The Oyster Band is a British folk band that likes to rock out, a folk band that has absolutely no use for the self-absorbed dourness that characterizes most folk music nowadays, both American and British. The band's previous record, Step Outside (which was released in 1987 on the Cooking Vinyl label), was a deft dive into English traditional music (the finest track on the album, "Molly Bond," was a centuries-old ballad) that nonetheless retained some of the kick and verve of rock & roll.

The Oyster Band also retains a cornerstone of folk music: a strong social conscience. Both on the band's original tunes ("The Early Days of a Better Nation") and on resurrected standards ("Lakes of Cool Flynn"), singer John Jones's melodeon (a small accordion) and Ian Telfer's fiddle artfully propel poignant, moving tales of broken political promises.

If there's anything wrong with this album (which was produced by Clive Gregson, who is better known as the rhythm guitarist in Richard Thompson's touring band), it's that it doesn't sound quite angry enough. Nick Lowe's "Rose of England" and Billy Bragg's powerful "Between the Wars" are inspired, totally appropriate choices for covers, but both of them call for teeth-clenched vigor. Most of the time, however, the Oyster Band kicks into high gear and soars into the Wide Blue Yonder. (RS 545)

JIMMY GUTERMAN