Heg And The Wolf Chorus
Album: A Tale Of Sailors
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 4
Website: http://www.hegandthewolfchorus.com

I was very excited by this Bristol four-piece's mini-EP Giant, which arrived for review barely six months ago and heralded a distinctive and exceedingly unusual new talent. Since that release, of course, the band has gained even more followers, not least due to being consistently championed by the BBC's Introducing strand, while they're continuing to faithfully support Moulettes, Bridie Jackson & The Arbour and Arthur Brown on tour.

This followup EP is if anything an even more confident offering than Giant, proudly unveiling for our delectation Heg's latest brainchild, a kind of folk-concept-album in four tableaux, each of which draws inspiration from maritime-themed British folklore. Three Sailors is the stirring tale of a ship's crew battling a serpent - the high drama on the high seas is conveyed by its throbbing double bass ostinati and chilling top-register violin counterpoint (and yet more than an ironic hint of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen in the melody line!). The second tableau is a portrait of the tormented but doughty Annie Of The Atlantic, while Boat And I is a fuller-textured reworking of the memorable lead track of the band's debut single of something over a year ago. The rousing finale Sea Shanty For Bessie Harker tells of the fate of this eponymous factory-girl-turned-sailor, its narrative set to the compelling, pulsing rhythm of a traditional shanty (albeit with a slightly more irregular beat!).

The dramatic, brilliantly recorded sound-world of this EP is as fierce and storm-tossed as the sea itself, dominated by crashing, dashing piano waves lashed by moody, forcefully brooding string quartet textures and insistent, driving percussion. Casting my mind back a few decades, I'm finding myself comparing the aural impact of Heg and her band with that of the early incarnation of Renaissance - here producing a distinctly original (and refreshingly guitar-less) musical experience that works its magic in a very special way.

David Kidman