Album Review – Rootstime – Belgium

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Thanks to Rootstime.be for this review of our new album…

THE GIRL ON THE BIKE (ARE YOU THE GIRL ON THE BIKE?)
Jenny Wren And Her Borrowed Wings
(Creature Records)

Rootstime.be
by John Van Leersum
November 2019

Jenny Wren and her Borrowed Wings are a trio from Suffolk and Essex, England. They have been on the road for a number of years, and The Girl On The Bike (are you the girl on the bike?) is their third album. I’ve called their music “Acoustic Goodtime Music” because it’s an amalgam of influences like the blues, old-time jazz, folk, country and soul, basically all the parts of traditional Roots music.
Jenny Wren is actually front-cover-onlinecalled Jenny Trilsbach, she plays the upright bass but more importantly she is the voice of the company, and with that she largely determines the sound, since her voice has a very distinct character, raw and powerful but also sometimes soft and whispering. The most striking feature is its vocal range, somewhat smoky and coming from the diaphragm, a bit similar to the voice of Kris Berry, and here and there, a bit of Eartha Kitt. Another defining element in the sound of the group is the resonator guitar by Ben Fisher who is also vocal, the third able participant is Ben Gallon on acoustic guitar and vocals.
All of the songs are from the different group members. One of the biggest compliments that one can give out to the group is the drive and the tremendous enthusiasm with which they bring their repertoire to the listener. The music breathes the atmosphere of the 30s and 40s, without coming across as archaic. They feel just as at home in a laidback tempo as in a swinging shuffle, so plenty of variety.
The standout track on the album is, for me, the song “Hard Blues”, a Blues that could stem from the 30s sung by Bessie Smith or Ida Cox, however, using atmosphere over volume, more in the style of Maria Muldauer, a compelling piece. Also fine is the song “Get Where It Goes”, a slow sharpener that rubs against the Blues, and in which you can clearly hear they are also instrumental, with the beautiful vibrato of the resonator guitar as the icing on the cake.

John van Leersum

Read in Dutch here – https://www.rootstime.be/index.html?https://www.rootstime.be/CD%20REVIEUW/2019/NOV1/CD19.html

Thank you Domkeller!

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We had a great time playing at the Domkeller yesterday. It was a packed house full of Monday night revellers. Thank you Milos for inviting us, and to everyone for coming out in the rain and giving us such a great listening reception. We will look forward to coming back next year!
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The band that everyone, who loves beautiful live concerts, should know… 01.11.19

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Here is a live review of our concert in Steendam from The Next Gig in the Netherlands. Thank you for your words and listening ears!

LIVE REVIEW – Jenny Wren and her Borrowed wings 
Podium Café Peter en Leni – Steendam (NL)
01.11.19
THE NEXT GIG (NL)

Jenny Wren and Her Borrowed Wings are the band that everyone, who loves beautiful live concerts, should know. In Germany they already understand this. Coming from a long tour of the eastern neighbours, with many concerts, the British band travelled next over the border to Steendam. A performance with Peter and Leni is where bass player and singer Jenny Trilsbach, resonator guitarist Ben Fisher and acoustic guitarist Ben Gallon start on the Netherlands leg of their European tour.Jenny-Wren-2019
The action begins, outside the sight of the general public, with a game. Through a card game, where the cards consist of the songs of the band, this acoustic Rhythm and Blues formation sets the setlist together. The advantage of this shows that almost all the songs remain in rotation regularly, and through some jokers, it is ensured that the setlist is balanced and also that the music from the latest album – The Girl on the Bike (are You the Girl on the Bike?) is showcased. This approach yielded a great opening, with the initially quietly and emphatically performed ‘Dead man’s Hat’.
All three are fantastic musicians, and know how to write excellent songs, but that’s not so uncommon these days. What the band really manages to distinguish from other groups is the phenomenal vocals of Jenny Trilsbach. With the band all standing around one microphone, Trilsbach always knows how to amaze and convince with her vocals. A beautiful and powerful hurricane starts up at the moment that Trilsbach sings. Raw and tender, and full of emotion. A delicious rough pearl is nestled between her vocal cords that manages to touch the hearts of the listener. However, it is not just the voice. The songs are very fine, and for example, in a song like ‘Cast out The Snake’ you have a nice interplay between the guitars before it’s whispering end.
All three albums released by the band are beautiful, the first album – Dead man’s Hat is phenomenal, from that album comes the powerful ‘The Start’. What followed was a fine naval blues with ‘A Sailor’s Blues’, coming from the second album – A Soup, then the strong intense ‘I’m Gone’, the full of tragedy ‘Showtime’, and the beautiful quiet ‘The Leaving’.
The only thing that actually gets in the way of the band is their own modesty. They don’t blow their own trumpets, even in the stories from Trilsbach, she regularly apologizes that she has to refer to the merch stand yet again, but explains that if you want to survive as an artist, CD sales are a necessity. Her substantive stories are fine, but they are best placed with a bit more flair.
Just before the break we hear still more beautiful highlights of the concert with ’44 Years’ and ‘Out With The Old’.
After the break, it continues on the way, starting with ‘Devil’s Paw’ a song about the town where Trilsbach grew up, then we hear the catchy ‘The Dirty Disease’. After the highlight number ‘Don’t bring Me Down’, Trilsbach, who is already energetic all the time, can be heard in solo for the intro of ‘So Much More’ and proves just how good she can do it. After this excellent concert full of quality, it is then time for the farewell. That comes with a song written for an arts project about the phases of life ‘Wooden Nickels’, from this project also comes the previously performed and very sensitive ‘Until it’s My Time to Go’. We then hear the title track from the newly released album, the very powerful ‘The Girl on the Bike (are You the Girl on The Bike?)’. The concert ends with the beautiful encore of ‘This Song Is A Lie’.
We know that Jenny Wren and Her Borrowed Wings are too modest, but do not be fooled, they are a fantastic live band.
You have the option, go and see them and let them amaze you.

Read in Dutch here – http://thenextgig.nl/schitterende-jenny-wren-and-het-borrowed-wings-excelleren-in-Steendam/