2012

ALBUM RELEASED

Kris Drever, ÉC & MH EP

Kris Drever, Éamonn Coyne &
Megan Henderson EP

aka Kris Drever’s Trio EP
aka Kris Drever’s Band EP

1. Parcel Of Rogues
2. Mazurka – Highland – Guns
3. Wild Hurricane & Lament For Glencoe
4. Twenty Quid Remix (feat. J F Dickey)
5. Shady Grove

released Aug 2012 on Reveal Records

Featuring Kris Drever on guitar and vocals, Éamonn Coyne on banjo and tenor guitar, and Megan Henderson on fiddle, harmonium, accordion and harmony vocals.

This is what Spiral Earth had to say about it

Kris Drever has never just dipped a toe into the traditional pool. His policy has always been to go skinny dipping. And, when he comes up for air, it’s time for something special. For this five track EP he teams up with multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Megan Henderson of Breabach and The Sanna, and old sparring partner, the tenor banjo specialist, Éamonn Coyne.

With opinions flying ahead of a referendum on the future of Scottish independence, Kris’s arrangement of ‘Parcel of Rogues’ is timely. Many versions have gone before, and like those, Kris knows these words don’t need much decoration. If this powerfully poetic version is played anywhere near a ballot box, there will only be one outcome.

Those who invested in the riotous picking fest that was ‘Honk Toot Suite’, Kris and Éamonn’s previous recording, will know what to expect from ‘Mazurka/Highland/Guns’ and ’20 quid remix (feat. JF Dickey)’: a series of popular and obscure reels given a rapid fire banjo/guitar makeover. Not to be outdone, Megan might have just stolen the show though, on fiddle.

A return to Sandy Wright’s ‘Wild Hurricane’ elicits a version ever more resonant than on Kris’s recent ‘Mark The Hard Earth’ album. With accordion providing the drone, and Megan as a vocal foil, it’s seamlessly joined by a complimentary coda of ‘Lament For Glencoe’.

To finish we can revel in ‘Shady Grove’. Only having previously committed a version to CD with Session A9, and having had a magnetic hold over Kris throughout his career, another crack at this ancient tale was more than overdue. This trio complete this glorious musical feast by finding an elastic tension in it’s ancient grooves that can stand alongside many a classic.