The Simon Thoumire Three
take a rather unique approach to modern Celtic music. The trio consists of
Thoumire
, a virtuoso concertina player, guitarist
Kevin MacKenzie
, and string bass player
Simon Thorpe
, and this unconventional instrumentation leads the group in all kinds of interesting directions, from '30s-vintage hot jazz to sinewy chromatic experimentation. They don't experiment much with texture or production -- apart from the occasional distorted guitar, the band's sound remains spare and unadorned throughout most of the album, the focus staying squarely on
's fleet-fingered concertina playing. The tunes themselves are what give the music its uniqueness; the trio alternates traditional jigs and reels like
"The Snuff Wife"
and
"Bridge of Don"
with such quirky originals as
"John's Got School Tomorrow"
"Gloomy-Go-Round/Merry-Go-Round."
's original compositions start off sounding kind of folky, but he has a jazzman's sensibility and uses the tunes as springboards to something much more melodically twisted. This is a disc that rewards repeated listening. ~ Rick Anderson