My home town has a folk club, meeting weekly in a community centre off the High Street. They alternate between guest nights and "singers" night, the latter where everyone sits in a circle, sharing songs. This has long been the tradition of folk music, where people would collect songs like Panini stickers in a playground, building up a repertoire of lyrics, chords and tunings. Often in performance the singer will place his own slant on a standard, bestowing a contemporary feel to a song first performed hundreds of years ago. It seems to me though at grass roots levels, folk is divided into two camps. On the occasion I visit my club (yep, I'm even a member, got a little paper membership card to prove it), I do seem to drag the average age down a few decades (and I'm no spring chicken, old enough to witness Zammo's drug hell at first hand). Yet away from provincial local clubs, there is an army of young, technologically adept folk musicians, again taking these classic songs and themes, giving them a modern twist.Thankfully, this doesn't mean What the Folk Volume 2 contains 15 versions of 'Matty Groves', a song so ubiquitous at folk club it seems like an odd night if you don't hear it. Instead, the habit among folky-folk of collecting and reviving songs is very much evident. Also, the manner in which these songs are recorded is wonderful ”“ earthy and natural, with little in the way of studio trickery. A good example is 'Frozen Lady' by Tom Farrer, where you get a real sense that you are listening to a recording not just of a piano, or a vocalist ”“ but of a room, where you can hear the creak of a chair and the atmosphere of the environment. This track stands out on many levels. The music has an old world feel, as if the piano and vocals had been recorded by Tardis, the doors flung open on the 1960's whilst the vocals, full of echo and bags of charm, are recorded in the present.You have a sense with this compilation that Butterfly Recordings (the label set up by producer Youth and Simon Tong) have really done their research, hunting down all that is interesting and relevant in modern folk. One misconception of folk is that it is bogged down by tradition, something this release addresses. In fact, folk music is (and always has been) as experimental as it comes, musicians using a vast array of instrumentation in their craft. This is one of the things I love about this type of music ”“ how one moment you are listening to a guitar, then a fiddle, then a banjo, and before you know it an instrument that sounds like a baby being rubbed against a cheese grater. Even the most basic sounding songs on this album contain more originality and freedom of expression than an entire Kaiser Chiefs back catalogue. Interspersed throughout this collection are various musical interludes, all of which are briefly fascinating in their own way, showcasing the twang of the Jew's harp and the raw talent of the composers featured.There are a number of stand out tracks. The Owl Service's take on 'Two Magicians' (originally revived by Martin Carthy in the 60's) is a rambling, engaging tale of witchcraft, the antagonists changing form throughout the song to evade their tormentors. The opening track by Marcia Mello is also outstanding, a reworking of a traditional English folk song called 'Gypsy Davey'. It spins a yarn of a young wife, leaving her husband and children to hitch a ride with a passing traveller, leaving behind her old ways for a life on the road. Possessing a voice free of yelps and pretence, this is a rich song of much substance and drama, something you can equally say of Lisa Knapp's 'Three Knights', a long, rambling piece that is full of interesting sounds and an excellent production.The other strength of this compilation is how varied everything sounds. In fact, to call it a compilation is to do it a disservice ”“ these songs feel lovingly gathered in, the pick of the harvest, not coldly accumulated. It is a sampler in the truest sense, as I can promise that it will send you scuttling to the record shop, intent on purchasing at least a couple of albums from those represented. High on my shopping list is anything by Nic Dawson Kelly, whose 'Come Around, My Dear' is a dark, oppressive song with hammered guitar. The lyrics are furious and seething, full yearning and lament against the woman who betrays him. Fishbone by Attic is more of a curiosity, not an obvious bedfellow to the rest of the album with its Belle and Sebastian leanings and whimsical lyrics about a different sort of Cherry Pie to the one Warrant fans might be familiar with.The highlight though is Indigo Moss with their wonderful 'A Hill Far, Far Away'. Its little more than guitar and banjo, with an unusual, strained vocal performance, but as a song it is steeped in a beautiful ambience, the haze of summer evenings, like a light breeze in a meadow. This album showcases the best of current folk music, a fine collection drawn together with love and care, which will see you discover some very fine music indeed. 87%Links Butterfly Recordings [official site]