Great folk songs survive because they tell strong stories that are relevant to different generations, and Stick in the Wheel mix revivalism with folk-punk attack: this is an acoustic band with attitude. Lead singer Nicola Kearey is from London’s East End and sings in a harsh, no-nonsense accent, and carefully chooses her material. Ewan MacColl’s Champion at Keeping Them Rolling was written in the 1950s, but here it sounds like a contemporary truckers’ ballad, while The Blacksmith has none of the exquisite sadness of the classic Shirley Collins version, but instead a furious anger at this story of betrayal. Then there’s the Copper Family’s story of unemployment and poverty, Hard Times of Old England, followed by the new Me N Becky, a story of London riots, looting, remorse and jail. At the end they break off for some drifting musical experimentation. A powerful and original debut.
