How to Tune a Fish Compass Records ***

Beoga have always favoured a belt-and-braces approach to music making. They've engaged in orchestral manoeuvres and embraced Americana alongside their own roots in Irish traditional music. How to Tune a Fish(a pun on the art of practising scales) continues in the vein of previous work, with nods towards vaudeville ( Come in Out of the Rain), Margaret Barry ( Woman of No Place)and American roots (a cover of Rick Danko's Home Cookin'). Beoga hit their stride on their original compositions, in particular on accordionist Damian McKee's Ballymacaldrick. It's surprisingly meditative in mood, and hints at a welcome reflection entering Beoga's thinking. Wide open vistas still beckon, and at times the band swings precariously between genres, but Niamh Dunne's vocals and song choices ultimately anchor this collection close to home. See beogamusic. com

Download tracks: Hay Days, Our Captain Calls All Hands