Sigh No More

iTunes Review

Freak folk introduced a new generation to the notable old guard like Vashti Bunyan, Richard & Linda Thompson, Mellow Candle and of course Fairport Convention (to name a few). Mumford & Sons eschew beards and bellbottoms for well-crafted songs, performed and recorded with an honesty that borrows a little from those bygone bards in order to bring something wonderfully new to the table. The London quartet’s handsome debut Sigh No More was produced by Markus Dravs (Björk, Arcade Fire, Brian Eno, Coldplay) and opens harmoniously with its inspiring title track, sounding more parallel to Fleet Foxes than any of the aforementioned, though their fondness for rustic Americana instrumentation is endearingly filtered through a pub-dwelling mindset similar to that of the Waterboys. “The Cave” pulses with driving bluegrass banjo and the kind of honed lyrical wit that can only come from a true Englishman, while the drunken, brassy horns in “Winter Winds” will warm the heart’s cockles like an aged rye on a cold night. “Little Lion Man” is a folk opus that sounds fathoms deeper than the resonance of their wooden instruments.