Outside Time comes two years after new folk trio Tarren’s critically acclaimed debut Revel, an album that established their unique sound and quickly gained them a loyal following from acoustic music lovers. Outside Time sees the band develop this sound, weaving personal themes into music that explores the meaning of home and the joys of togetherness, belonging and community. Combining cittern and concertina (Sid Goldsmith), fiddle (Alex Garden), and accordion (Danny Pedler) their distinctive sound successfully marries ancient forms with modern issues and contemporary song and tune writing. Outside Time will be released on 7 September with accompanying live dates including King’s Place, London on 19 September.
One of the personal themes Tarren wished to explore was the space that folk inhabits in today’s world and consider where they stood as a band with a non-binary member. In asking the question “do modern notions of gender variance have a place in folk narratives”, the trio were awarded a bursary from the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) to explore gender variance in English traditional song. During their research they came across three traditional songs from which the album’s new single, Neither Maid Nor Man (released 21 June), is derived. All three – ‘The Handsome Cabin Boy’, ‘Bold William Taylor’ and ‘Pretty Drummer Boy’ – featured an element of cross-dressing or non-conformity of traditional gender roles. ‘Neither Maid Nor Man’ is therefore a compilation of traditional songs but brought bang up to date by the final verse, written by Alex Garden, now relevant for modern audiences.
Core beliefs and the desire to make music are two things that form the backbone of Tarren’s ethos. While touring last year strengthened their friendship and musical connection, it also took each of them back to the places they came from affecting them all in different ways. Pedler’s ‘Sunk’ is one of the original songs that grew out of this experience and combines many of the themes on ‘Outside Time’. ‘Jolly Bold Robber’, a moralistic and cautionary tale warning against excess and greed, and ‘Spencer the Rover’, a gem from the Copper Family repertoire, will be familiar to many, but are here expertly arranged by the trio bringing a modern twist to these traditional stalwarts.
Other tracks on the album include the title track, an exploration of polyrhythm and interlocking cross rhythms which disrupts what we know to be traditional dance forms of bourrées and jigs; ‘Dan-Y-Bont’, named after the river in Wales, which combines minimalist interlocking ostinati with traditional dance tune forms to represent the incessant tumbling of the water; ‘Super 8’, written in a treehouse in the Scottish Highlands and inspired by the Jake Williams film Two Years at Sea and the jig, ‘Atherfield’, brought to the band by Danny who once danced to the tune with Harlequin Morris.
Ambassadors for new folk, Tarren make music that excites and moves people. Their inquiring nature has resulted in an album that is both passionate and thought-provoking. Hopefully, they have brought music to a new place that is outside of time and is accessible for everyone. In their own words, “Outside time is where we grow, where we play, where we remember.”
Artists’ website: www.tarrenmusic.com
‘Neither Maid Nor Man’ – live:
OUTSIDE TIME live dates:
17 September The Lighthouse, POOLE
18 September The Arc, WINCHESTER
19 September King’s Place, LONDON
20 September Sounds St Leonard’s, ST LEONARDS ON SEA
26 September The Globe, NEWCASTLE
27 September Horse & Bamboo, ROSSENDALE
2 October Folk Club, NUNEATON
4 October Clwb-y-Bont, PONTYPRIDD
26 October St George’s, BRISTOL
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