horseplay
reviews
CD ROUGHSHOD
David Kidman. Netrhythms
Horseplay is a young Co. Durham-based five-piece who play pieces from their own regional tradition, injecting abundant energy and excitement into the music. I encountered them for the first time not on disc but live at this year’s Durham Traditional Music Weekend, and even though they were “one musician short” they managed to bring the house down! Their uncompromisingly upfront “wall of sound” approach can on first acquaintance be mildly overpowering (but in a totally nice way of course!); it both arises from and conditions their instrumentation, the impact of which relies heavily on the drone of bagpipes of the border and English varieties (Paul Martin), boosted by what the band call “grungy” accordion (Simon Keegan-Phipps) and the heavy rhythmic drive of a guitar (Ged Lawson). And as if that weren’t enough, there’s also an edgy fiddle line (Nikki Williamson) and a precisely contoured yet vital wooden flute/whistle part (Trish Winter) to accommodate in the texture - which Horseplay carry off with aplomb and skill without it ever seeming over-egged.
The band's repertoire cleverly mingles and intersperses varied sources, nowhere more persuasively perhaps than on the spanking opening set (which melds one of Paul’s original tunes with a sword dance and Elsie Marley and a march from the Playford collection!) and the intriguing combination of a 18th century Scottish flute tune with a curious yet fascinating piece by Simon. Even the “simple old Northumbrian tunes” from the Minstrelsy get given a refreshing new coat of paint on Roughshod (which is, unbelievably, only the band’s second full-length CD release), especially when (as on track 9) they’re combined with a triptych of Kopanitsas (don't ask! - you gotta hear it!), and Horseplay seem to know intuitively just when to vary the texture too, as on the Boning The Turkeys set (track 8), which gets revenge by showcasing banjo and fiddle amidst all the pipery. "Quite simply", says the band’s press release, “it sounds like nothing else”: and that's not an entirely extravagant claim, as you‘ll hear should you purchase this scintillating CD - which I’d recommend heartily to anyone who wants their jaded tune-buds completely reinvigorating (or anyone who considers themselves allergic to all-instrumental records). It’s an absolute knockout!