Gifts of Light

Spell Songs is a triumphant collaboration, in which seven great musicians are inspired by the books of Robert Macfarlane and the illustrator Jackie Morris to celebrate the magic and importance of nature. Two studio albums, Spell Songs (2019) and Spell Songs II: Let in the Light (2021), are now followed by this glorious and emotional live album, partly recorded in Hintze Hall at London’s Natural History Museum, during a tour in which Morris appeared alongside the band, illustrating the music with live art work.

The remarkable cast is dominated by Scottish folk celebrities, from Karine Polwart and Julie Fowlis to Kris Drever and harpist Rachel Newton, and they are joined by that fine cellist Beth Porter, keys and percussion exponent Jim Molyneux and that ever-adventurous master of the kora, Seckou Keita, for a poignant and emotional set that matches powerful solo vocals against fine harmonies and ensemble playing. The highlights include Fowlis’ vocals on the gentle ‘Bird of the Blizzard’, Polwart’s pained ‘Heartwood’, Seckou’s joyous and jaunty kora work on ‘Heron’, and the instrumental ‘Otter’ (performed while Morris paints otters). And from Porter’s ‘Charm On, Goldfinch’ (‘heaven help us when all your gold is gone’) to Drever’s tribute to foxes, ‘Red is Your Art’, there are constant reminders of the magic of nature and the threats that it faces.