This is Faustus' debut CD - but as many of you will know, this trio is a kind of transmutation of the folk-supergroup quartet Dr. Faustus, the first of whose brace of discs for Fellside (The First Cut) promised (and indeed delivered) much when it finally appeared in autumn 2003 after five years of intermittent gigging. Thankfully, it hasn't taken this medic-free three-piece incarnation quite as long to get round to releasing a debut CD - even though the individual members are heavily committed with other bands (original members Paul Sartin and Benji Kirkpatrick with Bellowhead, and new recruit Saul Rose with Waterson: Carthy).

The Faustus CD does share some key attributes with its predecessor, in that it presents energetic, forthright, dramatic, keenly researched and attractively arranged performances of almost exclusively traditional English material. But here I feel the focus is even sharper, these musicians' interpersonal chemistry enabling something greater than the sum of their considerable individual talents, resulting in a complete experience of this music that is splendidly strongly characterised, brilliantly sung and played. And ingeniously arranged, with a deep respect for the material and their sources; you're unlikely to hear a more persuasive version of I Am A Brisk Lad, or for that matter virtually any of the songs on this disc.

Faustus also give us an intriguingly quirky take on The Betrayed Maiden (still haven't quite worked out the time-signature!), and create for us a sensibly abridged version of Harry Robertson's Ballina Whalers (the only non-trad song here). The latter, like several of the other songs on the disc, intersperses or incorporates a tune which genuinely enhances the listening experience (the Kirtlington morris tune within Acre Of Land is a prime example). There's also just two purely instrumental tracks: the first is a well-appointed set of satisfyingly tricky original tunes (with joint composition credits, it would seem), the second pairs the English tune Temperley Hornpipe (which here sounds more like a frantic jig!) with a quickstep from the Pyle Family Manuscript of 1822.

Even though I've seen Faustus live a few times now, I'm stunned on each occasion by the natural dynamism of these three musicians: Paul's an intensely talented all-rounder with a wholly enviable equal prowess as violinist and oboist and Saul just has to be one of the country's best melodeon players, while Benji's seriously-hyper bouzouki provides both a superb bedrock and a motive force to be reckoned with. What's even more infuriating for us mere mortals is that each one of the three is a bloody good singer too (it fair makes me wonder if they really have made a pact with the devil!...) I've remarked when seeing Faustus perform live, what a magnificently full, rich sound they make for a three-piece; and OK, so there's a modicum, and entirely reasonable, amount of double-tracking on this studio recording (that is, unless Paul's versatility now extends to playing violin and oboe simultaneously!), but my comment still stands.

Nevertheless, without wishing to play down the musicians' contributions in any way, I'm also quite sure that the wonderfully upfront impact of this CD is also in no small measure due to the superbly detailed, crisp recording (full of presence) and the production by Megson's Stu Hanna, which perfectly communicates both Faustus' sheer joy in their music-making and the tremendous immediacy and cut-and-thrust of their performance itself. It's upfront and very much alive, yes, although not as overtly theatrical, larger-than-life or wilfully eclectic as Bellowhead, and retains its own special brand of integrity within its more modest and entirely believable framework.

Alright, I've one tiny technical quibble: the final note of The Betrayed Maiden (the final track) has, it seems, been "cut off in its prime", i.e. studio-clipped rather than being allowed to decay naturally (this in contrast to the end of The Hostess's Daughter, which is given an excessive amount of studio decay I feel). But this remains a really exceptional disc: a significantly exhilarating, thoroughly accessible and highly persuasive summary of all that can be, and is, still be so good (and relevant) about English traditional folk music. (David Kidman May 2008)

www.faustusband.co.uk
www.myspace.com/faustustrio