Contemporary and traditional blend from homegrown and widely travelled teacher of song.
Native Companion is the fourth collection of contemporary Celticana from the peregrine musician, that is, Ryan O’Reilly. Alongside his English roots, the Oxford-born and Winchester-bred troubadour has strong Irish and Canadian connections, and currently teaches poetry and songwriting at the Berlin campus of BIMM University. No surprise then, that his lyrics are carefully crafted and tell stories that paint scenes and memories drawn from his travels, taking in Brighton and Boston via Wicklow.
A keen collaborator with such talents as the English duo Flyte, there are influences of folk, traditional Irish music and americana at work here. Four of the songs were recorded in Toronto, five in Berlin, while the centre-piece Wicklow was cut in Dublin.
With the opening track, Elizabeth, O’Reilly’s strong, melodic voice immediately catches the attention, while percussion and neat guitar work give a string-band feel. Smooth background vocals and uplifting piano add to the ebullient nature of the track, sure to be a live favourite.
Crisp production values permeate the ten songs. Co-written with Tyler Kyte, producer of the first four tracks and on acoustic guitar here, Fear of Flying has a melancholic melody, and lovers of Mumford & Sons will find much to enjoy in the album, which will also resonate with fans of Fairport Convention and Old Crow Medicine Show. Wicklow brings in cello and viola, O’Reilly himself producing here, and there’s a nostalgic vibe, a little like Van Morrison’s Coney Island.
Four of the five Berlin recordings were produced by Liam Lundqvist, with instrumental contributions from cellist Anastasia Povekvechnykh, Spencer Cullum Jr on pedal steel and guitar, and Czech artist Anna Vaverková sharing lead vocal on I Want You To Know Me.
O’Reilly has written or co-written songs and themes for many film and TV features, including Scrubs and After The Flood and fans of Christopher Guest may be interested to know that the final track was co-written with screenwriter Chris Moynihan, who appeared in the film A Mighty Wind as a member of the New Main Street Singers.
A vibrant live performer who takes Irish and Scottish songs to Kulturraums across Germany, Ryan O’Reilly is described by the Evening Standard as “the antidote to conveyor-belt pop”. In Native Companion, he demonstrates that intelligent and well-crafted songwriting is alive and well.
