The Mellstock Band, featuring
Ian Blake (clarinet),
Paul Burgess (violin, fiddle), Flos Headford (violin, fiddle), and
Dave Townsend (serpent, fiddle), is the real article, a quartet of folk musicians who play original instruments and perform in an authentic style -- think of them as sort of the genuine 18th- or 19th-century version of
Steeleye Span. Augmented by a handful of auxiliary musicians and small-scale singing group, they keep various folk and caroling traditions alive in performance and on record in performances that are spirited and bracing, as well as very sweetly sung and played. ~ Bruce Eder