(2021) The McDades - The Empress  


Review:
Siblings Shannon, Solon and Jeremiah McDade have been steeped in folk music from childhood, playing in a family band with their parents. As adults they front their own Celtic-based jazz/world/rock-infused Juno-award-winning band, The McDades. Their latest, The Empress, leans towards energetic instrumentals, for instance the fiery ‘The Oak, Ivy and Ash’. But there are also equally energetic vocal-based songs, eg ‘The Golden Willow Tree’, a showcase for seamless vocal harmonies sometimes produced by the musical siblings. The second single was a cover of Gordon Lightfoot’s ominous 1974 hit, ‘Sundown’, and in The McDades’ hands the song turns into Celtic-rock fusion with a blazing sax solo. That’s not to say that the group don’t have contemplative moments — the lilting ‘November 8th’, for example, takes a break from the more typical high-energy sound. The trio’s anchor instruments (whistle, fiddle, sax and bass) are nicely augmented by Andy Hillhouse on guitar, Eric Breton on cajón, darbuka and percussion, as well as numerous special guests. But at its heart it’s a brother-brother-sister act — one that surprisingly has yet to garner a loyal following.





Track Listing:
1.Willie Reilly 03:43
2.The Oak, Ivy and Ash 05:48
3.The Golden Willow Tree 05:44
4.The Oracle & The Knot 05:57
5.Sundown 03:57
6.Nomadic Mood & Caroline's Reel 04:38
7.Lonely Road 04:04
8.Plain Gold Ring 06:51
9.The Empress 04:31
10.Les Trois Capitaines 05:20
11.November 8th 03:54


Media Report:
Genre: celtic, folk-rock, world
Country: Canada
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits