REITIR – Fe Alt Som Eingong Va (Eighth Nerve Audio 8nerve012)

Fe Alt Som Eingong VaWe get some unusual albums here at Folking Towers and this surely counts as one of those. Reitir are as much a project as a band: a Norwegian quartet infiltrated by Scottish fiddle Sarah-Jane Summers who has previous in this field of endeavour in partnership with Juhani Silvola, also a member of Reitir. Fe Alt Som Eingong Va is collection of songs by Robert Burns translated into the dialect of West-Telemark in the southern part of Norway. You may wonder why. After all, we English don’t do foreign languages although most readers will have albums in Welsh, Irish, Gaelic and probably half a dozen other tongues in their collections. Most of these will have been written in the language in which they are being performed and we’re perfectly happy to listen to songs translated into English – but the other way about?

I’ll begin by saying that Fe Alt Som Eingong Va is a brilliant idea and a beautiful album that will sweep you along with the obvious enjoyment of the performers. The lead vocal parts are taken by Aasmund Nordstoga and Ingebjørg Lognvik Reinholdt plus Sarah-Jane and double bass player Morten Kvam. There are only three instruments; fiddle, guitar and double bass which blend into a whole greater than the sum of its parts. It helps that many of the melodies are familiar and Reitir throw in some Scottish dance tunes for good measure; sources include the Glen Collection of music from the 18th century onwards and the ubiquitous James Scott Skinner.

Familiar titles include ‘A Red, Red Rose’ – you’ll excuse me if I don’t use the Norwegian titles – ‘Ae Fond Kiss’, ‘Rigs O’Barley’ and, of course, ‘Auld Lang Syne’ which, in translation, gives the record its title.

Reitir don’t just stick to the slower, romantic songs. The opener, ‘Anne På Li’ (Tibbie Dunbar) fairly belts along with the guitar/fiddle duo of Silvola and Summers leading the way. In fact, Silvola’s guitar is one of the highlights of the album, often doing quite unexpected things. The up-tempo songs tend to be the less well-known titles, or at least, those less frequently sung like ‘The Blue-Eyed Lassie’ and ‘Mary Morrison’. Fe Alt Som Eingong Va is an absolutely delightful record and I can’t recommend it too strongly.

Dai Jeffries

Artists’ website: www.reitirmusic.com

‘Anne På Li’ – official/live: