Search - Skyedance :: Live in Spain

Rousing live performances by Skyedance and friends!

Brianna Neal | USA | 01/01/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Skyedance is a talented and innovative sextet of instrumentalists who give a modern twist to traditional Scottish music. Made on tour in Spain with Basque, Galician and Asturian guest artists, and recorded in front of a lively audience in Madrid, "Live in Spain" contains mostly new and expanded versions of previously recorded material. Of the fifteen tracks, five can be heard in original form on Skyedance's debut album, "Way Out To Hope Street" and two on their follow-up release, "Labyrinth". Several more are from fiddler Alasdair Fraser's solo album "Dawn Dance". There are two new sets of Celtic dances, two songs written by the guest vocalists, and two new solo instrumentals by flutist Christ Norman and piper Eric Rigler. That being said, all the repeats are very enjoyable, especially since the group is joined in most of them by one or more Spanish guest artists: Asturian piper Jose Manuel Tejedor; Basque accordianist Kepa Junkera on the trikitixa; Hevia, the groundbreaking Asturian MIDI-bagpiper; Basque accordion-player Joxan Goikoetxea; Oreka TX on the ancient Basque txalaparta (a two-person, xylophone-like instrument); and vocalists Mercedes Peon from Galicia and Mikel Laboa from the Basque country. The enthusiastic audience deserves mention too, adding a special energy to the recording by cheering, whistling and clapping along, and ending the performance by singing their own song back to the performers. Fans of Skyedance will enjoy this album as a lively, fun and soulfully eclectic addition to their collection, and those new to the group's sound should certainly enjoy it as well. For other recordings by Skyedance, try "Way Out To Hope Street" and "Labyrinth". Hevia, the accoustic and electric piper, also has two excellent releases of his own out, with similar musical sensibilities to those of Skyedance. His albums are entitled "Tierra de Nadie" and "The Other Side"."