Genre-bender from Hatful of Rain
From the first banjo pluck on Hatful of Rain’s new album “Songs of the Lost and Found” you are dragged into the Appalachians. Then Chloe Overton starts singing and it all feels a bit Nashville. But there is something not-quite-American about it. Is there a tad — just a tad — of British folk in there?
This third album by Hatful of Rain delivers what it promises — a combination of “English, Celtic and American inspirations”. So “Start Again”, the first track, is Appalachian/Nashville. The third track, “Devil’s Dyke”, is laid-back British folk about World War I. Further down the list you get “Ponderosa Pine” – a bit of gentle bluegrass.
Before that, though, is “Gathering Wood”, a haunting Celtic(-ish) instrumental that turns a bit Appalachian, which is hardly surprising given the relations between the two styles – different but the same.
In some ways it is all summed up by a track called “Won’t be Druv ” which will have American listeners (and some Brits) scratching their heads. It is American banjo and fiddle all the way – but the title is the unofficial motto of the English county of Sussex.
It means “we won’t be driven”, which is certainly clear from this very satisfying album of complementary genres that go together is very very well.
