PETER KNIGHT & JOHN SPIERS - Both In A Tune
Private Label KSCD002
A second collaboration between the fiddle and melodeon masters finds them in a sweet spot between faithful rendition of the tradition and pure experimentation; it almost creates its own sub-genre, but partly improvised, quasi-experimental approaches to folk tunes are not uncommon these days.
There are 10 tracks, five traditional (two of these are French) and five original. The inclusion of the titles, Drone in D and Improv 3, perhaps makes the project sound more ‘out there’ than it actually is. True enough, tunes frequently start or finish with a rather impressionistic section; this certainly applies to the opening two numbers, Scarborough Fair and the Yellow Haired Laddie (a lovely track, and the longest at eight and half minutes).
In the middle of the album, however, there are more uniformly rhythmic tracks where the approach (bolstered by percussion) feels more familiar: Abbots Bromley Horn Dance and the French numbers. This might not prevent fans of Spiers & Boden complaining that the album doesn’t dance enough, but from John Spiers’ point of view, why be in two duos that sound exactly the same?
Notably, Peter Knight’s fiddle playing draws on the classical and jazz elements in his background. Improv 3 has something of the feel of the classical soloist’s cadenza, and to my ears at least there were echoes of Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending in his lines on the opening tracks.
So, there are various influences and approaches to take in and enjoy here. It’s a very musically intelligent offering that will give much pleasure to the open-minded listener.
www.peterknight.net
www.johnspiers.co.uk
Paul Mansfield
This review appeared in Issue 143 of The Living Tradition magazine