Xmas show.
Cheers
Les

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 11:53 AM

Well, I hope to be convinced by a live performance - at present I can only go by the CD, which is pleasant enough. Suffolk is still too far from North Kent though...

A lot better than the Ramskyte CD I bought at Broadstairs (I had an early Ramskyte tape and liked it pretty well) - but I may start another review thread about that.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: greg stephens
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 12:06 PM

Just remember, the Spinners were hugely more popular than the Watersons, Peter Paul and Mary than Bob Dylan, and the Kingston Trio than Leadbelly. Intensity and passion are not a majority taste.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 01:35 PM

The Spinners did some fire - I keep meaning to learn "Stockholm Tar".

Countess, I have traced the Court Sessions - I will be in Tenterden on the 6th Oct, and the Court Sessions are about an hour and a quarter, or an hour and a half away, even the way I drive, if I go round the A205 and south. It might be quicker if I went cross-country to Croydon (if I can remember the short-cut from Orpington to Shirley) and then north. I once did it from a mate's house in Shirley to just south of Gravesend in (he, the said mate, said) 17 minutes (we were late for a darts match) - but there were fewer cameras then and I was doing 120 on the Orpington Bypass, 130 down Swanscombe Cut, and I still think he lied about the timing. I was not looking at my watch at that speed.   I drive a bit slower these days.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: M.Ted
Date: 28 Sep 06 - 06:19 PM

So are do they play the kind of music that the kids call "Twee"?

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 04:00 AM

WTF?

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 11:55 AM

I purchased my copy a month ago, and have to say that it was a disappointment. Each track is OK - clever harmonies, and well sung, but the overall effect is bland and boring, and on occasion a bit classical choral. I was surprised, as I have been tracking the trio's performance since their first live gig, and despite reservations, had thought on last seeing them live earlier this year that the evening was very enjoyable. Having said that, on analysing the CD in it's entirety I think the problem is that most(if not all) the tracks are paced extremely slowly, and on checking it out, with only about one exception, they are all pitched in the same start key - so what's lacking is any sense of variety, and overall any sense of fire or vitality, all compounded by the lack of verve which you hopefully get with a live performance.

Which is a shame, as I so very dearly WANTED to like the CD. They're great kids, and their enthusiasm and commitment to what they're doing can't be faulted (although their stagecraft can - more experience will probably temper the giggly girly episodes, I hope - too much of that can be intensely irritating!)

I rather feel that the folk press has been doing them no favours - continual references to the "new folk supergroup" lead to exceedingly high expectations on the part of paying punters. I have no doubt that eventually TDI may match up to that description, but IMHO I think they still have a bit of a way to go before they reach that point.

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 12:18 PM

See, I'm not the only grumpy old curmudgeon out here!

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST,bobcat
Date: 29 Sep 06 - 01:05 PM

I'm looking forward to seeing them at the Grove Leeds on the 13th   0ctober..saw lots of them at Sidmouth where they did all sorts from entertaining kids to an accoustic afternoon of girls and full sets at the Bedford. They were great with Waterstone-Carthy in Frost and Fire last Christmas...and are in this show again this year on tour....It's always difficult to capture a live atmosphere on a CD>>>most folk is better in a club with a warm audience .It's terrific the tradition lives on and young trad singers are to be encouraged!!

Subject: RE: Review: Devil's Interval, Blood and Honey
From: GUEST
Date: 04 Oct 06 - 08:16 AM

quite, i think we should be grateful to have such young singers tackling hardcore traditional material with such drive and enthusiasam. Also having listened to their cd myself i can confidently confirm that there are no two songs in the same key!