Cat No:
FRR2301CD
Release Date: 24 February 2023
Label: Folkroom Records
Packaging Type: Digipak
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 5070000159065
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Description
It's probably unusual to open a record with a passionate modern madrigal to the physics of gases. You wouldn't expect to find the work of NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory on the long-awaited new record by a BBC Folk Award winning guitarist. It's unexpected, too, that a broadside ballad from the 1700s would work brilliantly as a trip hop track. But then, Ben Walker has always been quietly full of surprises.
One of UK folk's true time travellers, he is an acute observer of patterns - in language, in history, in people. Reviewers of Ben's first solo album Echo called it exceptional (Folk Radio UK); a profound statement connecting past and present (fRoots), ambitious, distinctive and brilliantly achieved (Songlines) and, quite simply, stunning (The Guardian).
Ben's second album Banish Air From Air hits no lower, exploring the relationship between mankind and nature. He draws together folk tales, ghost stories, philosophy, alchemy and science with a characteristically eclectic musical palette. Exquisite instrumentals, traditional material and reimagined poems sit alongside Ben's first forays into songwriting, featuring an enviable list of guest vocalists. These include Mercury Music Prize nominee Sam Lee and fellow BBC Folk Award winner Nancy Kerr alongside some newer voices - indie-folk songwriter Sophie Jamieson's dreamlike vocals, Emily Mae Winters' dramatic storytelling, Louis Brennan's bleak growl, Lucy Alexander's post-punk swagger, as well as Ben's most recent tourmate, acclaimed singer-songwriter Kirsty Merryn.
Ben's famed fingerstyle guitar weaves a path through found sounds and subtle electronica. Orchestral strings swoop from the sky to the forest, from the ocean to the edge of space. You won't know what's coming next, but it doesn't matter; just close your eyes and let this record take you away with it.
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Tracklisting
- 1. Banish Air from Air (feat. Sophie Jamieson)
- 2. Starlings
- 3. The Way Through The Woods (feat. Nancy Kerr)
- 4. The Yews of Borrowdale (feat. Emily Mae Winters)
- 5. Eggshells (feat. Louis Brennan)
- 6. Neptune
- 7. King Storm (feat. Lucy Alexander)
- 8. Showers on Ascension Day
- 9. There Will Come Soft Rains (feat. Sam Lee)
- 10. Northern Lights Kepler and Sol (feat. Kirsty Merryn)
Disc 1
Side 1
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Banish Air From Air
Ben Walker
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Echo
Ben Walker
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Echo
Ben Walker
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