For Sam Sweeney, it’s been a long wait to tour ‘Unearth Repeat‘, an album released back in March 2020. While this pattern of delay has become something of a norm, it’s still a surprise to see an album you’ve become so familiar with finally getting toured. The good news is that the wait is finally over, as Sam and his band head out on tour this month (see dates below).
In his review of the album, Glenn Kimpton concluded that Unearth Repeat was “a significant leap forward for Sam Sweeney in terms of his solo work. It is a highly creative work that brings something new to the mix, while also celebrating the simple joys of instrumental folk music. Mesmerising and irresistible stuff.”
I couldn’t agree more; this album has kept me company while driving, in front of the fire on a late evening, and walking the dogs in the early morning light. From the moment you press play on Unearth Repeat, you know you are in for a treat. That short atmospheric opening of layered strings is the perfect introduction before it segues into Jack Rutter’s guitar and then Sam’s fiddle for the opening of Steppy Downs Road, a 3/2 hornpipe that Sam wrote. The piece builds subtly, with Ben Nicholls soon joining on bass followed by Louis Campbell on guitar. It is a tune that sweeps you along; this is music to lose yourself in.
The idea for the first part of that tune came to Sam while he was driving down that said road in Cornwall, and he sang the tune into his phone. In a Hudson Records Listening Club, he revealed that the second part was from a guitar riff he wrote 3 or 4 years before in a totally different time signature. Those Hudson Record Listening Clubs, which took place on Sunday mornings, proved very insightful, offering glimpses into the making of these albums, which you might never have gleaned from listening or reading the liner notes, such was the level of detail being discussed. Sam pointed out the lines in some of the tunes which may otherwise have escaped my attention. When you appreciate those smaller parts, the whole thing takes on a scintillating new level of depth. In the case of Unearth Repeat, surely the best way to experience that rich level of detail is to sit in front of those talented musicians and watch them perform it.
Here they are performing Steepy Downs Road, one of NPR’s Top 100 tracks of 2020. This was from a live session recorded at Cecil Sharp House, London, in July 2020.
You now have the opportunity to go and see this album played in full from this month; this is a touring highlight of the year, so don’t miss it.
Everything about this album works, from the choice in musicians to having two guitars and bass…in our interview with Sam, he reveals:
“I really wanted to play with two guitarists. If you look at the history of music like rock and roll and pop, all of the best bands have two guitarists and bass, and it’s not a thing that the folk world really does. Two guitars is a bit crazy and people have asked ‘why the hell have you done that?!’, but, I wanted to explore that line-up and take that into this music and see what happened. And also, with The Unfinished Violin, I don’t think my most recent influences were apparent, but I hope that what I’ve done with Unearth Repeat sounds like what my head sounds like at the moment. It’s an English record and a lot of the material is traditional English, some that I’ve written and some that are a weird halfway house, but I don’t think it sounds like any other English record that’s come out, at least to me. It doesn’t have that classic English music aesthetic that it’s become known for, so I think I’ve achieved that.”
He most certainly did.
Unearth Repeat Tour Dates
Fri, Nov 19 – National Centre for Early Music, York
Sat, Nov 20 – Hope Chapel, Hebden Bridge
Sun, Nov 21 – Victoria Hall, Settle
Tue, Nov 23 – Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool
Wed, Nov 24 – Huntingdon Hall, Worcester
Thu, Nov 25 – Chipping Norton Theatre, Chipping Norton
Fri, Nov 26 – Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle Upon Tyne
Sat, Nov 27 – Cecil Sharp House, London
Sun, Nov 28 – Colchester Arts Centre, Colchester
Mon, Nov 29 – Ludlow Assembly Rooms, Ludlow
Tue, Nov 30 – St David’s Hall, Cardiff
Wed, Dec 1 – Stoller Hall, Manchester
Thu, Dec 2 – The Venue, Derby
Fri, Dec 3 – Calstock Arts Centre, Calstock, Cornwall
Sat, Dec 4 – Live To Your Living Room LIVE STREAM
Sun, Dec 5 – The Sub Rooms, Stroud
TICKETS: https://www.samsweeneymusic.com/gigs
