Treacherous Orchestra
Album: Grind
Label: Reveal
Tracks: 9
Website: http://www.treacherousorchestra.com

Anyone who has seen Treacherous Orchestra perform will know that they are a phenomenal live band. My only such experience to date was when they were promoted at fairly short notice to Main Stage 1 at Shrewsbury Folk Festival after the artist due to appear there had to cancel for personal reasons.

My disappointment at missing out on the expected performance was soon forgotten as the wall of sound (sorry for the cliché but it really was!) that the band created hit the audience. Ninety minutes later many of those there, including myself, emerged from the marquee shaking their heads in near disbelief at what they had just witnessed.

The band's first CD, 'Origins', went straight on to my Christmas present list that year and was played almost constantly on the day itself much to the bewilderment of some of the assembled company who were probably expecting more seasonal fayre. Although the initial euphoria of hearing the band in those early days has abated to some extent the follow up disc still contains many moments that provide the emotional uplift and quasi 'out of body' experiences that only superb music played by virtuosi can evoke.

The beauty of this collection of tunes is that there is plenty of light and shade - indeed, more than that, there is colour and contrast in abundance. This variegation is achieved through the thoughtful instrumental arrangements and the skilful way the sets are structured. The build ups from slow airs to breakneck charges are expertly handled with a tightness that belies the fact that there are eleven people in the band - even in the studio it must take significant effort to achieve such perfection of timing!

It would be invidious to highlight any individual members of the band as they all make huge contributions to the overall impact but let me just say they are all hugely respected Scottish instrumentalists and, as alluded to earlier, their musicianship is evident throughout.

Amidst all this enthusiasm I have got to make an exception for the 'The Sly One' - a tune and arrangement that unfortunately sets my teeth on edge - probably just a specific frequency of sound that gets to me but sadly this is destined for the skip button on my player at least. There are eight other tracks though that I could happily listen to on repeat for a very long time so I am certainly not complaining. I can also see that the band are trying to push boundaries which in my book is a very good thing even if not everything works for every individual.

With stunning sound engineering and dramatic packaging this is an essential purchase.

Joe Grint