Multicultural Mix by Martyn Bennett

There’s nothing new about setting the traditional tunes of the British Isles to rocking rhythm. As far back as the late ‘60s, the English folk-rock band Fairport Convention was adding rock-drum drive to its infectious fiddling, illustrating the natural rhythmic bond between the two styles.

Martyn Bennett, a Newfoundland native who grew up there and in Scotland steeped in his Scottish heritage, has a fuller, ‘90s variation in mind--a blend of ancient airs and instruments with contemporary dance music. At LunaPark on Thursday, the young musician had his feet in a lot of fields--folk, world music, hip-hop, techno, ethno-ambient--and if he had a little trouble finding his balance, it all seemed somehow in a worthy cause.

Alternating among fiddle, two sets of bagpipes, a large tin whistle and a small horn, Bennett mixed his melodic leads into recorded tracks constructed of dance and hip-hop percussion and thick instrumental textures. The sources ranged from the dominant Celtic strains to Middle Eastern colorings to a gruff Scandinavian chanting.

Sometimes those shuffling beats worked at cross-purposes with the flowing melodies, and the format was confining--Bennett often seemed preoccupied with keeping up with the dictatorial recorded music. But as on his new album, “Bothy Culture” (on Rykodisc), the best moments were an invigorating and captivating form of multiculturalism.