From The Land Of Lakes: Loughlin

“They just don’t make music like they used to” is what you might lament, unless you’ve experienced From The Land Of Lakes, the latest album from Loughlin, the band voted best folk group in The Walleye’s Best of Thunder Bay Readers’ Choice Survey. The band takes inspiration from their Celtic ancestry as well as life in the great north, which, put together, gives their music a rich and soulful feel. Each track complements the other while also maintaining range throughout the album: “Òran Na Sìthe (The Fairy Song)” encapsulates a loving devotion in its yearning lyrics, whereas “The Earl’s Musical Spear” lets the Irish bouzouki (a string instrument), fiddle, and guitar do the talking in the track’s compounding instrumentals. My favourite tune on the record has to be “The Flower You Left,” as it blends a more contemporary song structure with the band’s classic sound. Celtic folk music is not a genre I typically find myself reaching for, but From The Land Of Lakes might have just changed that for me.

-Abigail Heron

4/5