Are you a fan of Bob Dylan’s music? We may have just the band for you! Irish folk duo, The Winter Codes, released their album ‘Set The Darkness Reeling’ on August 1st, exciting fans with their musical mastery and traditional Irish folk sound. With storytelling lyrics and music that will have you hooked; made up of expert musician David Walshe and Blood or Whiskey founder, Barney Murray, The Winter Codes are not ones to be missed by any means!
In the lead up to the album release, the duo brought out their lead single ‘Too Sly to Die’ – a song that gave a glimpse of what was to come, delivered with music and lyrics that were enough to guarantee that the album would be something to witness. Serving as the perfect taster for the album, while also showcasing what the pair are capable of.
The album itself starts off strong with ‘North Circular Road,’ a song with good music that is accompanied by a great lyrical story that sets the scene for the album nicely. It feels right at home with the notion of Irish folk, and this is what The Winter Codes do best – pacey drums, bouncy guitar, and lyrics that need to be listened to intently, and they follow the same style on a number of songs, such as ‘Friend in Tullamore’ and ‘Erin’s Lovely Lee’ showing a mastery in their style and a level of consistency that most artists can only dream of. ‘Set The Darkness Reeling’ is an album that will excite fans of Irish folk and fans of The Winter Codes alike.
Although their style is evident on this album, with their traditional style taking centre stage for much of their music, what stood out to me was how Winter Codes can change approach while retaining everything that makes them tick. Songs such as ‘Thirty Years of Tears’ serve as a great example of that change in approach with the song being acapella, however the vocals keep the same feel of Irish folk singing, with the same storytelling lyrics that you’ll quickly come to love. Each song they deliver an unmistakeable style with expertise that is hard to fine – from storytelling lyrics with great music all the way to acapella, The Winter Codes can do it all.
In the making of this album, The Winter Codes sought out the talent of some well-respected people within the music scene, with Daithi Meila from Irish/bluegrass band Jig Jam, singer Lisa Loughrey and engineer Sean Montgomery – with talent such as this lending a hand on ‘Set The Darkness Reeling’, the high quality of this was always a sure thing. Add in the expertise of the The Winter Codes duo, and the result is an album that is should be in any Irish folk fans playlist. ‘Set The Darkness Reeling’ is out right now, ready for your enjoyment.
Emma Russel