Threepenny Bit
Album: Pantomime Cannon
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.threepennybit.com

The sound of young(ish) Hampshire turns out to encompass a fair range of influences, executed with some aplomb and no small measure of self confidence. Which is just as well when that sound is entirely instrumental and as rooted in the folk tradition as that of Threepenny Bit.

Having instigated the University of Southampton Folk Society all the way back in 2010, the original trio expanded to an eight-piece and took to the streets to busk the bejeezus out of a blend of trad-folk, jazz, pop, gypsy, dub and even rock. Having thrown themselves wholeheartedly into the folk club circuit and done the round of festivals, the band have lately been striving to effectively capture the energy and space of their live shows on disc.

This third album, Pantomime Cannon is a hearty stab at a difficult task. With rock producer Jim Harding at the controls, the raw energy and wilder edges have survived what can be a sterilising experience in the studio. There are moments on the album opener, based on a traditional jig called Arthur Muse's, when a Cale-like fiddle drone bends a harmony to genuinely surprising effect; while the accordion runs and fills dance with the guitar lines and add a Gallic flavour to Popcorn - odd really considering the track is of Scottish, American and French-Irish descent. The Unfortunate Cup of Tea demands a better explanation of the title although it's based on an Irish reel and provides ample opportunity for the Bits to demonstrate their musical prowess, as does the closing set, Speed the Plough, in which John Moorehead's Georgian folk tune The Naval Pillar/Speed the Plough is grafted onto an Irish session tune, Fairy Dance, and delivered at vertiginous speed.

Nick Churchill
www.thegranvillechambers.co.uk