From the first notes of Rising, you can tell this batch of young musicians knows what it's doing.

Emma Hancock, a classical violinist turned folkie, leads the way for this band of performers from the Borderlands between Scotland and England. Her tight musicianship shows her upbringing to have been something other than the pub crawls and sessions which honed the sound of so many of the industry's top fiddlers -- and it's a trade-off in styles. Listen to her work on, for instance, the traditional tune "Parson's Green" or band originals "Magnadoodle" and "Magpie's Revenge," and you'll hear a violinist who's playing is controlled, precise and nigh unto flawless ... but it seems to have cost her some of the uninhibited fire which ignites the playing of so many less-schooled performers. (She tries really hard to prove me wrong, particularly on a pair of Tarras originals, "The Happy Salmon" and the sizzling "Men Should Wear Their Long Hair Down.")

That's not a criticism by any stretch. It simply demonstrates from the start of this album that Tarras is looking for something other than the traditional Celtic or British folk sound. The bluesy bass playing of Joss Clapp and the African percussion styles of Jon Redfern go a few steps further to mark this band as something outside the fringe of traditional music.

The album contains some excellent playing by the entire band, which is Hancock on violin, whistle and vocals, Clapp on vocals, guitar, electric and acoustic basses and mandolin, Redfern on vocals, percussion and guitar, Rob Armstrong on cittern and vocals and Ben Murray on vocals and accordion. Hancock in particular shines throughout, her violin soaring above or supporting from below whatever else happens to be going on at the time.

The bandmates have also demonstrated a talent for composition; eight of the album's thirteen tracks are originals, each credited to the band as a whole, never to any individual member. The instrumental portions are solid -- hell, some of their set pieces are great! -- and their song lyrics at times are downright clever. The singing, never attributed to a particular member of the band, is good but not amazing -- be sure to check out the bluesy "So Tired" and "Whisky Town," where "the rain gets drunk before it hits the ground," for some of the best stuff. Still, at present, anyway, this band's most obvious strength lies in its collective instrumental skills.

At the time Tarras recorded Rising, the average age of its members was 21. To have gotten this good this young is an achievement worth noting, and Tarras is definitely a band to watch as the five musicians mature and settle into their music and find their niche in a field rapidly expanding beyond the truly traditional. Album No. 2 should be a hoot.

Read an interview with band member Ben Murray.