Ish
29th April 2023
Peak House, Havelock North, New Zealand
Review by Rob Harbers, with photography by Jacqueline Braid.
Into the rarefied air of Te Mata-o-Rongokako, Ish have once more touched down on their magical carpet ride through the dimensions of European folk music, bringing joy and delight to all those gathered in the historic establishment of Peak House under April Skies.
As a combo made up of many of the mainstays of Hawkes Bay music, appearances by Ish are relatively few and far between, and as such are occasions to be treasured. With their eclectic repertoire of material old, new, and in-between, they have the ability to appeal to a wide audience, as demonstrated by the diversity of hair colour on display (and that was just the performers!).
Kicking off with the “Boy/Girl” tune that first gave inspiration to their formation as a musical unit, they proceeded to range across the broad landscape of their ongoing inspiration, across the breadth of the genre(s) from where they draw life. This encompassed funked-up klezmer, prog-folk, Serbian/Spanish party tunes, English anti-war lyrics set to a Croatian melody, and much else besides. Despite the loss of all-rounder extraordinaire Phill Jones early on due to illness, the band played bravely on, albeit with a slight amendment to the planned setlist – all taken in stride by such an accomplished troupe. Chris Beernink’s double bass often provided a strong melodic element, beyond its rhythmic underpinning alongside Joe Dobson’s ever-reliable, and effervescent, drumming. Louise Ward’s emotive violin (and occasional vocals) was as magic as ever, bringing both light and shade, as required. Rounding out the outfit are the husband and wife duo of Johnny Goodhind (all the strings that Lou (and Phill while he was there) didn’t play, and saxophone) and Dana Parkhill (floating across the top of it all with her ethereal flautistry and less-occasional vocals than Lou). Oh, and Dana also introduced the hand-bourine, the instrument so exotic that no-one in the audience could name it!
From this array of material and instrumentation arose sounds capable of touching the skies, appropriately enough given the elevated setting in which they were produced – truly inspiring and uplifting melodies, providing further uplift to this battered and beleaguered region. Long may they continue to do so, and as long as they’re doing it, I’ll be wanting to see it – and so should you!
Were you there at Peak House for this special intimate gig? Or have you seen Ish perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only.
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