Feeling chipper: Have we all reached peak harp it's worth pondering given a contemporary fascination in the wake of a very successful agenda setting shift in the favour of the Volvo Estate boot filling instrument from the likes of Brandee Younger and Alina Bzhezhinska and new generations coming to the music of Alice Coltrane. Hardly because there's plenty left in the tank given how many releases keep rolling out. The Harper Trio last year delivered one of 2023's best and even more recently Younger's turn on Lizz Wright's 'Your Love' just released is an absolute gem. Happy days, celestially speaking, are here again. Enter Welshwoman Amanda Whiting with singer Peach, flautist Chip Wickham, bassist Aidan Thorne, drummer Jon Reynolds and percussionist Mark O’Connor (whose banging pièce de résistance on The Liminality of Her happens to be 'No Turning Back'). It's a loungey as much as spiritual listen so not on heavy rotation down the ashram just yet or possibly ever. The said Peach's vocal on 'Intertwined' with the best will in the world remains a tad ethereal. Better is when a chunky riff from Thorne on 'Liminal' livens things up a bit. Pity there wasn't more use made of Wickham overall. Whiting's playing style reminds us of Tori Handsley circa As We Stand. Amanda Whiting, photo: Bandcamp
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