For an ever evolving moody slice of seismic change, all played out in the true sense of the folk tradition, hook up (or more likely bend your mind) to the theatrical tones of Bird in the Belly. Their brand new album is a gripping conceptual stab of how the apocalypse will emerge and leave an everlasting imprint. There are two significant strands to how AFTER THE CITY plays out. On the surface you can comfortably detect the blending of four consummate folk practitioners with a deep entwining of the contrasting voice and multi instrumentalism on a vast scale. Dig a little deeper and you can follow the narrative that rolls out in three distinct phases. The key two parts of apocalyptic occurrence and aftermath are spliced by a poignant instrumental interlude that supremely lubricates the listeners ability to decipher the path of an album that does ultimately flit from darkness to some resemblance of alternative light.
This is the band's third album release, a performing quartet comprising of Hickory Signals' members Laura Ward and Adam Ronchetti joined by contrasting sounding vocalist Ben Webb and ultra instrumentalist Tom Pryor. Whether it's vocals blending in gruff and beauty or a soundtrack hopping around a well stocked music room with flute coming to the fore, the band have nailed the tone of their aim long before we trace the story.
The scene is set in album opener 'Tragic Hearts of Towns', adapted from a poem and a precursor to a dip into the darker vault of folklore. To lure you in this prelude is a jaunty effort full of enterprising musicianship with a thumping beat belying the undercurrent. What follows unveils as an analogy of the four horsemen of the apocalypse in the form of four tracks sourced from the archives, broadside ballads, centuries old play adaptions and a self-penned effort. A sombre mood to end the first half, but right at the core of folk noir.
A poem-inspired track titled 'Smokeless Chimneys' turns the corner as our world has now been decimated and the aftermath starts to appear. The dark satanic mills of East Lancashire at a time of famine proves the source for this acapella number. At this point the quartet hand over the license of imagination wholly to the listener in the shape of a short instrumental interlude. Just over two minutes to visualise what 'Landmark' is left.
As we head into a new world, the mood changes with the final three tracks. This trio go back to the origin of the project, a 19th century book by nature writer Richard Jeffries that shed some literary light on how the natural world can reclaim its manmade counterpart in the aftermath of the apocalypse. 'After London' effectively is a more explicit version of the album title, while 'Lay Low Lay' and 'The Ships' ease in a future that depicts a world strong enough to pull through with an element of light intact.
All facets of Bird in the Belly's creative arteries are in full flow as the story of AFTER THE CITY glides its way across a mesmerising folk landscape. Subsequent listens intensify the impact and little nuggets emerge dependent of how you focus your antennae. Vocals, musicianship, arrangements and song selection all inspire to make this an album to bristle with evocative visionary and aural pleasure.