Musical innovation is not the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to English folk. At Peter Gabriel's Real World label they think differently. Simon Emmerson, known from Afro Celt Sound System, took the initiative for the project The Imagined Village, in which musicians with a folk background (The Copper Family, Martin & Eliza Carthy, Billy Bragg) collaborated with artists from the
… dance (Transglobal Underground) , reggae (Benjamin Zephaniah), rock (Paul Weller) and electronica (Tunng). 'An ambitious reinvention of the English folk tradition, embracing modern-day culture in all diversity', is how it is formulated in the cough text. The Imagined Village has certainly succeeded in this set-up. The experiment is welcomed - where else can you hear a drum sung in fat Jamaican accent & bass version of Tam Lyn? - but respect for British folk tradition is paramount. And with that heritage, the modern musician can still go in any direction, as these eleven exciting musical crossovers show. (MS)more
