Produced by Eric Gast and mastered by Emily Lazar, the new Seven Nations CD The Factory features nine new original songs including "Twelve," "This Season" and "Factory Song," two new instrumental sets and the "trippiest" version of "Amazing Grace" ever recorded.

The term "Celtic fusion" gets tossed around a lot when this band is mentioned. Mostly, I think, because most people don't know how to categorize them. Seven Nations is an indie rock band who plays traditional Scottish and Irish songs. They are also a traditional Scottish and Irish band which happens to play original rock songs as well. Confused? Don't be! On one level it's as if this is what rock is supposed to be. Great lyrics and vocals, raucous, rowdy and bold guitars, with solid, rhythmic drumming making a sound that's only enhanced by traditional Scottish and Irish instruments like the tin whistle, shuttle, mandolin, fiddle and Highland bagpipes. Who knew that traditional instruments could make you shake your tail and dance till your muscles screamed?

I've seen Seven Nations live and have almost worn out their live CDs (Road Kill Vols. 1 and 2). I had high hopes for this CD and for the most part I wasn't disappointed. They aren't suffering from the loss of the Neil "The Antipypr" Anderson as far as I can tell, and the new songs, while mostly abstract, are great.

However, the band needs to give Kirk McLeod's voice more room in the recording mix. It may be breathy but it's strong enough to hold its own. For many of the songs on this CD, it seems as if Kirk is competing with the other instruments for our attention.

Also, the reoccurring sound texture on the album -- a scratchy sound like an old-time radio broadcast -- only works at times. It's hit or miss, working between some songs but not others. I'm not sure why it's there at all -- I can't help but wonder if there's something to the concept that I'm not getting.

The first track, "The Factory Song," is part of the album's overall theme detailing the tough life child laborers had in the Industrial Age. Other tracks seem to possibly be part of the theme, but the song lyrics aren't always specific enough to tell. "This Season" is a haunting abstract song that is one of my two favorite songs on the CD, and apparently the band liked it enough to include an acoustic version of it as well. The acoustic version feels the strongest, with Kirk's vocals not being shoved into the background in the mix. Here his voice carries the emotion that gives the listener more clues to the song's subject than the lyrics do.

"Daze of Grace" is a new arrangement of one of their long-time crowd pleasers, and this track has them using a techno-ish drum beat and chorus overlaid with that scratchy sound texture. My kneejerk response was to skip past it, and it's still one of my least favorite tunes on the CD. I think the band is stronger without the electronic music interfering. The bagpipes and choir are the only good things about this track.

"Twelve" is my favorite song on the album. The fiddle, bagpipe and drum combination during the chorus adds incredible impact to the evocative lyrics describing the loss of love. The fiddle and bagpipes combine for a refrain which grabs you and takes your spirit soaring with their lush melody while Kirk's voice (maybe he should specialize in sad songs?) won't let you forget that your heart is breaking along with his.

Don't miss the bonus, unlisted track at the end of the album. It's short but worth waiting for.

The level of skill the musicians show on the traditional instruments is phenomenal. Besides Kirk, Seven Nations is Struby, Ashton Geoghagan, Scott Long and San Stacey, plus guests Steve Holley, Richard Fordus and Stuart Cameron.

I think there is definitely a reason that Seven Nations has such a huge following. They've been together for seven years and have six CDs to their name. They produce solid music with a traditional flair. But, while I think they're wonderful, they have room to grow even better, and so I look forward to seeing them again.

My only question is whether or not this is a concept album. The title, cover art and some of the songs suggest a common theme about the Industrial Age and children working in factories, but there are tracks which are completely unrelated to that theme.