Talking Elephant 2025
Onward The Sun
Hail to Helios! Albion folk rock heroes hark back to halcyon years of hymnal beauty to bring thunderstorm to serenity.
While lesser mortals who pursue melodic delights of rustic stripe often pass on emotionality, this ensemble never missed a chance to pour their feelings into a vocal line or instrumental passage. Those were allowed to burst into color on 2021’s "After Comes The Dark" which signaled the Cantabrians’ return to the studio after a half-decade absence, yet if sentimental levels of that album’s sequel seem paler than what its predecessor offered on “Follow The River” and other songs, the ten pieces of “Onward The Sun” are dialed up to eleven in terms of magnetism. Never in your face, the band’s blend of original and traditional tunes will border on perfection at the platter’s close, but to get there one has to go through a compelling variety of moods.
This is why there’s delicious dryness in “Venus Tree” that rocks quite hard to demonstrate, in the tight knot of Matt Dear’s guitar and Ellen Care’s violin and voice, the quintet’s dynamic range and conceptual edge. The “strawberry moon” images link the tentatively anthemic, riff-driven opener to the ages-old finale “Wild Wild Berry” with its haunting a cappella harmonies, sharp electric lines and the mention of hunting, and also to the freshly minted “Huntress Moon” in which the collective embrace modern sonics – yet such a nocturnal thread may appear strange for an album nominally dedicated to daylight. The contrast themes are prominent here, so “Onward The Sun!” – note the exclamation mark in the song’s title – and “Hymn For The Turning Year” marry romantic lyricism of verses to rousing, spirit-raising refrains, Ben Holliday’s bass and Ben Love’s drums punctuating and propelling, abetted by the filigree of Greg Ireland’s mandolin, the soft marches to their cathartic denouements, and “Hotspur” adds fervor to the record’s overall belligerence.
Still, it’s the gypsy joy which the pairing of “Princess Royal” and “Dribbles Of Brandy” streams that should prompt the listener’s feet to join in the fun, share in the almost symphonic communion and take the mirth to the deceptively innocent, albeit jubilant, “Maypole” where the male vocals cast enchanting, dulcimer-enhanced spells. And then there’s just as epic, soul-shattering ballad “Ring The Hills” to lead the audience to hell and back to paradise lost – and found. A magnificent work!
*****
