Jessie Buckley and Bernard Butler – For All Our Days That Tear the Heart Review

Beyond Wild Rose, it should be no surprise that Jessie Buckley is prepared to tackle an album. Her work in that movie of pursuing the heart of heartland rock was as much an inspiring piece of rising indie flames as it was an exceptional, clarifying piece on the talent Buckley possesses. She now replicates the rise of Wild Rose and the confidence and ideas necessary to create an album, aided tremendously by Bernard Butler, on For All Our Days That Tear the Heart. The dark horse of Suede’s early years comes from the shadows to build up a new artist, one already established in one field but unknown in another.

Their results of Irish folk-rock are exactly what should be expected of their pairing. Hearty, acoustic-driven tracks. The Eagle & The Dove opens with tremendous power, with Butler’s instrumentals giving a platform for the vocal range Buckley is exceptionally keen to explore. How effectively Buckley and Butler are in replicating that Sean Nós quality is completely up to the individual. There are fleeting seconds that leave Buckley’s voice to carry the song, no instrument behind her, or barely heard. That is Butler’s sensible touch to the strings and bows that launch the best parts of this album, vocal consideration. Strong vocal collections are scattered across For All Our Days That Tear the Heart. Within that title track is a cemented example of that – of how Buckley and Butler utilise their strengths and craft an album that stretches beyond that which could have been a completely atypical album of country woes.

Much of that comes down to Buckley’s vocal range, pushed further by that of Butler’s instrumentals. His violin work is just as powerful as the lyrics at the heart of these tracks. Babylon Days has that rock simplicity to it, bolstered well by Buckley’s vocal charms. To a point, For All Our Days That Tear the Heart manages to swell in the right places but does so without much difference further into the album. These are, as Footnotes On The Map prescribes, footnotes. They are remnants of a genre out of favour with the mainstream, which makes its success so welcoming and inspired. These are fine tracks that rely more on a repetition of historic tones than it does on variance. Layering well on Footnotes On The Map, the blur between Buckley and Butler comes clear and delivers real promise for both artists.

Not just an explosive moment for Buckley but an intimate one for Butler, who cements how far he has moved on from the sound that defined his earliest works. His ear for instrumentals is key to For All Our Days That Tear the Heart. Buckley defines an intimacy best compared to Florence Welch of Florence and The Machine fame. There are broad similarities in their strengths and range, but Buckley keeps a relative, folk simplicity. It is an active choice to pursue that slick layering with Butler, and the results are frequently engaging, if not a tad similar across the board. There is a richness to the beauty of the lyrics throughout For All Our Days That Tear the Heart, most provocatively and intimately highlighted on We Haven’t Spoken About the Weather. A gentle, powerful surprise for two giants of their respective fields.