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JOHN BLAKE, MAIREAD HURLEY, NATHAN GOURLEY - The Truckley Howl

JOHN BLAKE, MAIREAD HURLEY, NATHAN GOURLEY - The Truckley Howl
Private Label TTH001

The collective name which these three young musicians have adopted stems from a piece of advice given by the master Seamus Ennis: “… there’s an awful lot to be said about this Irish traditional folk music and folklore. Because …first you must learn the talk. And then you must learn the grip. And after that, you must learn the Truckley Howl. And then you have the whole lot, only just to keep on practising it.” And it sure seems that Mairéad Hurley (concertina), John Blake (flute/guitar/piano) and Nathan Gourley (fiddle) have taken this dictum to heart, judging from the verve and ready energy with which they play a modest and well-chosen selection of tunes on their debut CD release.

The mix of regional and stylistic influences provides a rewarding cocktail – Mairéad from Sligo, Nathan from Minnesota and Boston, and John who was born in London but has been in Ireland since 1998 (having spent three years with the band Téada). This CD presents a scintillating display of joyful virtuosity and presents a togetherness that belies the relatively short time the three have been playing as a unit. There’s a little multi-tracking to fill out the sound, but it’s neither intrusive nor contrived. Individually, there’s no escaping the musicians’ distinction and high degree of accomplishment, although the most impressive element of their musicianship is arguably the special interplay between (especially) fiddle and concertina, driving and accentuating the melody line with a joyous sense of rhythm (whether on hornpipes like Louis Quinn’s or the splendid polka-jig-reel combination at track 5).

Transitions are easily managed without losing the infectious onward momentum and a spring in the step that displays how much they understand the nature and essence of Irish traditional music. Some tracks (like the fiddle-led reel set at track 6) are so compelling it’s just impossible to resist pressing the repeat button! Even so, at the end of it all, I’m still left pondering the enigma of what exactly is a Truckley Howl…

www.thetruckleyhowl.com

David Kidman


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This album was reviewed in Issue 117 of The Living Tradition magazine.