Buille, the brainchild of Niall Vallely, gives a lie to the false dichotomy around the notion of tradition and innovation. Over the course of a dozen new pieces (cumulatively amounting to a highly coherent suite), and recorded in Ballyvourney’s Ionad Cultúrtha, Buille Beo is a driving, reflective and always freewheeling celebration of life’s musical possibilities. At its heart is the interplay between Vallely’s ever-inquisitive concertina, Kenneth Edge’s soprano saxophone and Caoimhín Vallely’s expansive piano, their parts made whole by Brian Finnegan’s wide-angled percussive force and all grounded by Ed Boyd’s guitar. It’s a melée more suited to the open road than the fireside. Buille’s division of the set into two (supposed LP) sides concentrates the listener’s eardrums magically.Irish concertina genius Niall Vallely is back with brother Caoimhín on keyboards and a few friends fleshing out the brilliant and stylish supergroup Buille. This is their third CD, and it’s every bit as exciting as the first two, showing a degree of flair and musicality which most of us can only wonder at. But then, that’s what I wrote about their debut album, so it’s no surprise really. Niall kicks off with one of his trademark finger–blistering reels, shaking that hexagonal magic box like it was a Bond martini. If your soul is not stirred by this music, you must ask yourself if you’re alive at all – or merely a spectre. Caoimhín’s walking piano bass line is the perfect backing, with percussion from Brian Morrissey. Ken Edge chips in on soprano sax, reminding me of Spillane somewhere between Shadowhunter and East Winds. Ed Boyd’s Gloucestershire guitar completes the picture. There’s rather more of a group vibe than the early Buille, which really was all centred around Niall’s concertina. Here the bulk of the material still comes from Niall’s head, but the second half of Beó contains more of Caoimhín’s compositions. In an album full of high points, a few stand out. The Balkan twists of Bloomsday, the piano and sax parts in Whatso, and the exquisite poignancy of In a Silent Way, which is the only new piece here not written by the Vallely brothers. There are two trad tunes too – the venerable Yellow Tinker given a facelift by Niall, and the radical surgery of Cloudy Moves which reinvents Neili Boyle’s jealously guarded tune. Both are spectacular transformations. This recording was made live, in the Ionad Cultúrtha in January 2015, and the audience adds appreciative applause without going wild. That needn’t stop you, though!           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJmY7p2m0ls