New Moon

The second album from Highland septet Hò-rò continues on the path of combining their native traditions with an outward-looking approach to song choices and folk-rock delivery. Almost equally divided between songs and instrumental selections (the aptly named opening track, ‘Intro’, is a short atmospheric scene setter), the album as a whole reflects the rugged West Highland landscape, with accordionist Calum MacPhail’s craggy singing of Robin Laing’s ‘Isle of Eigg’ and murder ballad ‘The Long Black Veil’ locating both firmly on Scotland’s west coast.

Fiddler Hannah Macrae sings sweetly in both Gaelic and English, sharing Karine Polwart’s ‘Follow the Heron’ with MacPhail and signing off with the gentle ‘Oran An Amadain Bhoidhich’ (The Song of the Beautiful Fool) to spare piano accompaniment. The band’s instrumental abilities on a frontline of bagpipes, border pipes, accordion, fiddle and whistle are showcased on both atmospheric melodies and uptempo tune sets. The raking ‘Kaylins’ features MacPhail’s nimble, itchy-fingered accordion-playing propelled by swashbuckling acoustic guitar and ‘Dark Sky, New Moon’ changes tack from gentle reflection to the sort of energetic jig that fills dance floors everywhere.