mama: crow coyote buffalo

Mama are former popstar Zoë Pollock and trad/folk supremo Sarah McQuaid, who met purely by chance outside the gates of a school in west Cornwall. The mundane, yet happily fateful setting seems respectfully unglamorous for a meeting of such accomplished adventurers. In 1990, Pollock had a top five UK chart hit with ‘Sunshine On A Rainy Day’ but abandoned the world of pop for more obscure musical paths, recording under monikers such as Hephzibah Broom. Having settled in Land’s End, she now spends her winters in a remote farmhouse and summers in a yurt, a portable, felt-covered home favoured by nomads. McQuaid is an American-born traditional folk artist who has relocated from Ireland to St Buryan, near Penzance, splitting her time between Chicago, Ireland and Spain. An acclaimed acoustic guitarist, she has released a number of albums before Mama’s first offering, the most recent being I Won’t Go Home Till Morning, a work of old-time Appalachian songs learnt from her late mother.

The result of this chance partnership is Crow Coyote Buffalo, a truly sublime work encompassing a range of styles and themes as rich as the ladies’ combined travels, experiences which beat at the heart of their work. Joining the duo on the album are Tiffany Bryant (flute) and Andy Jarvis (drums, percussion, trumpet, harmonium, accordion), both members of quirky Cornish collective Thistletown and the wonderfully labelled “prog-folk” group, Rosemarie Band. While comparisons have been made to Gillian Welch and Crosby, Stills & Nash, Mama’s sound swirls with a blend of genres, from psychedelia-tinged folk to sparse country and “unexpected Mariachi flourishes”. Pollock’s voice is potent with energy, reflecting the kind of tones associated with outdoor fire rituals or desert tribe melodies – a husky, rich sound perfectly complimented by McQuaid’s expert string work.

The wisdom and maturity of experience gives the record its canvas, and yet it is the wide-eyed, childlike sense of wonder that animates Crow Coyote Buffalo. When Pollock calls “hello?” on the album’s titular track, inspired by her journeys through Arizona, it is the desire for exploration and the adventure that resonate, a theme found throughout. Reading their track notes and falling through the panoramic expanse of the work, it is clear that each song is inspired by and relishes in the mystical and exotic – whether it’s the classical Indian storytelling dances on ‘Kathakali Boy’, finding inner strength and inspiration in ‘Aquí Me Pinté Yo’ (an ode to Frida Kahlo), or becoming lost in the dance of powerful, symbolic images in ‘The Lovers’, a swaying, hypnotic nod to Pamela Colman Smith, (another Cornwall resident who designed the world’s bestselling tarot deck). Fittingly, the album ends with an update of Pollock’s famous single; ‘Sunshine On A Rainy Day 2008′ enjoys an evolved incarnation which transforms the feel-good pop hit into a dancing, sitar-inspired wonder, spinning with folk flutes, Eastern melodies and Spanish trumpets.

Released on the women’s own Fly Like A Sprite label, with artwork by Sarah’s husband, and 100% recyclable packaging designed by fellow Cornwall resident, Sarah Turner, Mama’s first offering is a wonderfully organic and natural affair. Listening to Crow Coyote Buffalo is an instant pathway to distant realms, skirt-spinning dances in fields of flowers, and shamanistic journeys under bright sunny days and star-filled nights. A beautiful, peyote-kissed desert/forest dream.

[Fly Like A Sprite; December 1, 2008]

Written by: Charlotte Richardson Andrews

Tags: crow coyote buffalo, mama, sarah mcquaid, zoe pollock

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 17th, 2008 at 11:59 am and is filed under albums & EPs, reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.