Country-folk rock bands are not exclusive to the United States; they are also alive and well in the U.K. thanks to bands like Quill, who add their own unique elements to the sound.<\/p>\n
Quill has expanded recently into a seven piece group fronted by vocalist Joy Strachan-Brain. Other current members include keyboardist\/acoustic guitarist Dave Bailey, drummers Tim Tandler & Bev Bevan, violinist Kate McWilliam, bassist Matt Davies, and guitarist\/mandolin player Tony Kelsey.\u00a0All members except the drummers contribute to the vocal harmonies.<\/p>\n
Their new album, Brush With The Moon, <\/em>is a bittersweet affair, as bassist\/composer and Joy\u2019s husband Ben Brain passed away, leaving behind several songs that form the foundation of their new release. Added to the mix are five songs taken from two of their English EPs.<\/p>\n Joy Strachan-Brain has one of those voices that is striking in it clarity and timbre. When her vocals are combined with the thoughtful and introspective lyrics, it produces\u00a0music of rare beauty. Violinist Kate McWilliam\u00a0contributes a Celtic element on many of the tracks, which gives the sound a very different flavor.<\/p>\n The previously released \u201cEngland\u201d is an anthem to their home country in which Brain\u2019s vocals soar, backed by subtle harmonies. \u201cPoppy Fields\u201d with lyrics of longing is a good example of McWilliam\u2019s violin weaving in and out of the mix. \u201cSchoolyard\u201d is a song about looking back, made more poignant by circumstances. \u201cNine Mile Camp\u201d\u00a0showcases the purity of Brain\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n It will be interesting to see if new members Bevan (ELO and Black Sabbath) and Kelsey (Robert Plant and Steve Winwood) change the approach as they come\u00a0from very rock backgrounds. In some ways, their current sound\u00a0reminds one of a more reflective Blackmore\u2019s Night\u00a0that has replaced the\u00a0jauntiness with introspection.<\/p>\n Brush With The Moon<\/em> is stunning in its simplicity and ability to convey emotions and thoughts. Quill tends to stay on their side of the ocean, so albums are their main exposure in the United States. If you are looking for something new from a\u00a0group that has been together three decades, then Quill may be just the band for you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":32426,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[9666],"rating":[5617],"class_list":["post-44185","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-quill","rating-rating-b-plus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/44185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/44185\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=44185"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=44185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}