Gráinne Brady – Newcomer
Independent – 26 March 2021
With a childhood steeped in the music of her native Co. Cavan, her father was a fiddler, combined with an obvious talent for both performing and composing, you might think Gráinne Brady was predestined for a successful musical career. But a masters degree in mathematics hints at a path that maybe wasn’t quite so straight. Thankfully, the music won out and we’ve been able to share in some beautiful pieces she’s composed over her 15-year career. Having taken an early decision to base herself in Glasgow, she’s made full use of the opportunities for collaboration on offer in that vibrant hub of traditional and not so traditional music. Joining with bands, The Routes Quartet and Top Floor Taivers, and having her compositions appear on several albums, has garnered her a circle of topflight collaborators willing and able to assist as she has built a solo career.
Her debut solo album, 2019’s The Road Across the Hills, took as its inspiration the work of Irish author Patrick MacGill. Starting his writing in the years just before World War 1, MacGill’s first two novels were tales of the many Irish men and women who left Ireland for Scotland hoping, but often failing, to find a better life. It’s easy to see the connection Gráinne could feel, having made that trip herself, but in far more favourable circumstances. Given the strongly enthusiastic reception the debut album received, Gráinne has taken the inspiration for her new album, Newcomer, from MacGill’s second novel, The Rat-Pit, focussing on the story of Norah Ryan.
Norah’s story is of a Donegal girl forced over to Scotland as the family’s breadwinner following the death of her father. Seduced and falling pregnant, she ends up in Glasgow, only prostitution enabling her to support her baby. She reaches rock bottom following the baby’s death and she falls victim to a violent attack. Only the care of a friend helps her survive, two women together in the face of an unjust society. The story unfolds through a combination of tunes, songs, spoken word and natural sounds, alongside a narrative supplied by the sleeve notes. All the spoken word passages are taken from MacGill’s poetry and are read by Donegal fiddler, Jack Houston. The tone of his voice and his accent make him a perfect complement to Gráinne’s music which largely keeps to the background allowing the voice to have maximum impact. Only when the voice takes a break does the music swell in both volume and complexity, taking cues from the words to set mood and tempo. Gráinne shows a rare talent, blending these two strands so effectively, along with the occasional use sounds such as the swell lapping on the shingle for the opening track Turn of the Tide.
Gráinne’s task when composing for the album’s three songs was, arguably, less onerous, certainly in the case of By and By, for which she wrote both lyrics and tune. For the other two, Unfulfilled and The Bootless Bairn, she has fitted MacGill poems to her tunes, again succeeding in perfectly creating an appropriate mood. 2015’s Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year, Claire Hastings, Gráinne’s colleague in Top Floor Taivers, makes a guest appearance as the vocalist on Unfulfilled while Gráinne sings the other two.
All the album’s music has been composed and arranged by Gráinne, though she has included short snatches of the traditional jig, Buttermilk Mary, in the final track. In putting together the rich instrumental textures of the album, she has been able to call on an enviable cohort of musicians to form the core of the arrangements. Her quieter, simpler arrangements often build around the piano and this year’s Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year, Michael Biggins, delivers exactly what is required, also contributing to the tracks that require a more robust sound. This fuller sound is largely down to a string section of Seonaid Aitken on violin, Sarah Leonard, viola and Su-a Lee, cello, with Gráinne adding solo fiddle. A less predictable, but very welcome, component comes from Christine McGinley on French horn, while running through all the arrangements is the guitar of Innes White. No drums are used but Steve Forman sparingly adds percussion and was also responsible for the sound effects. Adding some rather special touches are guest contributions from Andrew Waite on piano accordion and the flute of Tina Jordan Rees. The accordion is particularly prominent at the start of In the Lane, the tune that accompanies Norah’s seduction. It gives the tune a roguish, French café aura that hints at the dreams Norah could have entertained before the grim reality of her pregnancy.
Production of the album was shared between Gráinne and that powerhouse of the current Glasgow scene, Mike Vass, who also looked after the engineering and mixing. Gráinne and all her collaborators have produced an album that pulls off that most difficult of tricks. It very effectively tells its story while each of the ten tracks stands proudly on its own as a song, an instrumental piece or, that most difficult of combinations, a blend of spoken word and music. It’s an album to be listened to as a whole, engaging you from the outset, making you want to learn Norah’s full story. But even when that story is firmly lodged in your mind, there’s a pleasure to be gained listening to each strand of its tapestry.
Newcomer is out now. Order via Bandcamp: https://grainnebrady.bandcamp.com/album/newcomer