First o' the darkenin'

Young Shetland fiddler Chris Stout has toured in Ireland and elsewhere as a member of the group Fiddlers’ Bid as well as with Scottish/Latin crossover act Salsa Celtica. First O’The Darkenin’ is his debut solo CD, and it’s heady stuff. Backed by Catriona McKay on harp and keyboards, Fraser Fifield on sax and pipes, Malcolm Stitt on guitar and Ewen Vernal on bass, Stout seems equally happy playing fiery high-energy tunes and slow, romantic melodies like Norwegian hymn ‘Jeg Ser Deg Søte Lam’ and the stirring Shetland air ‘Da Day Dawn’. Several of his own compositions feature on the album – a wild jig written in honour of the aforementioned Fifield (who also contributes a tune of his own, as does McKay), the jazzy, syncopated ‘Double Helix’, the experimental title track and a lovely easygoing piece called ‘Hamnataing’. Most of the tracks here stretch well over the five-minute mark, with Stout and his compatriots teasing out variation after variation and delving into improvisational flights of fancy.