Folk were away with the Faeries

Posted on 21st October 2024

As winter inexorably draws in, as do the nights, it’s all the more important that the likes of the Peatbog Faeries are around to entertain us with their extraordinary mix of pipes, fiddles (not one but two), guitar and saxophone, all played on top of the foundations of a drum and synthesizer beat. Unusually for the Corn Hall, but entirely appropriately, this was an all standing gig, though there was little in the way of standing going on, as this highly acclaimed Isle of Skye band whipped the Diss crowd up into a dancing, clapping, and straightforwardly jolly group of merrymakers.

The evening kicked off with The Jesster from the band’s new album with more than the hint of techno about it. Led by Peter Morrison’s whistle and the dual fiddling skills of Ross Couper and Innes Watson it made for a fine start to an evening packed with infectious rhythms and contrasting styles. While the music was largely instrumental, we did get the occasional vocal from Innes Watson, albeit largely noises rather than words. Blending traditional Scottish tunes with world music, jazz, trance and reggae, this was a bewildering showcase of their musical talents, always dominated by the fiddle and pipes, but punctuated with the virtuosity of Norman Willmore’s saxophone and Tom Salter’s guitar, while Stu Brown’s drums provided the spine around which everything else turned.

Along the way there was everything from the Latin influenced Ortiguera to the heavy rock of The Humours of Ardnamurchin, with even a bit of banter thrown in to the mix with a paean to giving up smoking. The musical treats at the Corn Hall may be plentiful, but they also tend to be sedentary. Nothing wrong with sitting in a comfy seat but after this very special all standing gig, it did feel like we could do with more of the same.