Yurodny get the thumbs-up from Siobbán Long.

YURODNY

Odd Set

Diatribe Recordings

****

If the European ideal was given the thumbs down with Lisbon, then maybe Yurodny is the ideal we were led to believe just might be possible. It's a bold, brazen mix of Russian, Romanian, Klezmer, Serbian and Macedonian tunes, afforded a remarkably fluid yet structured arrangement by founding member, saxophonist and composer Nick Roth.

The interplay of strings and horns with double bass fuse supposedly traditional tunes with an unmistakeably noughties twist, and Yurodny's relishing of the funereal ( Koj Mi Tropa) alongside the ineffably celebratory ( Taraf) proves that their repertoire doesn't cling to the manic overdrive too often associated with musical cross-fertilisations.

Dave Redmond's double bass is a perfect foil for Oleg Ponomarev and Cora Venus Lunny's violins, and the trio joust mercilessly with Francesco Tuirisi's accordion and percussion. Music for grinning, shimmying and sliding to.

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SIOBHÁN LONG