Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening — Hollowbone (April 5, 2019) 
≡ Některé nástroje se stávají neoddělitelně spjaty s jedním hráčem. Pro Northumbrianské dudy touto hráčkou je Kathryn Tickell: od roku 1984, kdy vydala ve věku pouhých 16 své první album [On Kielder Side (Saydisc, 1984)] a byla honorována/jmenována jako Official Piper for the Lord Mayor of Newcastle upon Tyne (1984) až dodnes se zaokrouhleným počtem vydaných alb na čísle 40. Byla neúnavnou velvyslankyní pro tradiční hudbu Northumbria. Honorací posbírala celkem 8, naposledy v r. 2017: Honorary Degree, Durham University. Kromě své vlastní edice alb (7) hrála s hudebníky přilehlých tradic (Chieftains „The Bells of Dublin“, Oysterband „Wide Blue Yonder“); s projekty umělecké hudby (Penguin Cafe Orchestra „Union Café“, v původních i rebootovaných konfiguracích); s rodákem a kolegem ze severo~východu — Stingem (6 alb) a s jazzovými hudebníky (Terence Blanchard „25th Hour“ a Andy Sheppard na mistrovské oslavě Gatesheadu a Newcastle’s Millennium Bridge). Nové album Tickell je inspirováno krajinou kolem Hadriánovy zdi a její hraniční historie. Mezi starověkými a současnými songy jsou ladičky z 18. století: „Morpeth“ je verzí „New Way To Morpeth“ ze sbírek rudé hudby z 30. let 19. století. „Hushabye Birdie / Hexham Lasses“ je z období o 50 let později. Dlouhá balada „Colliers“ je verzí „The Collier’s Rant“, ve které horník a jeho kamarád při práci s černým ševem táhnou s ďáblem, srazí mu rohy a nohy v kloubech a pak mu způsobují neustálé potíže nebo úzkosti. “Aboot Bush” s countryově houslovými glissandy a klouzavými rytmy je surrealistická mateřská říkanka. O trochu později je to „Cockle Bridge“, tedy kus viktoriánské minstrelsy, která byl aktualizována s akčními stop~start důraznými akordy. Kdo má raději estetiku Ameriky, bude mít obavy o svůj rozum, ale ničeho se nebojte — zběsile zpívané texty, rychlé dudy a housle + stálý puls bodhranu jsou založeny na dětských hrátkách, ale — jak je vidno — album bylo vydáno na přelomu března/dubna 2019 a tak i zde jsou nepopiratelné ozvěny Brexitu. Poslední song vzdává hold vypravěči Stanley Robinsonovi. Suma sumárum: perfektní název, fascinující album od Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening, spojující hudbu a píseň s historií, geografií a místními lidmi; hudba překračující bariéry, čerpajících ze starověkých i současných hlasů v díle, které je stejně elementární jako sofistikované.
Born: 8 June 1967, Walsall, West Midlands, England
Genres: Traditional, folk, Celtic
Occupation(s): Musician, composer
Instruments: Northumbrian smallpipes, fiddle
Location: Newcastle, UK
Album release: April 5, 2019
Record Label: Resilient
Duration: 52:01
Tracks:
01 O~U~T Spells Out 4:29
02 Morpeth 5:34
03 Hushabye Birdie / Hexham Lasses 4:28
04 Old Stones / Holy Island Jig 6:10
05 Nemesis 4:15
06 Cockle Bridge 4:45
07 Darlington 1:22
08 Colliers 6:46
09 Aboot the Bush 4:24
10 Tune for Mina 3:33
11 Holywell Pool 6:15
Personnell:
≡ Kathryn Tickell — Northumbrian smallpipes, fiddle
≡ Cormac Byrne — percussion
≡ Joe Truswell — drums, programming
≡ Kate Young — fiddle, vocals
≡ Amy Thatcher — accordion, vocals
≡ Kieran Szifris — octave mandolin
About:
✹ Musicians from Northumberland, Scotland, Ireland and England invoke the dark, powerful, shamanic sounds of Ancient Northumbria and broadcast them to the modern world.
✹ Their inspiration comes from the wild, dramatic, weather~bitten countryside along Hadrian’s Wall, which seems so quintessentially Northumbrian…and yet, almost 2000 years ago that same landscape was inhabited by people from around the world, worshipping different gods and following different customs.
✹ Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening embrace that global perspective, bringing some of the oldest Northumbrian tunes and songs throbbing to life, intermingling them with new material and binding it all together with contemporary resonance and attitude.
✹ Fresh sounds merge with ancient influences. Expansive sonic textures are created. Dazzling duets from Kathryn’s pipes and Amy’s accordion contrast with the dark and dirty riffs and rhythms of Kieran’s octave mandolin. Intrepid world~traveller Kate adds her fearless explorations and the inventive use of drums and percussion unites the ensemble.
✹ Band members are also known for their work with: Seth Lakeman, Sting, Soumik Datta, The Shee, Monster Ceilidh Band, Songs of Separation, Carthy, Oates, Farrell & Young, Moulettes, Uiscedwr, Kathryn Tickell Band and many more.
Neil Spencer
Sun 17 Mar 2019 08.00 GMT; Score: ****
Kathryn Tickell and the Darkening: Hollowbone review — a clever shape~shifter of a record.
✹ No one has evoked the landscape and traditions of Northumbria more affectingly than Kathryn Tickell; a champion of the Northumbrian pipes, she is steeped in the songs and mythology of the north~east. Although she has issued more than a dozen albums since her 1984 debut, her dedication finds fresh inspiration and expression on Hollowbone, which mixes pipes and fiddles with mandolin, synth and accordion, and leans towards songs and vocals. It’s a clever shape~shifter of a record, founded on an exceptional five~piece band but unafraid to veer into a cappella voices and ambient moods.
✹ From tradition come instrumentals such as ‘Morpeth’ and ‘Cockle Bridge’ alongside ‘Old Stones’, Tickell’s homage to Lindisfarne, one part reflective and eerie, one part wild jig.
Oldest of all is ‘Nemesis’, a piece handed down from Emperor Hadrian’s favourite musician, with its tribute to the “darkeyed daughter of justice” reshaped for modern times. There’s an old mining song in geordie dialect, Colliers, an antique rhyme, Aboot the Bush, suffused in synth and fractured rhythm and a poem from Tickell’s father, Holywell Pool, delivered like an incantation by female harmonies. A hollowbone is apparently a shamanic instrument for channelling ancient voices; a perfect title. ✹ https://www.theguardian.com/
Website: https://www.kathryntickell.com/
____________________________________________
Born: 8 June 1967, Walsall, West Midlands, England
Genres: Traditional, folk, Celtic
Occupation(s): Musician, composer
Instruments: Northumbrian smallpipes, fiddle
Location: Newcastle, UK
Album release: April 5, 2019
Record Label: Resilient
Duration: 52:01
Tracks:
01 O~U~T Spells Out 4:29
02 Morpeth 5:34
03 Hushabye Birdie / Hexham Lasses 4:28
04 Old Stones / Holy Island Jig 6:10
05 Nemesis 4:15
06 Cockle Bridge 4:45
07 Darlington 1:22
08 Colliers 6:46
09 Aboot the Bush 4:24
10 Tune for Mina 3:33
11 Holywell Pool 6:15
Personnell:
≡ Kathryn Tickell — Northumbrian smallpipes, fiddle
≡ Cormac Byrne — percussion
≡ Joe Truswell — drums, programming
≡ Kate Young — fiddle, vocals
≡ Amy Thatcher — accordion, vocals
≡ Kieran Szifris — octave mandolin
About:
✹ Musicians from Northumberland, Scotland, Ireland and England invoke the dark, powerful, shamanic sounds of Ancient Northumbria and broadcast them to the modern world.
✹ Their inspiration comes from the wild, dramatic, weather~bitten countryside along Hadrian’s Wall, which seems so quintessentially Northumbrian…and yet, almost 2000 years ago that same landscape was inhabited by people from around the world, worshipping different gods and following different customs.
✹ Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening embrace that global perspective, bringing some of the oldest Northumbrian tunes and songs throbbing to life, intermingling them with new material and binding it all together with contemporary resonance and attitude.
✹ Fresh sounds merge with ancient influences. Expansive sonic textures are created. Dazzling duets from Kathryn’s pipes and Amy’s accordion contrast with the dark and dirty riffs and rhythms of Kieran’s octave mandolin. Intrepid world~traveller Kate adds her fearless explorations and the inventive use of drums and percussion unites the ensemble.
✹ Band members are also known for their work with: Seth Lakeman, Sting, Soumik Datta, The Shee, Monster Ceilidh Band, Songs of Separation, Carthy, Oates, Farrell & Young, Moulettes, Uiscedwr, Kathryn Tickell Band and many more.
Neil Spencer
Sun 17 Mar 2019 08.00 GMT; Score: ****
Kathryn Tickell and the Darkening: Hollowbone review — a clever shape~shifter of a record.
✹ No one has evoked the landscape and traditions of Northumbria more affectingly than Kathryn Tickell; a champion of the Northumbrian pipes, she is steeped in the songs and mythology of the north~east. Although she has issued more than a dozen albums since her 1984 debut, her dedication finds fresh inspiration and expression on Hollowbone, which mixes pipes and fiddles with mandolin, synth and accordion, and leans towards songs and vocals. It’s a clever shape~shifter of a record, founded on an exceptional five~piece band but unafraid to veer into a cappella voices and ambient moods.
✹ From tradition come instrumentals such as ‘Morpeth’ and ‘Cockle Bridge’ alongside ‘Old Stones’, Tickell’s homage to Lindisfarne, one part reflective and eerie, one part wild jig.
Oldest of all is ‘Nemesis’, a piece handed down from Emperor Hadrian’s favourite musician, with its tribute to the “darkeyed daughter of justice” reshaped for modern times. There’s an old mining song in geordie dialect, Colliers, an antique rhyme, Aboot the Bush, suffused in synth and fractured rhythm and a poem from Tickell’s father, Holywell Pool, delivered like an incantation by female harmonies. A hollowbone is apparently a shamanic instrument for channelling ancient voices; a perfect title. ✹ https://www.theguardian.com/
Website: https://www.kathryntickell.com/
____________________________________________