"Arc Light"
If the thought of Morris Dancing, Ceilidhs (the Scottish equivalent of a barn dance), and general diddle-le-de music sounds a little bit uncool for your school, then look away now. If however, you're actually (secretly or otherwise) a bit of a folk geek then pull up a stool, you're among friends.After picking up another armful of silverware at this year's Radio 2 Folk Awards, Lau are currently the darlings of the folk world - if there is such a thing in the folk world - and rightly so.Arc Light sees the band get a little more acquainted with themselves and their sound. A more polished affair than their first outing Lightweights and Gentlemen, the band collaborated far more with producer Calum Malcolm to give a more accomplished, confident sounding album.As with Lightweights and Gentlemen, Arc Light is again predominantly an instrumental album, with the odd vocal track. New single 'Winter Moon' is a cordial and wistful song that sees a more guitar based radio-friendly sound, to ease in Radio 2 listeners gently, one imagines.All three band members' virtuosic talent is brought to the fore throughout the album, and whilst the combination of accordion, fiddle and guitar isn't one many will have come across before, the sounds blend together with amazing results.To the uninitiated ear, Lau are producing traditional Scottish folk music - with the English third of the band, accordion player Martin Green adding a touch of English folk too. However, for those more familiar, Lau are certainly not traditionalists. Their experimental, dissonant sounds (see 'Stephen's', in particular) and a mixture of fast and slow tempos - never normal middle found -Â see them challenge and subvert the genre's conventions.Lau are a band accessible to everyone, even if tying bells round your legs isn't your bag. Arc Light is testament to their constant need to push themselves as musicians, and as innovators of the folk movement.
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