(Walking Horse/MGM)

Another expat from WA making waves O/S

Emily Barker, originally from WA, is these days based in Britain and becoming much better known there than here, appearing at venues as diverse as Glastonbury and the Cambridge Folk Festival, and getting one song, Nostalgia, adopted as the theme for a TV show. That song (about being 12,000 miles away from a loved one in Melbourne) opens this follow-up to Photos Fires Fables, the whole thing being put together over a long weekend with her all-female band (named after a Gillian Welch song). If that suggests everything was rushed, it certainly doesn’t show. They bring an unusual blend of instruments to the mix – violin, cello, accordion, flute, saw and a wooden egg (whatever that is) plus Barker’s acoustic guitar and harmonica and guest contributions of washboard, drums and double bass – and it’s led to some dubbing this chamber folk. For me though, I see a likeness to fellow Sandgropers The Waifs, and that’s despite some more obvious English folk influences in tracks like Bright Phoebus and If It’s All Night. But, however you want to classify it, Barker’s touching voice and her band’s intelligent backing are served well by this effort.

BILL HOLDSWORTH

Be first to comment on this article

Write Comment
Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Poster's IP addresses are logged.
Name:
Comment:
Code:*