King Kev
CD Review: Palestine Grove By staff reporter - 25/08/09
London-Irishman Kev Boyle was the man behind Bon Cabbage, a cult classic of 1997 vintage, and now he’s back to make another statement with new release ‘Palestine Grove’.
Music, as the man says, is a great form of therapy. Surrounded by the sounds of traditional music from children, he has been a mainstay in the London Irish traditional scene for many years and was a founding member of the legendary Le Cheile.
Boyle began recording ‘Palestine Grove’ at weekends in 2008, in ‘The Tunehouse’, studio of talented multi-instrumentalist Gerry Diver. As a result, Drever can be heard on nearly every track on the album. Martin O’Leary’s bass makes an appearance in a few tracks, and Boyle’s daughter Lucy was roped into contributing harmonies to four songs.
The gravely, well-travelled and atmospheric voice that fans of Boyle will be all to familiar with is one that brings real tangibility and passion to each song, and also lends them a rough, Dylan-esque quality that works on both traditional and non-traditional tracks
Boyle also plays guitar and piano, and his fine group of fellow-musicians add faultless layers to a smoothly produced and eclectic set of songs, ranging from the light and upbeat (‘Sunny Little Avenue’ and ‘So Summertime’) to the slow and rousing. Boyle’s voice, of course, is not the only striking about this album, it’s the lyrics too.
‘Palestine Grove’ is the loving work of a man with a talent, not only for music but songwriting. He writes about the search for our soul, how we should treat our fellow humans. Each song is a little source of joy on this album, but Lines on The Death of Martin Israel’ took me to a special place; beautiful tune, beautiful lyrics.
‘Come All You’, a paean to youth and avoiding its trap-falls, is another quietly gorgeous track urging us to never stop dreaming; ‘Liar’ takes the listener into bluesy territory as we are drawn into the lonely world of an alcoholic, while the title track is a traditional number whose lethargic pace belies the unflinching message of the lyrics: “”We keep our peace and get on with our little lives/Abd close our minds and hide our eyes..”
From toe-tapping fun to heart-wrenching message, this album has all the hues of an album that grows on you the more you hear it, and which the listener will go back to time and time again; full of strong yet well-balanced musicianship and, often, moments of pure poetry.
For more info and to hear some tracks from the new CD, visit www.myspace.com/kevboylemusic. The album is available through Copperplate Consultants, www.copperplateconsultants.com.
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