Raintown – Acoustic Heart
Glasgow’s contemporary crossover country/ melodic rock band Raintown, based around husband & wife duo Claire McArthur Bain (vocals) and Paul Bain (vocals, guitar), are far from the first to record an acoustic album.
But within such an acoustically focussed environment, and as the album title suggests, lies the true heart of Raintown’s music.
Further, in instrumentation (which includes Uilleann pipes, fiddle, accordion and piano) and the majortity of song arrangements, Acoustic Heart takes its lead, and influence, from the Transatlantic Sessions, here however mixing traditional Celtic/ folk with Americana-pop and Nashville country.
Nor does it hurt that a seriously talented collective of more than a dozen musicians are in support, including long-time bandmate (and album producer) Stevie Lawrence (acoustic guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, percussion), Scott MacPherson (bass, harmony vocals), Fiona Cuthill (fiddle, viola) and John Alexander (drums),
Of the twelve tracks on Acoustic Heart eight are new/ first time recorded songs (a number of which have been in the band’s live sets for several years), along with two country rockin' songs, now fully rearranged, from previous studio albums Hope in Troubled Times (2010) and Writing On The Wall (2015).
'Light The Fuse Up,' from the former, is revisited as a brass-accompanied, finger clicking swing-blues, while the latter’s title track has been transformed into a slice of Nashville hoedown-folk fun (with Fraser Speirs blowing some great harmonica).
The two other Acoustic Heart tracks have only otherwise been released as singles, including opener 'Play It Loud,' which eschews its original Nashville-tinged pop stylings for a folksier, banjo, fiddle and harmonica led arrangement.
The other single, 'Run With The Night,' shakes off its original melodic rock clothing to dress itself up as a brass led, upbeat pop number.
'Day in the Sun,' with a lead vocal from Paul Bain, is a redemption folk blues highlight of the album ("ain’t no preacher gonna save my soul, no words of comfort here… looking for a reason… trying to find my day in the sun").
Paul Bain also takes lead on the piano and brass backed swing of 'Red Dress,' with Claire McArthur Bain taking lead later in the song as the girl in that very attire.
The lyrically self-affirming 'My Drum, My Beat' carries contemporary country-folk charm (bolstered by a marching snare to reinforce the song’s title/ meaning), while 'In Your Heart' is a delightfully simple but beautifully effective ballad where Claire McArthur Bain shines.
Paul Bain returns to the microphone, backed in dovetailing harmony by his good lady, for the jaunty 'These Tears Tonight' (think Buckingham Nicks as a country-folk duo), while the most surprising track on the album is the cover of Blue's 'One Love.'
Thankfully, the oh so noughties synthetic & sterile hip-hop pop sound of the original has been discarded for a stripped back, real instrumentation approach that allows the harmony duetting Bains’ to make the song and lyric, their own.
If 'One Love' makes for the most interesting track choice of Acoustic Heart, then forlorn ballad 'My Whole World' is surely the marmite moment of the album.
Sung from the perspective of a bride to be who never gets to wear white, only black at the funeral ("wedding dress for sale, still boxed there in the closet") 'My Whole World' is, depending on the listener’s approach to the song and lyric, either deeply moving in its melancholy or desperately morose.
There is no argument however on just how beautifully delivered the vocal is from Claire McArthur Bain.
Celtic folk ballad 'Thankful For It All,' written by Stuart John Macfarlane, features Uilleann pipes and fiddle in perfect harmony, as are the Bains’ vocal melody exchanges.
A song of gratitude, 'Thankful For it All' is the perfect closing statement to an album that does, indeed, get to the acoustic heart of the matter.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ
But within such an acoustically focussed environment, and as the album title suggests, lies the true heart of Raintown’s music.
Further, in instrumentation (which includes Uilleann pipes, fiddle, accordion and piano) and the majortity of song arrangements, Acoustic Heart takes its lead, and influence, from the Transatlantic Sessions, here however mixing traditional Celtic/ folk with Americana-pop and Nashville country.
Nor does it hurt that a seriously talented collective of more than a dozen musicians are in support, including long-time bandmate (and album producer) Stevie Lawrence (acoustic guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, percussion), Scott MacPherson (bass, harmony vocals), Fiona Cuthill (fiddle, viola) and John Alexander (drums),
Of the twelve tracks on Acoustic Heart eight are new/ first time recorded songs (a number of which have been in the band’s live sets for several years), along with two country rockin' songs, now fully rearranged, from previous studio albums Hope in Troubled Times (2010) and Writing On The Wall (2015).
'Light The Fuse Up,' from the former, is revisited as a brass-accompanied, finger clicking swing-blues, while the latter’s title track has been transformed into a slice of Nashville hoedown-folk fun (with Fraser Speirs blowing some great harmonica).
The two other Acoustic Heart tracks have only otherwise been released as singles, including opener 'Play It Loud,' which eschews its original Nashville-tinged pop stylings for a folksier, banjo, fiddle and harmonica led arrangement.
The other single, 'Run With The Night,' shakes off its original melodic rock clothing to dress itself up as a brass led, upbeat pop number.
'Day in the Sun,' with a lead vocal from Paul Bain, is a redemption folk blues highlight of the album ("ain’t no preacher gonna save my soul, no words of comfort here… looking for a reason… trying to find my day in the sun").
Paul Bain also takes lead on the piano and brass backed swing of 'Red Dress,' with Claire McArthur Bain taking lead later in the song as the girl in that very attire.
The lyrically self-affirming 'My Drum, My Beat' carries contemporary country-folk charm (bolstered by a marching snare to reinforce the song’s title/ meaning), while 'In Your Heart' is a delightfully simple but beautifully effective ballad where Claire McArthur Bain shines.
Paul Bain returns to the microphone, backed in dovetailing harmony by his good lady, for the jaunty 'These Tears Tonight' (think Buckingham Nicks as a country-folk duo), while the most surprising track on the album is the cover of Blue's 'One Love.'
Thankfully, the oh so noughties synthetic & sterile hip-hop pop sound of the original has been discarded for a stripped back, real instrumentation approach that allows the harmony duetting Bains’ to make the song and lyric, their own.
If 'One Love' makes for the most interesting track choice of Acoustic Heart, then forlorn ballad 'My Whole World' is surely the marmite moment of the album.
Sung from the perspective of a bride to be who never gets to wear white, only black at the funeral ("wedding dress for sale, still boxed there in the closet") 'My Whole World' is, depending on the listener’s approach to the song and lyric, either deeply moving in its melancholy or desperately morose.
There is no argument however on just how beautifully delivered the vocal is from Claire McArthur Bain.
Celtic folk ballad 'Thankful For It All,' written by Stuart John Macfarlane, features Uilleann pipes and fiddle in perfect harmony, as are the Bains’ vocal melody exchanges.
A song of gratitude, 'Thankful For it All' is the perfect closing statement to an album that does, indeed, get to the acoustic heart of the matter.
Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ