THE LEYLINES – Along The Old Straight Track (own label)

Along The Old Straight TrackTwenty-five or thirty years ago you would have identified Along The Old Straight Track as a new Levellers’ album. There’s the distinctive vocal style, the driving fiddle, the solid drums and bass in the engine room and the occasional agit-prop lyrics. You won’t be surprised to learn that The Leylines were inspired by Levelling The Land or that the album was recorded at Metway Studios with Sean Lakeman and Al Scott in charge of production and mixing. The band are a quintet from Weston-super-Mare: Stephen Mitchell, Matthew Wilkins, Hannah Johns, Peter Fealey and Dave Burbidge and this is their first album following on from and EP, Let It Go, and the single ‘Sat In A Field’.

So here’s the question – when does inspiration become copying? I like this album and there are some brilliant songs. ‘Things I Know’ anticipates the coming revolution, ‘Run For Cover’ reiterates the warning and ‘You’ve Changed’ is puzzling and vaguely menacing – I wish I knew its back-story. ‘Sat In A Field’ extols the joys of summer festivals while ‘Sorry My Friends’ looks at the other side of the coin, lamenting that “the dream just didn’t come true”.

While Levellers seem to be re-treading past glories it’s good that someone is taking up the torch but now The Leylines have to step out of that shadow and stand blinking in the light of their own, not inconsiderable, talent. You’ve pitched your tent, chaps, and that’s great but next time you have to break some new ground – something like the hidden track would be good.

Dai Jeffries

Artists’ website: www.theleylinesmusic.co.uk

‘Sat In A Field’ – official video:


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