MAIREARAD GREEN
Tim
A musician, formerly in The Poozies, and a visual artist, Mairearad Green has a great voice and is renowned for her accordion playing, as is amply demonstrated on this recording, which also confirms that she is no slouch either on the piano or small pipes.
Alongside Iain Hutchison, who contributes bass, electric guitar, programming and synths, Tim, pronounced “cheem” is the Gaelic word for time, a theme which, unsurprisingly, permeates the album, both in terms of the lyrical content which often is appreciative of a singular place and time, but also through the sonic presentation of the music which sounds as old as it sounds contemporary through the utilisation of low-fi recording techniques and age-old instruments such as the small pipes.
On Tim, Mairearad’s visual artist background is inextricably linked with her music, with the album written as an integral part of her exhibition at the An Talla Solais community arts charity setting in Ullapool , and her dramatic paintings adorning the CD’s sleeve. She states that writing music and painting often transports her to a mindful state, and that with this release her aim is to encourage people to “pause, look and listen, bringing them into that exact moment in time.”
Two songs in particular are clearly observational. The first of which, ‘Old Dornie’, with lyrics written by Jan Kilpatrick, is about sitting in the titular location in her native Coigach simply watching the boats. Close your eyes, and in this gently delivered song, the atmospheric opening, with the sounds of said boats and the subsequent languid piano and tasteful bass, effortlessly transport you there. Next there is ‘Knockan Crag’, where her lyrics reference the view from her window in Ullapool, where the passing of time can literally be seen in the geology of the rocks. Again initially slow in tempo, with bass again high in the mix with piano, things soon begin to fizz, propelled by electric guitar and shimmering electronics, which, nevertheless, are not allowed to overshadow her vocals.
Two very pleasing instrumentals adorn the release. ‘Camuscoillie’ builds slowly, as small pipes, and accordion swirl and meld together symbiotically, with simple, doleful piano notes bringing things to a conclusion. The title track, ‘Tim’, replete with droney accordion, think shruti box, again features small pipes, which are played with the warmth which feaqtures heavily on the whole album.
‘To The Ground’ is a memorable atmospheric outing, drifting in terms of volume and dynamics, whilst in contrast, the reflective ‘I Swallowed the Sky’ offers a gentler sound, the electronic sounds and Mairearad’s vocals here bordering on the celestial. Particularly appealing is the delicate ‘Painted Lady’, celebrating the beauty of butterflies, where, once again, the piano and vocals marry so perfectly together.
With ‘Time and Tide’ we return to Scotland on this piano driven song, with echoey, ambient electronic noodlings, which gradually builds in intensity, again courtesy of Iain’s fine electric guitar, before we are into the final track. Another song which builds and smoulders, ‘Long Night’s Moon’, with lyrics again written by Kilpatrick, evokes firesides, music, dancing and craic, so good was the occasion that “…my memory’s hazy, Of that croft house ceilidh, We were full-moon crazy.”
Take the time to take the plunge, join Mairearad on her Tim journey, you won’t be disappointed.
Tim