Owl Service, The
His Pride No Spear
'His Pride. No Spear. No Friend.' is the third full-length album from Essex-based alternative folk collective The Owl Service, their first new material since 2010's acclaimed 'The View From a Hill'. This record sees the band treading new ground, eschewing both their psych-folk beginnings and the more polished, classic folk-rock sound of 'The View From a Hill' to serve up an album of songs mostly from the British folk tradition but without folk instrumentation, and little in the way of folk sensibilities. Instead the band strived to create a different kind of modern folk album, placing these familiar songs in unfamiliar settings. Whereas previous albums unashamedly wore their influences on their sleeves (literally), giving significant nods to the likes of Fairport Convention, Martin Carthy, Anne Briggs, Shirley Collins and Trees, this time the starting point was the '90s US post-hardcore and early post-rock bands whose sounds the Owls were immersed in whilst arranging these songs. The end product is a unique reimagining of 21st century folk music, a world away from any of their contemporaries. Expect the usual level of support the band have enjoyed with previous releases from Mark Radcliffe (Radio 2), Fiona Talkington (Radio 3), Stuart Maconie (BBC6 Music) for radio; specialist printed press from fRoots, R2 Magazine; and a wealth of online press from the likes of Folk Radio UK, Bright Young Folk, For Folks Sake etc.