Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Why stand in the shadows of someone else’s dreams when you can be rooted, Grounded, by respect of being unique; even in a group, a large gathering delivering art, it is possible to see the experience as being something matchless, distinctive, exceptionally rare and powerful.
To be grounded is an act of defiance in a world that only wants to see excess, to witness fame and offer a sense of misguided hope that a certain listener or viewer can have some kind of life that they deem so impressive that they would almost give their soul away cheaply just to be able to attend a star-studded party in the hope they get recognised.
To be grounded though and keep your soul as the art flows through you is to allow beauty and inspiration to be seen as positive vibes, to be relished and praised at every opportunity; and it is to the award-winning folk music of Cara, that such praise is to be laid at the grounded feet of a group that understands the delicate nature of their genre.
To have dignified inner strength in a time when others find it a struggle to bear the cross of solemn self-worth is how the album is presented, there is a formality grounded in passion that typifies the reaction the band have dug deep to express, and by doing so have set a standard that is evident in each note and song.
Across tracks and sentimental beasts such as The Windhorse, Lay Down Your Weary Tune, Lassie, Lie Near Me, True Thomas, The Pretty Girl Milking The Cow and the superb The False Lover Won Back, Gudrun Walther, Kim Edgar, Hendrik Morgenbrodt, Juergen Treyz, and guest musicians Aimée Farrell-Courtney, Tad Sargent and Henrik Mumm, combine to make an album of sheer quality, each note soars, each response to another’s insight is cast with opportunity, philosophical ingenuity and spirit; a vast and incredible feat in a world that always is on the edge of jealousy and rivalry.
In their eighth studio album, Cara have reached a pinnacle of performance, whether that is down to the circumstances that have been around us for the last 18 months, or because they gel so well that they, as a unique form, can triumph with solemnity is not for others to chat over, instead it is just to be accepted that they hold decorum in their hand and deliver an album of worth, of sublime interpretation.
Cara release Grounded on the 15th October.
Ian D. Hall