Next StopCladdagh Records ***

The plethora of competent traditional musicians jostling for space in the ether these days has resulted in either a punters’ paradise or a certain homogenisation of sounds, depending on your perspective. Caladh Nua (meaning “new harbour”) is a highly proficient five-piece band whose second album showcases a dozen tracks packed with adept arrangements. The band’s combination of banjo, fiddle, viola, bodhrán, accordion, vocals and guitar packs a punch that should shine in a live setting, and producer Donal Clancy has skilfully captured much of that energy in studio. But despite the band’s willingness to play with time signatures (morphing the reel Miss Susan Cooper’s in to a hornpipe with panache), the song choices fail to ignite, and on repeated exposure their collective repertoire sounds too much like countless others to really excite. See caladhnua. com

Download tracks:Mheall Sí Lena Glórthaí Mé