Arboreal folk masks pagan unease on Gloucestershire trio’s second album.
Horror, spoken or unspoken, is one of the foundation stones of folk music, something Toadstone are fully aware of. The Gloucestershire trio’s second album may have a veneer of pastoral gentility, but dark waters churn just below its surface.
Cernunnos – named for an ancient Celtic deity – sits somewhere between Jethro Tull’s Songs From The Wood and Ben Wheatley’s A Field In England in its skewed approach to tradition. The innate eeriness of Feast, Knot Garden and Leonora, the latter based on an old Germanic ballad about a sinister knight, is emphasised by their pared-down delivery. Lucy Newbould’s hauntingly clear vocals are supported by music that’s sparse and occasionally strange, courtesy of guitarist Mike Libbiter and especially flautist Bhavandeep…
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Prog (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue 138