Behind the Glass

Followers of British folk may know The Fair Rain as The Old Dance School. The septet led by singer-songwriter Robin Beatty has changed its name for this fourth studio album, a brave move for any band with a hard-won following. The change is more pragmatic than anything – to head off questions about dancers in their live sets. The alluring mix of fiddle-led Celtic tunes (with violinists Helen Lancaster and Charlie Heys ducking and diving wonderfully), gentle guitars from Robin Beatty and muted trumpet from Aaron Diaz remain, though this album unveils an even shinier, more contemporary sound from a band whose music has often been described as cinematic.

There is a sense of time taken about the new album: tracks stretch out unhurriedly, with new space to develop riffs or mull over themes. Beatty's story-songs sit slightly uncertainly next to the instrumentals: here they move away from their very singular Celtic-jazz fusion towards something more mainstream. But the tunes are fine and the use of underpinning instrumental forces is often beautifully rendered, as in the title-track.