Find an Arrow by Troubadour Rose – album review
Folk trio: Troubadour Rose
Barnsley-born actress and musician Bryony Afferson, who created folk outfit Troubadour Rose after moving to East London, cites her key influences as PJ Harvey and Fleetwood Mac. This shows in her voice, which is smooth when calm and full-throated when impassioned.
The group’s debut album Find An Arrow is out now, with a sound more authentic and charming than any of the bands hoping to cash in on the post-Mumford era. Accompanying her is Lizzy O’Connor on an assortment of stringed instruments, and Gary Bridgewood, the band’s violinist. All three combine to create beautifully enriched harmonies that make you want to lie down and snap your fingers in the sun.
Opening track ‘Tell Me’ is an uplifting song about future ambitions so well sung that you can’t help but be won over by its nature infused allure. Afferson herself admits that: “I’ve always striven to have a sense of optimism even in the darkest places, when the songs are at their lowest ebb I aim for an underlying feeling of hope.”
In fact, the whole album has its roots in nature and life. Berries, foraging, moss and conifers all make themselves present in the lyrics, based on the idea that life is all around us in some form.
Ideal for a Sunday chill out session, Find an Arrow will make you remember summer fondly as the nights draw in. A real treat.