aaamusic | On 25, Sep 2011

Y’know, I was just thinking the other day. Wouldn’t it be a refreshing change of affairs to have an exciting new folk band? I know, I know, a revolutionary idea if there ever was one, right! I mean, beyond Mumford and Sons, Laura Marling, Noah And The Whale, Johnny Flynn, Stornoway, Fleet Foxes, Old Crow Medicine Show, Bon Iver, Peggy Sue, Sons Of Noel and Adrian, Ben Marwood, Frank Turner and Chuck Ragan, practically no-one has thought to dust off that old acoustic guitar in the corner, tune it up and wail about ale and wenches, have they? Oh. Right. Facetiousness aside it’s becoming very difficult for a folk band to stand out above the Mumford juggernaut and carve an identity of their own, a crucial thing for any new band to do, especially when the vast majority of them are usually introverted types with no discernable charismatic rock n roll front-man to say stupidly awesome things and drum up publicity for themselves. It’s all very well saying “it’s all about the music” but when “the music” bears more than a passing resemblance to the sound of Britain’s biggest band and the band aren’t attention whores then the easy way out is to dismiss them as also-rans before giving them the chance this East Yorkshire five piece so richly deserve. And that would be a crying shame.

 

See, Circus Envy are a subtly different proposition from the vast majority of the groups and artists I listed above. It’s slightly off to call them a “Folk” band when they are so joyfully eclectic, in fact only one song out of the twelve on offer is anywhere near worth comparing to Mumford and Co. and that’s track 8, violin and mandolin led stomper Say Something, which manages to be comprehensively better than anything Mumford and Sons have come up with, it’s simultaneously stirring and complex, subtle and catchier than bubonic plague, and this carry’s on into next track Three Score And Ten, as you can probably tell by the title, this is a lot more traditional than anything else on the album, in fact someone none the wiser would swear blind it was written in the 14^th century, and yet it’s as fresh as anything released this year.

 

Beyond that this has organ led balladry in “In My Way” , lush string led pop in closer “Baby’s Got A Secret”,  flamenco-rock stylings in the excellent Last Cigarette, and in Leigh Hirst, a genuinely affecting vocalist with range and power. In all this is an excellent record, that deserves a lot more recognition that it will most likely get, so do your bit, dear reader, by this record, see the band live, commit, and prove me wrong!

 

Author: Will Howard