A wonderful blend of folk, traditional, rock and ambient music. An album based strongly in an acoustic tradition, with mainly acoustic instruments (acoustic guitar, violin, mandolin, mandola and the like) and folk styles, but with overtones of rock peeking through in some of the tracks - 'Cool Rain' and 'Whispering', for example. To my ear, the electric guitar playing is, at various times, reminiscent of Mark Knopfler and Chris Stein. The album has themes of love and landscape, politics and passion, roots, ruralism and nature. It is, to use the metaphor of the title, settled, rural and folky like the land, flowing and rolling like the river and soothing, yet restless and occasionally challenging like the sea. 'Small Town' (which directly mentions the sea) and 'Sugarman' hint at conflict, while 'Song for Charlotte', 'The River' and 'Fields of Rye' are much more settled and calming. If you like acoustic folk, this is a fantastic new take on the genre. 'Ballygan', for example fuses… more »

A wonderful blend of folk, traditional, rock and ambient music. An album based strongly in an acoustic tradition, with mainly acoustic instruments (acoustic guitar, violin, mandolin, mandola and the like) and folk styles, but with overtones of rock peeking through in some of the tracks - 'Cool Rain' and 'Whispering', for example. To my ear, the electric guitar playing is, at various times, reminiscent of Mark Knopfler and Chris Stein. The album has themes of love and landscape, politics and passion, roots, ruralism and nature. It is, to use the metaphor of the title, settled, rural and folky like the land, flowing and rolling like the river and soothing, yet restless and occasionally challenging like the sea. 'Small Town' (which directly mentions the sea) and 'Sugarman' hint at conflict, while 'Song for Charlotte', 'The River' and 'Fields of Rye' are much more settled and calming. If you like acoustic folk, this is a fantastic new take on the genre. 'Ballygan', for example fuses Indian tablas, traditional Irish flavours and acoustic ambience. 'Sugarman' (great harmonies and well recorded drums) sounds, in the middle section, like the Corrs meeting Led Zeppelin. An album that defies categorisation. Buy it and discover something new...