Album review: CLAIRE VINE – We Carve Our Path

February 10th, 2026 by jason

Website [Release date 13.03.26]

To release an album with no noticeable instruments, you must either be very brave or very established. I think Claire Vine is a bit of both. She has established herself as part of the psych folk band Hands Of The Heron, who have quite a following, and a record label – Cuculi. As part of the ethos of CuCuli Records she has branched out as a solo artist with this debut album.

Cuculi Records is a DIY community label, releasing and promoting Bristol based artists who all have a connection to Hands Of The Heron. I think this is a great idea, a bunch of artists who all help each other out, appear on each others records and no doubt all throw money into the kitty. A kind of Alt.Co-Op for music.

This is ten tracks of either trad folk songs or songs written in a trad folk way, and I say no noticeable instruments but there is harp on two tracks, double bass on 2 tracks and a synth on track one, but they are so far down in the mix, or so sparse that they are not really there. The rest is just vocals. Claire’s main vocal throughout, with Claire’s voice weaving a choral tapestry in the back ground on some of the songs.

For me personally it doesn’t work. Without doubt Claire has great folk voice, but the vocal tones are all too similar to create the desired effect. Hands Of The Heron do a similar thing with their songs but with three different voices they achieve what this one doesn’t. For me this album doesn’t offer enough variety, and comes across as very one dimensional, or, you could say focused, which of course may be the whole point of it

Of the ten songs, five are original, three are new arrangements of traditional songs and two are covers, one of Peggy Seeger and one of Ewan MacColl.

Her own compositions are politically charged covering subjects such as global warming, refugees and warfare. Vine became politically active after going to Greece and Calais to work with refugees/asylum seekers. Claire wears her politics on her sleeve, and her stance is highly commendable, but her lack of instruments or complimentary vocals isn’t. From my point of view anyway. Hopefully her followers will think different, and make this album a great success, and I’ll be made to eat humble pie. ***

Review by Andy Sharrocks

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