Darren Hayman and the Secondary Modern / Essex Arms

Darren Hayman and the Secondary Modern
Essex Arms
(Fortuna Pop!)

Having thoroughly exhausted the charms of London with his old band Hefner, and explored the satellite town of Harlow on last year’s solo LP ‘Pram Town’, on his latest record Darren Hayman has moved out to the sticks.
But, reassuringly, he hasn’t started writing about rabbits and owls. ‘Essex Arms’ is set against the backdrop of those strange peripheries where the urban sprawl starts bleeding out into the countryside. It’s littered with broken glass, discarded polystyrene cups, stolen bikes, electricity pylons and deer staring into headlights; a more recognisable version of the country than the one often found on more conventional folk records.
Appropriately enough for the not-quite-pastoral theme, the album’s been recorded mostly acoustically, with banjos and violins and whatnot; a sort of antidote to the ubiquitous Mumford and Sons. While it keeps the tight, edgy sound of Hayman’s previous outings, the latest incarnation of the Secondary Modern is warmer and fuller than before, demonstrated rather wonderfully by single ‘Calling Out Your Name Again’ (a duet with Emmy The Great, indie collaboration fans).
Ambitiously billed as the second installment in a trilogy of concept albums about the titular English county, ‘Essex Arms’ might just be a breakthrough moment for one of our great underrated songwriters.