Grab your hobnail boots, we're headed for a line dance!
Whether its something to do with age, experience or a willingness to embrace the new, undiscovered and different, country music seems to be everywhere these days. A flick onto digital radio station, BBC6 Music will have selections of the latest and hippest of established and unsung heroes, from Bruce Springsteen's early 80s solo recordings to Bon Iver. Stuff that, on the surface, sounds like straight forward and decent singer/songwriter fare, but actually reveals more than just a passing resemblance to country music. The truth is that its always been here • rock n roll has, and possibly always will be, blues music with country and western lyrics • it's just that now people aren't so afraid of hiding this.
Johnny Flynn sits comfortably close from country and folk music. Every song on “A Larum” is a piece of narrative with beginnings, middles and ends. The delicate and understated music weaves around the word, setting a mood for the words but never stealing the show. It's one of those records that is perfectly acceptable to have on in the background when playing Monopoly with friends, but a closer listen will reward in droves.
Good music is all about depth and substance, which is something that “A Larum” has in abundance. There are many moods and feeling put to music on this fourteen track album, which deals with issues of poverty and protest as much as it does love and happiness. This contrast works brilliantly. “Cold Bread” is a menacing and dark rhetoric while “Brown Trout Trousers” is a lazy sounding, friendly singalong, possibly on the back porch of Ma's house. Banjos sound off, high-actioned acoustic guitars have bottle necks pressed against the strings and there is even the odd string and brass section in the tracks. It's a great experience, taking you to a place that you always knew existed and were always familiar with but had forgotten about.
Of course, there are also surprises aplenty on “A Larum”. The opening to “Eyeless In Holloway” would lead you to believe that you were going to listen to a powerful ballad, something that would, at most, bring tears to your eyes and, at least, remind you somewhat of Ryan Adams. Yet, when the song hits its stride there is an emotional shift and you are treated to a happy-go-lucky song of bawdy singalong. And that is what makes this album so great. Messing around with the formula of what could be a heart wrenching song and making it fun would have a lesser songwriter up before the board but, with the talent and awareness of Johnny Flynn, this simply adds flavour to an already rich and substantial dish.
“A Larum” is a great album and one that deserves to be heard by all those that appreciate a well written song, sense of humour and thoughtful delivery. Even the most ardent country-phobes will find something to enjoy here and those open minded or fans of the genre will be grinning like Cheshire cats throughout the whole record. And that is surely one of the highest recommendations that an album can have.