Talisk – Beyond
Self-Released – 26 October 2018
It’s hard to think of a band that has achieved so much and made such an impact on the trad music scene in their first three years, as Glasgow based trio Talisk. With the release of their second album, Beyond, almost upon us (due 26th October), it’s even harder to imagine how they could possibly build on that standing. Until you hear the album, that is, then it all becomes clear.
Beyond opens with a soft guitar and a gently keening introduction for Montreal, before that familiar, busy, exciting build-up of sound takes over. The track celebrates a trip to Canada and an unexpected family reunion; as concertina player Mohsen Amini explained when the track featured as a Song of the Day recently. As Montreal moves on to an irresistible groove and deft application of a familiar flash of fingers, what’s equally familiar is the sense that Talisk see every melody as something to be explored to the full. On Beyond, however, that sense of adventure is even bolder, even more invigorating than before.
This energetic and gifted trio have been thrilling live audiences with their driving, fiery sets since 2015 – first coming to our attention at that year’s Cropredy festival (reviewed here). In the same year they won the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards’ Young Folk Award; their highly praised debut album, Abyss, was shortlisted for Album of the Year at the 2016 MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards; and they won Folk Band Of The Year at the same awards in 2017, along with a nomination for BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards’ Horizon Award.
Mohsen Amini (concertina) and Hayley Keenan (fiddle) formed Talisk with guitarist Craig Irving in 2014. Craig has since moved on to make great music with Mànran, and Borders guitarist Graeme Armstrong joined last year. Talisk have been keen to move on too, and Beyond represents a significant step forward in their own musical journey.
On Beyond, that journey continues south from Montreal, to Ohio and Crooked Water Valley. This brace of tunes opens with sweet and gentle layers of concertina for a gently tumbling, sparkling melody inspired by the band’s first trip to the States with We Banjo 3 (Howley & Scahill’s). After a soothing bridge, awash with sonic textures, the second melody has more of a big sky feel, as Hayley explores her fiddle’s wilder voice.
By this stage it’s clear that Talisk really have taken a significant step forward. Samples and effects skilfully augment the driving rhythms without taking over, which must be partly due, at least, to the presence of Andrea Gobbi as co-producer with Mohsen; and there’s the added bonus of string arrangements from none other than Greg Lawson (GRIT Orchestra). Mohsen’s thoughts on the album would seem to back that up, describing Beyond as having ‘moments of incredible energy and pure beauty and is designed to take you on a journey from start to finish as opposed to eight individual tracks’
That journey continues in a suitably icy opening, with a chilling breeze, for Serbian Dreams; and moves on to the Cabot Trail, built around Hayley’s melody in praise of Cape Breton’s natural wonders. Part dance, part birdsong, but all beautiful, the track opens like a warm summer day, and as the heat builds towards a storm to unleash belligerent strings, a strong sense of the wild. Farewell opens with Graeme’s gentle guitar and a soft drum. As Mohsen’s concertina ushers in the central theme, locomotive percussion is the precursor to his typically dexterous explorations. Amid the peaks and troughs, the theme is taken up by a choir comprising of the greatest gathering of folk musicians seen outside the late bar at Celtic Connections festival club. Talisk had the foresight to record the likes of We Banjo 3, Elephant Sessions, The East Pointers, Mànran, Siobhan Miller, Skerryvore, Tide Lines, and many, many more, as they encountered them on tour, to add voice to Farewell. A fine way to celebrate their extensive touring schedule over the last couple of years.
With gentle atmospheric effects and soft pizzicato fiddle over guitar, Liddesdale is Graeme’s tribute to his grandfather, John Armstrong. A deep, rich guitar melody that’s evocative of the rolling hills of the Borders area from which it takes its name.
Back on the road, life just seems to get tougher, in Rations. Driven along by Graeme’s guitar from the outset, this epic track has intricate layers reeds and strings and seems to enter full-on party mode when it’s only a third of the way through. That’s how it is with Talisk, though – they just keep piling the energy into the music, and it’s energy that sweeps their audience right along with them. The fact that it was inspired by ten days on the road in Germany with Gaelic supergroup Dàimh would perhaps explain a lot. Which brings us to the album’s conclusion, and the title track. Beyond is a set of reels that turn the heat up even further. After a tempting, teasing introduction Hayley lets fly with a feisty fiddle that catches Mohsen’s concertina aflame in no time. He soon dances off to do his own thing, returning to prove the concertina can enjoy a reel just as much as a fiddle; before guitar, fiddle and concertina embark on the final fling that brings the album to an exhilarating, breath-taking conclusion. Hot as a Hope Street curry, and just as spicy.
For the last three years, Talisk have seen the pace of their music matched by the pace of their ascendancy. The energy for which they’re well known is still very much in evidence, but that doesn’t mean there’s any hurry to bring a set to a conclusion; they have a lot more to say for themselves. Having discovered they can be far more than the sum of their parts; the band have found the spaces where textures and atmospheres can weave around the music. This was all hinted at in Abyss, with peaks and troughs of intensity that peppered the album. In Beyond, those have become part of the fabric. It can take years to master the deft use of these techniques, Talisk have found exactly where they fit in their own music and deployed them to full effect. More than tune sets, these are full-on adventures, with themes that rise and fall throughout. The sound is layered and intricate – but in such a way that the music will still shine on the live stage. Whether on the stage or in the studio, Talisk strive to bring ever more craft and excitement to their music; Beyond is the next thrilling step on that journey.
Beyond is released on 26th October and distributed by Proper Records. Pre-Order here
http://www.talisk.co.uk/shop/beyond-pre-order/
Talisk UK Dates
OCTOBER
22ND – Traverse Theatre, EDINBURGH
23RD – National Centre for Early Music, YORK
27TH – Old King’s Head, BELPER
28TH – Sage Gateshead, GATESHEAD
29TH – Kings Place, LONDON
30TH – Widcombe Social Club, BATH
31ST – The Fleece, EVESHAM
NOVEMBER
2ND – GLASGOW Support TBA, THE BLUE ARROW, GLASGOW
3RD – Eden Court, INVERNESS
4TH – The Sound Archive, KIRKWALL, ORKNEY
For full tour dates and ticket links visit: http://www.talisk.co.uk/gigs/