Martyn Bennett - Glen Lyon (A Song Cycle)

p. I've been a fan of "Martyn Bennett's (Site is offline at time of writing)":http://www.martynbennett.com since his debut in the band "Mouthmusic (Review of their latest album)":http://www.nettwerkamerica.com/artist.php?artist_id=29 , and I've followed his solo career with a great deal of interest. Martyn is absurdly young and talented, and (it transpires in the liner notes for 'Glen Lyon') from a long and distinguished line of musicians. His great great grandfather, grandmother and mother all feature on the album. It is a slight departure from his normal style; quieter, more traditional. I once saw a memorable description of his own little genre as 'acid croft'. If this is right, then Glen Lyon is more 'croft' than 'acid'. p. The songs might be more traditional, but they are wonderful, deeply-layered and atmospheric affairs. History and a rock-solid sense of place run through each track. 'Suid mar chuir mi 'n geamhradh tharram' (Nightvisiting Song), is a sorrowful reflection by a woman who has spent many nights waiting for her lover, only to find he's been playing around with someone else. The simple vocals (by Martyn's mother Margaret) are accompanied by the sound of a clock ticking, a rocking chair creaking and bird calls in the night. 'Buain a' choirce' (Reaping Song) has a rhythm sample of a real 1920s threshing machine, recorded by his mother in 1976. p. He doesn't abandon the dance music influences entirely, though -- 'Oran nam Mogaisean' (Indian Moccasin Song) has a stomping rhythm and a sample of American Indian song, which really kicks it along, and goes rather well with the Gaelic vocals. There's an interesting story behind it too. A group of Gaels left the Isle of Canna for Newfoundland in the clearances, and lived alongside the Micmac tribe. The song was composed by Murdoch MacArthur in the 1820s after making a total mess of his first attempt at moccasin construction. p. One of the most emotionally affecting songs is 'A Thearlaich òig' (Oh young Charles Stewart). In it, a woman whose whole world has been destroyed by the battle of Culloden (her father and brothers slain, mother raped, her community destroyed) laments and grieves. The track is underlain by real artillery sounds from Bosnia, which brings home the precise power of many of these folk songs: they may have been written two centuries ago or more, but the issues they deal with are depressingly contemporary.