Customer Reviews

Red Rice

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Carthy's album is a beautiful reminder of just how rich and mysterious traditional folk music can be. Carthy's understanding of this music is evident on every track. Even in her more "experimental" mode, she stays true to the material. There is a reason people still want to play and listen to music like this, and Carthy never allows her own desire for musical innovation to obscure the timeless virtues of the tunes themselves.

Eliza Carthy IS the future of traditional English music, and the future of it's advance into the next century. Rice takes you through the traditions that she has learnt in her native Yorkshire, while Red advances into new ground, taking in many interesting fusions. This girl has so much talent its just not fair! I PLEAD WITH YOU TO BUY THIS, IT WILL ENRICH YOUR LIFE AND BEING.

I was introduced to Eliza through a magazine review of "Angels and Cigarettes", and have been gobbling up since the first chords of that album. This one, an earlier CD, would have been more appropriate to start with: If you like more modern-poppy disc "Red", then buy her newer stuff. If you like folky-traditional "Rice", then step backwards. Neither is the wrong way to go. Just don't try to get this CD back after lending it- that won't happen. The tunes are infectious and fun on both discs, and people tend to whine if they have to give them back. (Only really problematic due to them being imported)

I bought this album on a whim because the packaging seemed interesting -- and now it is one of my favorite albums. Eliza Carthy is an amazingly talented young artist -- she's an amazing fiddler and accordian player, a great vocalist and a truly gifted interpreter of traditional folk music. The album actually contains true seperate discs. Red which is more "modern" and incorporates electronic sounds, and Rice which sticks to more traditional compositions. While both contain mostly traditional material Carthy also writes a few songs -- which blend effortlessly with the traditional stuff. Carthy's voice is perfect on every track. And the instrumental tracks are equally beautiful -- I love the way she blends traditional fiddling and programmed in electronic sounds on songs like Russia (Call Waiting). It sounds very organic -- not at all new agey and she also proves that she is a talented musician on solo fiddle tracks like Haddock and Chips (which she composed). I can't rave any more about this album -- I would recommend it to anyone who likes traditional and folk music especially Celtic folk and English roots music.

I sometimes worry that liking Eliza Carthy shows up my lack of ideological purity, but then I tell myself to get over it and not be such a snob. Even when she's more on her folk side than her pop side, she's pretty poppy, but if you're not the kind of person who objects to a lack of ideological purity, she's well worth a listen.

This double CD contains a good mix of her influences, with Red containing more of the pop/electric stuff and Rice the more straight traditional stuff. Since they come together it's not worth saying which is better, and I find it changes with my mood in any case. The emotional tone ranges from upbeat to somewhat mournful, with a good bit of wistfulness in the middle. It's good study music.

Carthy's Red Rice is a traditional album, mixed with pop, techno and electronica. Proves herself as a british folk queen and applause is greatly needed. Draws the adolescents in with her punky hair colors and glamorous piercings, and satisfies the adult's sound of traditional celtic music. Mix with Ashley MacIsaac-like fiddles and Joan Baez-like vocals and we have a divine treat for all music lovers! Two thumbs up. Way up.

This album transcends any current work by young traditional artists. It has placed Eliza on the top of the heap. Eliza is not her father or her mother she is her own person. And she is on the brink or stardom. This is made even more evident by the fact that Joan Baez has invited her to tour with her on her current US tour. Joan only attaches herself to GREATNESS, ie Bob Dylan. This cd is a must for anyone who wants to hear cutting edge traditional music

Don't be fooled by the punkette look - behind the bright red (later blue/white) hair and piercings, Eliza Carthy has a deep love for the English musical tradition, a refreshing skill a blending it with the modern, and a remarkable touch on the violin. Add a rich singing voice with a subtly alluring accent and you've got a rare treat. With her previous albums and her latest (Anglicana) Eliza shows a beautiful talent to add to the English folk tradition; with the in-between Angels & Cigarettes she stepped into the realm of modern pop with some folky touches. 2000's Red Rice made an interesting compromise.

Red is the half that brings some of this material into the present day, whether she's rendering traditional tunes ("Greenwood Laddie," "The Stacking Reel") with an electric guitar/bass/drum treatment, covering Norma Waterson and Ben Harper, spicing up some folky originals in a rock context, or backing her fiddle with electronic buzzes and techno beats (as on the title track and the addicting "Russia"). For those interested not just in folk music but also its various adaptations, this set is indispensable.

And yet it's impossible to say which disc is stronger, since the Rice set is every bit as enjoyable & accomplished in its own way. This collection is taken along the traditional road, the kind of thing Steeleye Span did in the 70s brought to new life. The slow earthy "Blow the Winds" shows off her voice the most with just a minimal guitar backing. "Miller and the Lass," "Tuesday Morning" and the "Zycanthos Jig" medley are mid-tempo pub dances, bouncy and infectious even though they're mid-tempo. If there's one thing I'd change it's probably the fact that nothing really speeds up until the last track, but that's only a minor quibble. From reel to jig to ballad, every song is a gem.

Angels & Cigs also makes a good pick for the merely-curious pop fan, but I say Red Rice is Eliza's finest and widest-ranging album to date; if you want a real taste of the traditional in a couple different forms, start right here.

This is Eliza's third solo album, and her work just gets better and better. She is diffenetely the most talented folk artist to emerge from Britain and the U.S.

c'mon face it, eliza (and to a larger extent, Norma) have very little talent, and are tagging along with Carthy. Buy some proper folk music, in particular Martin's solo albums.

ps. the review from Scarborough was written by Eliza, wasn't it?