BILL MACKAY

Fountain Fire DRAG City Improvised guitar Americana, through the prism of prog.

Fountain Fire could be loosely categorised as Americana, and once you start wandering into this musical territory you come across guitarists like John Fahey, Sandy Bull and Robbie Basho casting long shadows. But Bill MacKay is forward-looking, and with his melodic but exploratory playing, and occasional songs, he is more comparable with someone like Gary Lucas. Hearing Birds Of May, which is quite reminiscent of late Nick Drake – but less introverted, and vocally more open and weather beaten – and the poised baroque-folk of Try It On, one wonders why MacKay hasn’t explored songwriting more. The rest is instrumental and on The Movie House, by deftly overdubbing acoustic and electric guitars and occasional keyboards, he weaves an intricate sonic mesh, whereas Man & His Panic is based on more traditional, finely articulated acoustic lines. He’s also a brilliant slide guitarist, playing with fuzzy, luminous sonics and feedback on Arcadia, while on the lengthy

Dragon Country he references his improvisational playing with the group Darts And Arrows. Over delicate acoustic figures he spins out a mix of sinuous slide lines, and picked counter melodies in a mesmeric, dazzling display.