Darren Hayman: Thankful Villages Vol 2 review – intriguing picture of rural life

If folk music is meant to pass on stories that have shaped and haunted communities, then Darren Hayman’s Thankful Villages records are their delicate cousins. The former Hefner frontman has been making esoteric solo concept albums for years, but this ongoing project sees him visit every British village where all first world war soldiers returned alive, painting an intriguing picture of modern-day rural life. Its moods are wide. There are strains of folk tunes on Tellisford, retro-by-numbers electronica on Cundall and Woolley, and more conventional songs, which come alive with guest vocals: Fairport Convention’s Judy Dyble sings about echoes of children’s laughter in the water on Upper Slaughter. The darker, more mysterious pieces work best. Drones and drizzling atmospheres overwhelm Nether Kellett, while tracks featuring interviews with locals reap rich rewards. Cromwell’s the best, a man opening the track with a voice rattling like gravel: “I’m Dennis, but they all call me Bill.”