Moonshee

For their debut album, Moonshee have chosen mostly traditional ballads – favourites such as ‘Fair and Tender Ladies’, ‘Polly Vaughan’ and ‘Water is Wide’. There are two instrumentals: the Beatles’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ and a song or two of their own. Their unique selling point – and this is an album with true commercial appeal – is that this six-piece includes Indian percussion, sitar and cajon (percussion box) as well as a more typical folk line-up of harp, fiddle and guitar. The Indian contribution extends beyond the instrumental in ‘Love & Grace’ and ‘Water is Wide’, with vocals from Japjit Kaur, who was born in North India and studied Hindistani classical music, woven among the English lyrics.

No fewer than 11 guest musicans are credited, including guitarist Benji Kirkpatrick and John Spiers on melodeon (both in Bellowhead), and Juggy Rihal, Sam Randhawa and Nila Raja providing additional Indian percussion, sitar and vocals. One would expect, then, something original to emerge from such a collaboration. But the sound is as conventional as the repertoire. Indian instrumentation accompanies the songs, but the songs do not move very far to the East. They are sweetly sung in a Kate Rusby meets the Corrs kind of way, with an ear and an eye on national radio play and TV chat shows, rather than on the songs themselves. Something more interesting is going on in ‘The Emigrant’, with its dreams of freedom for those who dare. But this is not developed. There is no urgency, no risk about this album; it does not dare to be daring and, disappointingly, is simply not very exciting.