There are some uninformed individuals in the world who love to knock the accordion, but anyone who has an anti-accordion attitude needs to take a much closer look at the instrument. Accordions sound great in French and Italian music, and they are a vital part of everything from Louisiana zydeco to Brazilian forró to Mexican norteño. Accordions can sound incredibly haunting in East European music, including music from the Czech Republic -- and
Kykyrý demonstrates that Czech singer/songwriter
Jana Vébrová is well aware of the accordion's powers.
Vébrová plays the accordion throughout this debut album, which is best described as Czech folk-rock. She uses a drummer/percussionist (
Milos Dvoracek) on a few of the songs, and
Ivan Archer plays the piano on the track "Holubek." But
Vébrová's accordion is, without a doubt, the most prominent instrument on
Kykyrý. Whether
Vébrová is playing by herself or using
Dvoracek and/or
Archer, her accordion is the main thing accompanying her vocals -- which, emotionally, have a lot going for them.
Vébrová is a very expressive singer, and her use of the accordion really helps her get her points across emotionally on absorbing songs like "Nelekej," "Tostese Spletla," "Az Me Vraní Mrtvice," and "Certici" (all of which are performed in Czech). Some Czech folk-rock sounds like American, Canadian, or British folk-rock with Czech lyrics, but this 2007 recording has been greatly influenced by the gypsy music of Eastern Europe -- which, by the way, has made extensive use of the accordion over the years. Between
Vébrová's singing and her accordion playing, this is a very promising debut for the Czech singer/songwriter.