High-concept Shetland Americana.
It’s a tricky one to pull off: a multi-media concept album/novel with potential for a film whose soundtrack has already been established. Such high-concept projects are a relative rarity in the Americana realm and, in fairness to Malachy Tallack that’s exactly what he’s trying to achieve and this album is the musical end of the idea. While Willy Vlautin is almost unique in the music/literary sphere with his numerous standalone novels and short story compositions for The Delines, Tallack’s approach is different: this is a suite of specific songs to accompany his writing.
The Shetland Islands might not be considered Americana-central, but it has had a fondness for the genre for generations and this is something Tallack, a resident for many years, has tapped into here with That Beautiful American Waltz – a companion to a novel of the same name.
Crystal clear production and some beautiful and evocative playing from such as fiddle player Jenna Reid, Andrew Gifford on double bass and Conor Smith (pedal steel) provide the canvas for Tallack’s stab at becoming what might be described an artistic polyglot.
It’s a long way from Lerwick to the Catskills or the Appalachians and this is a decent effort at closing the gap. Songs like ‘The Hurt & The Heather’ and ‘I Miss You Today’ show an emotional depth while attempting to bridge the West-East divide. There’s little innovative or groundbreaking here, simply pleasant melodies and fine playing.
