Celtic Connections review: Session A9, Sultans Of String and The Quebe Sisters Band - Glasgow Royal Concert Hall

By Sue Wilson
Published on 28/01/2012 00:00

IT WAS a long-awaited Celtic Connections debut for Texan five-piece The Quebe Sisters Band, fronted by the eponymous trio of siblings, who had to pull out through illness last year.

But going by the welcome they won, it won’t be their last visit. Limpidly pure yet wickedly sassy three-part harmonies and synched fiddles, backed by ultra-crisp guitar and double bass, affirmed their status as new champions of Western swing.

Canadian instrumental folk-rock/world fusioneers the Sultans of String were somewhat less convincing, despite some snazzy flamenco/manouche/classical-style guitar work, and a sound – co-led by electric fiddle – deftly seasoned with dashes of reggae, mariachi, Rodrigo y Gabriela pyrotechnics and a passing nod to Smoke on the Water. It all just came across as slightly too delighted with itself, with slightly insufficient cause.

The polish and slickness of the North Americans’ presentational style contrasted hilariously with home-team headliners Session A9, who don’t do slick in showbiz terms. “Coming to our gigs is a lot like visiting an old folks’ home,” observed guitarist and singer Marc Clement. “We basically sit around in a semicircle and talk rubbish”. Likewise, the captivating, exquisitely orchestrated slow air The Birds Have Gone, by one of the band’s four fiddlers, Gordon Gunn, was introduced as not being about “the later stages of a Session A9 party”.

Musically, though, from the above tune’s exquisite orchestration to masterfully turbocharged strathspeys and reels, the band have rarely sounded tighter or more opulent.

Rating: ****