Mynd (Old English ) - Definition: memory, remembrance, memorial, record, act of commemoration, thought, purpose, consciousness. Phillip and Hannah's second studio release is a journey through fragments of memory: of people, places, changes and times. Using unique instrumentation - dobro, fiddle, chatturangui, banjo, viola, harmonica, beatbox, double bass, vibraphone, percussion, and double vocals - the album brings together music deeply rooted in the landscapes and history of England, with diverse musical styles both ancient and modern. Taking us from windswept ancient monuments in Wiltshire, and the reflections they inspire; to memorials for individuals – Caroline Herschel, the pioneering astronomer; and Marie Colvin, the journalist killed in 2012 whilst reporting from Homs in Syria. Wider memorials are also touched upon; the legacy of slavery, in the field-holler style love song, "Thirty Miles"; and the industrial heritage of our own country, in "The Nailmaker's Strike". Here, the old is contrasted with the new in a beatbox reggae version of a protest song from an 1862 Nailmaker's Strike from the Black Country. Approaching the centenary of the First World War, "Whitsun Dance" (by Austin John Marshall) reflects the importance of keeping memories and traditions alive; while evocative traditional pieces Sportsmans' Hornpipe and The Banks of The Nile enact this idea. Memory as a gift from the present to the future also features, in "Miss Willmott's Ghost" and its gardening analogy. "Waterland", laced with haunting harmonica and viola, sees a familiar East Anglian spirit tell the story of the Fens, remembering how they were drained, and at what cost. Ranging out to the Scandinavian story of Anna Charlier, and the story of her love lost on an arctic expedition, (shadowed by the memory of earlier arctic exploration tragedies, such as in the folk song Lord Franklin), the album reaches a foot stomping climax, before finishing with a beautiful version of James Taylor's farewell-and-remember-me-with-this song, "Close Your Eyes".
Released 9 September 2013
