Karen Tweed

Essentially Invisible to the Eye May Monday Adventures***

An entire album of solo piano accordion might strike fear in the hearts of even the hardiest listeners, but English composer and inveterate collaborator Karen Tweed reached for the same pinnacles scaled by Sharon Shannon when she rejuvenated the button accordion with her eponymous debut in 1991. On Essentially Invisible to the Eye, produced by American old-time fiddler Bruce Molsky, Tweed traces an autobiographical path through some of her own compositions, such as the delightfully named Miss Hanoria Macnamara of Ballybunion. The album's title is a reference to St Expury's belief that "it is only with the heart that one can see rightly what is essentially invisible to the eye"; an apt summation of Tweed's mercurial qualities. The only duds are covers of Edelweissand Que Sera Sera, wich leech energy from the tunes around them. karentweed.com

Download tracks: Hanoria, Pamela Rose