Kate Rusby - When They All Looked Up

Six years after her previous album of original songs, Kate Rusby is back with new self-penned material. In fact, her new release When They All Looked Up combines reimagined traditional lyrics with new songs, all delivered with her distinctive voice and the unique style that makes her work so recognisable.

Damien O’Kane’s shimmering guitar and Duncan Lyall’s subtle synth accompany all tracks, starting from the timeless How the World Goes that opens the album. Another beautiful example of the skilful arrangement is given by the fittingly sparse substrate on which the pensive 18th century Anglo-Scottish ballad Ettrick is poignantly delivered.

The album alternates traditional and new songs and includes also more personal passages like Let Your Light Shine, an uplifting anthem to resilience and the joy of living, written for Rusby’s two teenage daughters. These are side by side with older pieces like the 18th century evergreen Master Kilby and the humorous satirical song The Barnsley Youth and Temperance Society, rooted in early 19th century Yorkshire culture.

Optimism and sorrow, hope and fear coexist in this collection of songs, but it’s the more positive attitude that eventually prevails, not only in the lyrics, but also in the luminous and sometimes brisk settings. Following the core concept of the release, the work closes with two modern classics, The Yorkshire Couple, one of the references to her native area that pop out here and there along the album, and the artist’s melancholic rendition of Kay Sutcliffe’s protest song Coal Not Dole.

Varied, well-crafted, and individual, When They All Looked Up reinforces Rusby’s reputation of one of the most illustrious names on the British folk scene, still firmly at the forefront of the genre after three decades of success.