Review - Moriarty - Gee Whiz But This Is A Lonesome Town

Moriarty - Gee Whiz But This Is A Lonesome Town

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8 out of 10

Moriarty are a new folk outfit, with members descending from a variety of places, such as France, America, Vietnam and Switzerland. The music is wonderfully ramshackle and rooted in traditional folk, country and blues, with a dash of cabaret and tongue in cheek.

The band, who play all manner of instruments, such as thumb piano, scotch- tape trumpet, music box and jews harp, are fronted by the beautiful voice of Rosemary Moriarty.

Tracks such as 'Jimmy' and 'Private Lily' are steeped in traditional folk, with lyrical story telling to match, and an odds and ends assortment of instruments. 'Lovelinesse' contains some lovely, light-hearted lyrics about anchovies and pizzas.

'Motel' has some great blues like harmonica and a softly driven guitar, which adds another dimension to this band, who clearly accomplish the hard task of mixing genres very well.

Other standout tracks include 'Cottonflower' and the slightly more mainstream 'Fireday'/'Oskosh Bend' (the tracks are different on iTunes and the back of the CD case)...

Moriarty are steeped in traditional roots music with an impressive array of instruments to go with it. All of this is wrapped up and tied with a bow by the wonderfully distinctive vocals of Rosemary.

Fingers crossed, Moriarty should be set to make a big impact on the folk world with their new release 'Gee Whiz But This Is A Lonesome Town'.

Listen: www.myspace.com/moriartylands

Tracklist:
1. Jimmy
2. Lovelinesse
3. Private Lily
4. Motel
5. Animals Can't Laugh
6. (.)
7. Cottonflower
8. Whiteman's Ballad
9. Tangono*Ura
10. Oshkosh Bend
11. Fireday
12. JayWalker (Song for Beryl)