Landless are Lily Power, Méabh Meir, Ruth Clinton and Sinéad Lynch and they mix new and centuries old ballads on their new album Lúireach. These are tracks that the group have gathered over several years and deliberately avoid folk tropes when representing women as Ruth Clinton explains, “Frequently in traditional songs women are described as a passive love interest, in terms of their relationship to a male character. It is refreshing to find songs that challenge this power dynamic, but we are not totally hard-line about it, and sing plenty of old-fashioned love songs.”
The group have been singing together since 2013 and it’s obvious that, in over a decade, they have developed a vocal telepathy which shines through as they spin gold by melding four voices into one. That celebration of the human voice is a glorious thing, the idea that such an exultant sound can be produced without instrumentation is intoxicating in all its forms, for example early music group The Hilliard Ensemble, a cappella/close harmony groups such as The Chordettes and the vocal dexterity and mimicry of beatboxers such as Grace Savage.
Sometimes one member of Landless will take flight alone and this only serves to highlight the resplendent joy when the other voices return so they can all murmurate together. The only instrumental accompaniment comes from the well-chosen use of soft drones from a pump organ, such as on ‘The Wounded Hussar’, or the shruti box on final track ‘Ej Husári’.
Landless hold time in suspension while they explore themes of “melancholy, love, death and mystery”. They imbue their music with the sparkle of sunlight on water, the stillness of an early morning, misty contemplation of ancient times and modern malaises; all with a strong sense of being in the moment that transports the listener to an infinite universe of harmony and contemplation. Lúireach is a balm for the mind and soul.
Lúireach is released through the amazing Glitterbeat Label.
Landless socials: Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram | YouTube
Fact me: Ballads derive from the medieval French chanson balladée or ballade, which were originally “dance songs”. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. (Source: Wikipedia)
Review by Paul F Cook
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