Rainbow Chasers
Album: Chimes At Midnight
Label: Talking Elephant
Tracks: 15
Website: http://www.talkingelephant.co.uk

Ashley Hutchings' Rainbow Chasers project came about following the disbanding of The Albion Band in 2004 as a "something completely different" tack into which the Tyger could sink his teeth and supply his guiding hand. Its focus was the bringing together onto the stage with him three newly fledged, young and immensely talented songwriter-musicians: Ruth Angell, Jo Hamilton and Mark Hutchinson. Here, their practising approach to songwriting was, unusually, that of "composing together in one room" rather than individually in the proverbial garret. The outcome was a body of work that was noted for its crafted literacy, with a polished, assured and easy-on-the-ear character, enhanced in performance by equally assured singing and playing and brilliantly sophisticated arrangements. But its sophistication proved its Achilles' Heel in that public appreciation was slow in coming - indeed, only of late, with the launch of this well-filled 15-track compilation of some of Rainbow Chasers' best work, is the measure of their talent within the context of the roots acoustic scene as a whole finally starting to be recognised.

Rainbow Chasers' first two albums, Some Colours Fly and Fortune Never Sleeps, were acclaimed, if perhaps a touch cautiously and slightly in awe, on their appearance (in 2005 and 2007 respectively). A consolidatory yet also complementary live set A Brilliant Light (with companion At Huntingdon Hall DVD), recorded at the end of 2004, came out in between the studio albums, and contained a significant amount of new material. A formal "best of" anthology followed in 2010, ten out of its 16 tracks being drawn from the two studio albums but with Joe Topping having replaced Mark for the remainder (four brand new tracks and two live recordings, all recorded in 2010). Even then, wider approbation still wasn't quite on the cards, largely I think because their music was arguably a touch too sophisticated, and not always easy to get a handle on; this wasn't just due to the unforced (but to some frustratingly elusive) straddling of musical genres (folk, classical, rootsy acoustic pop), but I suspect also due to its air of "almost too much quality to take in" which can sometimes have the effect of taking away any immediacy of impact that the individual songs might otherwise have. Certainly, I've experienced this reaction myself, even though I'd welcomed the totally genuine, constantly sensitive and thought-provokingly lyrical nature of the expression - and the brilliant delivery to match.

So, the purpose of this latest release would appear to be to emphasise that Rainbow Chasers is/are still very much a going concern, and to respectfully suggest that the project be given another chance (the musical world having moved on a touch in the past three years, thus it might be anticipated that Rainbow Chasers' special brand of music might now find a new and more receptive audience). This new selection, compiled by Ashley Hutchings himself, is intended to represent the very best of the Rainbow Chasers; and it certainly makes for an excellent, if mildly ambitious, listen. Ambitious because it kicks off with a pair of previously unreleased tracks, of which the first, Weather, is, at eight minutes, one of the group's most complex creations and not an easy nut to crack. I can honestly say that the choice of previously-available tracks gives no cause for argument, with a good balance of tempo, pace and contrast - and thus continuing interest - maintained by careful thought having been given to the sequencing. There are five tracks from Fortune Never Sleeps and four from Some Colours Fly (just three out of these nine had also been chosen for the 2010 Best Of collection), while the remainder of the previously unreleased cuts come from (I presume recent) High Barn studio sessions. If this fine collection doesn't convince you of the ongoing viability of the Rainbow Chasers, then nothing will, for it's everything it should be. As for picking out highlights, well that just wouldn't be fair.

David Kidman