AMY PARKER Though he managed to raise a smile while telling the audience that an airline had broken his accordion, it was clear that Tim Edey was devastated, and justifiably so, given the instrument's financial and sentimental value. But broken squeezebox or not, the Tim Edey Trio, playing at Celtic Connections for the first time as a threesome, were the perfect opening act for this night of understated music making.

AMY PARKER

Though he managed to raise a smile while telling the audience that an airline had broken his accordion, it was clear that Tim Edey was devastated, and justifiably so, given the instrument's financial and sentimental value. But broken squeezebox or not, the Tim Edey Trio, playing at Celtic Connections for the first time as a threesome, were the perfect opening act for this night of understated music making.

Edey's guitar playing is intuitive and he manages to transform the potentially limited range of the instrument through his use of inner melodic lines and varied timbral registers. Coupled with Lucy Randall and Brendan Power, this trio were a delight to watch. The McDades, hailing from Alberta, Canada, raised an interesting point about the nature of a Celtic connection, for in many ways, this five-piece was more successful when it strayed away from the cliched reels and whoops of the traditional sound and ventured into a more obscure and stripped-down sound.

Sponsored by ScottishPower