Celtic MP3 Magazine reviews "Ships Are Sailing"

Review: "Ships Are Sailing" by The Langer’s Ball
Written by Marc Gunn on 28 January 2010
Artist: The Langer’s Ball
Album: Ships Are Sailing
Year produced: 2009

"The penny whistle plays out in my memory as I write this review. Hannah Rediske’s mad whistlin’ and accordion skills blend in perfect union with the vocals of Michael Sturm. Since their start in 2007, The Langer’s Ball has been steadily gaining the attention deserved of a pub band sensation. This second offering from the duo, Ships are Sailing, is not a track list of sea shanties, but a compilation where Ireland goes a little Old Country, a little folk…and more. The work is a seamless progression of contemporary, Trad and original Celtic tunes that extends beyond Rediske’s customary penny whistle, recorders and accordion and Sturm’s guitar, mandolin and harmonica. Drums, bass, electric guitar make guest appearances with the guest musicians to play them.

There is an ease to the strength in Sturm’s voice, so much so that his singing often evokes a spoken quality. With the presence to be deemed a patriarch of ballads, Sturm can take on the persona of IRA folk hero Fergal O’Hanlon in a modified version of “Patriot Game” or morph into a chimney sweep with questionable intentions in “Sam Hall”.

The song selection is diverse. Langer’s “Titanic” could liven up the gypsy vardo of any given Renaissance Faire. The music has such a Romani melodic cantor, patrons wouldn’t bat an eye. The tragic story is told with that great Sturm quality of song-spake, but the star of this song is the piano accordion played masterfully by Rediske.

From the hauntingly beautiful feminine vocal echo in “I’m a Man You Don’t Meet Everyday” to the ease-out-of-your-chair and tap-your-boot pickup in “The Tinker’s Fiddle”, Ships Are Sailing is worthy of a listen, and you may just find that you miss the music, especially that gorgeous penny whistle, once the songs play through."