WIND RESISTANCE : THE EXPRESS : ★★★★

Karine Polwart - A Pocket Of Wind Resistance review: Beautiful and brilliant 

By MARTIN TOWNSEND  

Nov 19, 2017

4 / 5 stars 

It’s hard to believe that the carving of a child’s crib or the death of a fledgling swallow on a kitchen floor can be rendered with the poignancy that they are here, still less woven into such an extraordinary musical meditation on everything from childbirth to warfare. 

But Stirlingshire-born Polwart is one of modern folk music’s most formidable talents. 

Working with a subtle and highly imaginative sound designer, Pippa Murphy, and taking as her inspiration the miraculous teamwork of migrating geese, she has built a cycle of song, chant and spoken word that explores, in almost microscopic detail, how we all depend on each other. 

Recently showcased on stage in Edinburgh, this is a beautiful and brilliant piece of work.