Battlefield
Dance Floor -Show of Hands ( Proper
Records)
Released
September 27th
2019
This review published Folk Monthly October 2019
Virtually
Folk Royalty, some statistics are essential when dealing with a band
of Show of Hands stature.This is their 18th
studio album,and their first in three years. Devotees will recall
that their previous album “The
Long Way Home”
was critically acclaimed. There are thirteen tracks on this one,eight
of them newly written.
Like
many of you (I suspect?), I was looking forward to a new release with
barely contained anticipation. On a first hearing I found it
difficult to ascertain exactly where they were going with this one. I
loved the very bones of “The
Long Way Home.”
For me it had a creative edge to it, with not one but several
standout tracks such as Keep
Haulin and
“ Twas On an April Morning” It
was always a pleasure to play and listen to. I received an early
pre-release advance copy of “Battlefield
Dance Floor,” and
I confess that after a few more plays the same kind of evolution
occurred. The more I played it the more I heard and the more I
understood. That's how clever they are. They don't like to stand
still or rest on laurels and they haven't with this one.
Described
in the promotional blurb as “authentic folk rock” by Jeremy Vine
(not my favourite broadcaster),I refused to let that odd definition
put me off. I long ago ceased to know what that overused label really
means. It is for me, far too broad a category to just chuck stuff
indiscriminately into. Whatever one's understanding of such a dated
phrase I would suggest to Jezza that it is much more than that.
Although I'd agree that they are straying away from sticking
exclusively to the Traditional Folk category,and there are elements
of (West) Country and Western (and Jazz) about this new release.
It
is (as always),impossible to fault the musicianship. Phil Beer and
Steve Knightley have a winning formula already and here they
additionally beef up the sound by drafting Miranda Sykes back into
the line-up and reintroducing Cormac Byrne's percussion skills. Matt
Clifford adds keyboards, Gerry Diver plays several instruments and
the Bridge Hill Shanty Men also pile in. Nigel Hopkins,Johnny Kalsi
and Shahid Khan receive music credits too. Impressive.
Packaged
and promoted as “
possibly their most commercial release to date,” I
certainly wouldn't argue with that. My only worry is that by
broadening their already considerable range to embrace new genres
they run the risk of spreading their gifts just a little too thinly.
It doesn't bother me at all but it might alienate a few diehards.
“ Swift
and Bold” is
in the “Keep
Haulin'”
mould. It starts with echoes of “Over
The Hills and Far Away,”
which is an appropriate lead-in as it is a track with a military
theme. The title is the motto of the 6 Rifles Infantry regiment,based
at Exeter. It is not merely a regimental homage to previous
campaigns however- Basra also gets a mention. Stirring lyrics and
vocals are enhanced by that Shanty Crew and some martial drumming.
“Over
The Hills”
gently returns at the end after a very uplifting three and half
minutes which certainly got me marching around the studio floor. Pick
of the album for me-I'll be playing it on Anker Folk a few times.
The
title track “Battlefield
Dance Floor,” has
a generic military feel to it as well. It fairly romps along as one
might expect with two dance genres entwined. Personally I always saw
a link between Bhangra and bouncy Morris tunes,so the collaboration
with the Dhol Foundation seems a perfectly natural liaison here. I
can already see well-heeled, well oiled party-clad audiences lifting
up their skirts and kicking their heels to this in a Live
performance. And that's just the blokes.
“No
secrets,”
“Make
The Right Noises”
and “Just
Enough to Lose” have
a definite Country feel to them. “Forfarshire”
is
a revisit by Steve Knightley to a song he first recorded on Kirsty
Merryn's debut album, “She
and I.”
Like “Lost”
it serves to fully explore a voice which is sometimes underestimated.
He's a good vocalist.,is Steve.
“Dreckley”
is a West Country inspired gert lush cross-culture piece. A witty,
light hearted love song in Reggae time with some clever wordplay. It
has a chorus which will get audiences bawling along, Grockles and the
locals alike,from St Agnes to Starcross.
“First
We Take Manhattan”
is a jazzy cover of the spine-chilling Laughing Len original. It is
a revisit by the band to the song as it first appeared on a previous
SOH album. It showcases Phil Beer's expressive and passionate fiddle
playing.
“Next Best Western” is
another cover-and another clever piece.
The
production and recording are sumptuous:embracing modern technology
whilst also bringing out the best in traditional sounds. To describe
the overall effect as layered is an understatement. The Triplefold CD
sleeve is an objet'dart too, with detailed lyrics,credits and
background as a leaflet insert which makes a good read. Top marks to
Stylorouge for that. Presentation matters.
It's
a cliché but there's something for everyone here. The band are
upbeat and justifiably defiant about what they have created and
achieved.“
We are at last creating a sound which we've dreamed of making for 25
years,”
Knightley enthuses,whilst the additional promotional material asserts
that with “Battlefield
Dance Floor,” Show
of Hands are “holding
an unshakeable position at the front line of Folk.” And
maybe they are-time will tell. If I was in that second line and
knocking on the door to move up a row,I'd be inspired,encouraged and
not too downhearted about it
