Review: Eleven Magpies, Friendly Records – ‘A health boosting pick me up for all’

One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl… and eleven for health. Had to google that last one.

I’m sure that all listening intently in the cosy environs of Friendly Records would have come away with a skip in their step and their general health and wellbeing enhanced by an evening well spent with the life affirming Eleven Magpies.

There are, in fact, four of them in this string driven thing. Ian Ross leads with guitar and writes the tunes, Elizabeth Westcott on violin joined by Alex Vann on Mandolin and James Gow on cello.

They readily sit in the intriguingly evolving and member swapping pool with other locally based chamber folk combos; Alex as a member of Spiro and Three Cane Whale, James played this venue not so long ago with Jow.

They seem to draw from various musical streams. They finely honed instrumental miniatures are drenched in the traditions of English folk.

The more pastoral bit of Bert Jansch, particularly Avocet, could sit happily with them. At times as the violin and cello lead they can recall a Philip Glass string quartet, there are global hints from all over the place with tastes of down-home Americana from time to time.

They generously treat us to two packed sets tonight, skipping across numbers from their self-titled debut and the very soon to be released Two for Joy.

They take first album closer Gold Medal Flour at a fair lick, the lovely fiddle and guitar interplay driving it along.

Like much of that album written as a reflection on life on the road whilst touring the US, in this case Minneapolis. They clearly love to play together, listening and responding to each others contributions, leaning in and out, lost in the music.

They open the second set with a gentler piece called Breath. Ian shares that it was written on the death of his mother. It is a truly profound piece of music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIdQ-xT91ZQ

Rhythmic heartbeats from the guitar and mandolin are joined by a gossamer light violin drone. The feeling of life trickling away, an open and brave, exposing piece and left all deeply moved.

Sharing music can be a wonderful thing sometimes and this was one of those moments.

This is followed, as on the opening section of the new album, with Two for Joy. It seems to hesitate with a staccato rhythm unsure which way to head after the deep emotion of Breath but as soon as they swell in behind Elizabeth’s violin there is clearly new hope here and a celebration of a redemption found in this beautiful fluid music.

Between tune banter is self-depreciating and egoless. There is a real warmth in the room. They make fun of the knotty time signatures they seem to navigate with effortless grace.

They don’t always make their cues but that just add to the hand crafted, homeliness of it all.

They close the set with Murmuration. There are lots of evocations of the natural world in these tunes. Swooping starlings inspire a bowed and plucked, soaring end to the evening. A lifted tempo as they guide us on our way home.

They’ve got a launch evening for the new album coming up at Orchard Coffee & Co in St George on May 14. Get there if you can. They are a health boosting pick me up for all who cross their path.

Main photo: Jonathan Riley

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• Review: Yo La Tengo, SWX – ‘It’s about the music rather than the band’
• Review: Goat, SWX – ‘When the world ends you better hope that Goat are soundtracking it’

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