Latest releases reviewed

CHRIS WOOD The Lark Descending Ruf Records ****

Solo recordings don't come more solitary than this one from the renaissance man of Engish folk, Chris Wood. His is a world populated by glorious minor chords, life-affirming songs, and stomach-churning tales of urban decay. It's a stark terrain he navigates, melding his own tales of fatherly affection (Hard) and alienation (Albion) with an uncannily timely reading of the traditional Our Captain Calls All Hands, a four-minute distillation of the idiocy of warfare. "How can you go abroad fighting for strangers?", a question as apt in Downing Street as it is in dimly lit folk clubs. Wood's ferocious musicality is everywhere: from the fiery cello scaffolding John Barleycorn to the somnolent guitar of Bleary Winter. Unapologetically and quintessentially English - and unmissable. www.englishacousticcollective.org.uk

Siobhán Long

VARIOUS ARTISTS Within a Mile of Kilty Cló Iar-Chonnachta ***

Despite its diminutive size, Co Leitrim has produced a disproportional swathe of fine musicians in its time, and this recording of fiddle music from the village of Kiltyclogher, on the Leitrim/Fermanagh border, is a delicious snapshot in time. The backbone of the 14 tune recording comes from the Lennon clan: Ben, Charlie and Maurice, individually and collectively known not just for their interpretive ability, but for their compositional skills. There's a blissful immediacy to this recording. Maurice Lennon's viola rakes through The Lark in the Morning, accompanied by Noel O'Grady on bouzouki, and it's as if his earthy tones are luring the listener ever closer to the instrument. Charlie Lennon's original tunes sidle seamlessly alongside their older brethern, the lifeline between past and present. A divine, ego-free coalition. www.cic.ie

Siobhán Long