Tanglefoot Review

Tanglefoot – Captured Alive (Borealis)

"After five studio albums and even more UK tours, the big hairy ones have finally got round to releasing a live CD. Captured Alive brings right into your living-room (or bedroom, car or privy!) the full-throated abandon of this energetic Canadian sextet (careful!!). Recorded in Toronto over three nights in May last year, and following hard on the heels of the release of their successful Agnes On The Cowcatcher CD, this 74-minute selection of definitively passionate, full-frontal Tanglefoot performances marks a watershed in the band's development. It acts as both a swansong for the retirement of original member Joe Grant from performing with the band (although he continues to write for them) and as an introduction to new recruit, fiddler Terry Snider (they appear together on the set's finale La V'la M'Amie).. If you don't already know Tanglefoot from their many riotous UK festival appearances thus far, take heart: I need to come clean myself, for during the early years of their career I was wondering what all the fuss was about. I couldn't deny their energy, passion, musicianship and artistry, but somehow their larger-than-life presence, at least on CD, seemed overly concerned with maximising the impact with over-the-top delivery and a certain amount of posturing, which, although designed to impress, left me somewhat cold in the end. But more recently I've been a bit of a convert, and not only because experiencing the band live is a whole different kettle of fish. Quite simply, Tanglefoot are a top-flight live act, working hard, giving value aplenty with their supercharged, upfront performances of folk-tales that veer credibly from the good-natured and cheekily witty to the tragic and highly poignant, counterpointed by a true instrumental versatility and a hell of a stage presence. Tanglefoot are true showmen, who know how best to present their uniformly strong material and how to please an audience and keep their interest throughout a set. There are no longueurs, and every song's a winner, whether rollicking or thoughtful. Vocally as well as instrumentally, Tanglefoot invariably come up trumps too – each of them is an excellent singer, and on a-capella numbers like Secord's Warning they come at you seriously lusty (almost like Canadian cousins of the Wilsons, it's been said, but on songs like There's A Bit O' That Goes On they're more akin to a crack barbershop ensemble). With 14 songs ranging far and wide through the band's healthy back-catalogue, together with five intros, and all encased in a handsome, heavy-duty digipack with photos, lyrics and notes, Captured Alive is as essential for the Fan as for those who still need convincing of Tanglefoot's already legendary status." - David Kidman - netrhythms

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