Through Low Light And Trees

If you have a penchant for haunting, beautiful, ethereal music, then the Smoke Fairies are made for you. I became aware of the duo last year through 'Living With Ghosts' and 'Frozen Heart', two tracks that have etched themselves indelibly on my memory with their cyclical guitar licks and fragile vocals . It was, therefore, with some anticipation that I awaited their debut CD and I'm pleased to say it does not disappoint. The album is filled with well-crafted songs and gorgeous harmonies that are guaranteed to maintain your interest. I did notice that their bluesy guitar sound has mellowed slightly and is not quite as prominent as on their earlier EP but it's a minor carp. I can't wait to go and see them live but until then I'll be more than content with this truly original and stunning album.

Previous single and EP releases have earmarked Smoke Fairies as a band to keep an eye on, and here at long last is their debut long-player. It's been worth the wait.

The latest in a long line of contemporary artists pushing back the boundaries of traditional folk music, the Fairies conjure up a totally compelling mix of the musick of olde England with the swampy sounds of the Mississippi Delta. God knows how or why it works; but it does, and often spectacularly so.

The time they reportedly spent living and working in New Orleans is clearly evident, as is the influence of working with Jack White, never more so than on the stirring "Strange Moon Rising" which opens with a grungy blues motif that sounds like it's about to morph into a cover of the Raconteurs' "Carolina Drama". These girls can work an insistent riff through a song as effortlessly as if they'd lived their entire lives in the Deep South, "Devil In My Mind" and "Storm Song" being other strong examples.

When the blues inflexions are temporarily left aside, as on (paradoxically) "Morning Blues", the girls' insistently beautiful voices are given room to shine through, arguably the most striking two-part female harmonies since Kate and Anna McGarrigle.

Presumably with an eye on widening the fanbase and 'crossing over' to the mainstream, the major label production has smoothed off just a little of the Fairies' previous edginess. There's nothing here quite as dark, chilling or haunting as "Living With Ghosts" or "Frozen Heart", but no doubt about it this is still one very fine album.

An album for those long winter nights that lie ahead.

It's rare enough to find a band with a great singer and wonderful music; with Smoke Fairies you get two. The perfect harmonies of Katherine and Jessica are the most obvious delight on this album but the songs have a real depth and darkness to them which has me playing this over and over. Although their dark folk has a distinct blues tinge to it, to me this album represents the English countryside in winter, a tone poem for the dark and cold months. There are a wealth of influences at work including This Mortal Coil, Kristin Hersh, Led Zeppelin, Fairport Convention and even Pink Floyd. As one reviewer put it, this could have been made at any time in the last 40 years; as Smoke Fairies themselves put it, the English folk tradition is something to draw on but the challenge is to come up with something original. They have certainly done that; Through Low Light and Trees is a huge achievement that almost forms a pair with Midlake's The Courage of Others. Essential purchase.