Folk That
When families make music together, the results are often sublime. Especially when the music in question is in the roots or folk milieu.
Greg McAteer, 01 Aug 2012
The Louvin Brothers, Delmore Brothers, Stanley Brothers, Dezurik Sisters. Folk music is littered with family bands, brothers and sisters, and multi-generational dynasties like The Carters, who hone and carry on their particular tradition across the years. On this side of the Atlantic you could point to The Unthanks and, of course, The Murphy Brothers who play as the 4 Of Us.
Put two siblings together in a musical partnership and you can arrive at something that is more than simply the sum of its parts. From South Devon, down towards the Cornish border (so we can almost claim them as Celtic), are twins Laura and Charlotte Carrivick, who perform as The Carrivick Sisters. A duo since 2006, they started playing at the age of 17. On leaving school, they turned professional. Their sound hinges around the tight harmonies they’ve made their hallmark as well as their multi-instrumental prowess – flicking through their press shots I counted banjo, fiddle, mandolin, dobro and guitar. Laura was placed second in the 2008 Rocky Grass fiddle contest in the US and Charlotte has the rare distinction of having won both the fiddle and banjo competitions at the Friends Of American Old Time Music and Dance’s festival this year.
The pair have also made waves on a more established national platform, having been shortlisted for the 2010 BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards. Despite, or maybe thanks to, their youth, they’ve recorded four albums together, their 2006 debut My Own Two Feet, the following year’s Better Than Six Cakes, Jupiter’s Corner in 2009 and last year’s From The Fields. Though they built up a considerable reputation as a live act in the UK, US, Canada and on the continent, their show at the Workman’s Club on Thursday August 2 is their first Dublin appearance.
Another fresh face making the trip over the Irish Sea is Chris Woods, whose acoustic style takes the percussive guitar approach to a whole different level, combining string slapping, elements of finger tapping and rapid drumming on the belly. The result is a powerfully original technique.
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Greg McAteer
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