Search - The Carnival Band :: Hoi Polloi

The Carnival Band have been together for fifteen years, during which they have been dubbed 'Henry VIII's rock 'n roll band' and have taken the spirit of carnival to a variety of audiences from the classical, medieval and folk to cathedrals, universities and village halls, as well as Radios 1,2,3 and Classic FM. Hoi Polloi is an album of the music of the common people, the people of the Cajun South, in La Danse Carrée, the Ukraine, in Dovbush Kozak - a Robin Hood character and definitely one of the Hoi Polloi, and 1950's Cuba, in Marta / San Remo. The concept of turning the world upside down is clear throughout as Latin brass sections are replaced with medieval shawms and Renaissance curtals and a Macedonian tune is given a reggae backing. Elsewhere the band visit the music of Africa, Eastern Europe and America. The result is an album where no two tracks sound the same and the listener is taken on both a geographical and historical journey. Nearly all the tracks on Hoi Polloi have been created for dancing, giving the record a fresh, almost childlike feel, echoed in the boy's image on the cover. Originally a Yuletide project, their on/off relationship has lasted over ten years and has produced five albums.