Army of Briars - biography

Julie Cole - voice
Tim Cole - songwriter, guitars, piano, psaltery
Martin Archer - arranger, clarinets, recorders, saxophones, mellotron, organ, software instruments
Keith Jafrate - words

Army of Briars is a group in the maverick tradition of British folk related music. We're interested in the extended songforms pioneered by greats such as Pentangle, John Martyn, Incredible String Band, and in the tradition of that line of music as it exists both on stage and in the studio.

The starting point for our songs is Keith Jafrate's words, and their striking and personal imagery is central to the sound and feeling of our first record together.

Musically, Tim's work is informed by both the folk tradition in which he mainly works, and also by his early training in classical music which enables him to conceive melodies and structures of great sophistication.

This is contrast to Martin's more improvisatory approach to the studio arrangements, which he likens to a process of painting classic sounds across, and sometimes over, Tim's structures and melodies.

The focus of the music though is Julie Cole's delivery in a voice of great purity and inner power, and an instantly recognisable sound.

The electronic arrangements on the first album are very much studio creations, as is the case with much of Martin's music, and for live performance the group has opted for an all acoustic lineup with the addition of our friends Paul Schatzberger on accordian and violin and Angela Rosenfeld on cello, plus other guests from time to time.