The Folk Forecast: May 2023
The Folk Forecast: May 2023
Featuring The Young'uns, Karine Polwart, festivals across the UK, heaps of new releases and more news on all things folky.
Hello, and welcome back to The Folk Forecast! It’s been a busy few weeks, and there’s lots to tell you about. Some of you might have caught me on the Thank Goodness It’s Folk show with Sam Hindley a couple of weeks back. I really enjoyed having the chance to pretend I was on Desert Island Discs and pick out some tracks to share with everyone. If you missed it, you can catch the full show on Mixcloud here, and I also made a playlist of my picks, if you fancy listening here.
At the weekend, I enjoyed a singing workshop and concert with the one and only Karine Polwart, and had such a lovely day. I had originally planned to go on a course with Karine back in 2020, so it was great to finally be able to make this happen. We learned some brilliant songs, one of which is at the start of this month’s playlist. Speaking of which…
This month’s playlist
This month’s playlist includes a variety of the artists mentioned in this issue, including lots of new releases! If you like what you hear, do support the artists if you can, to help them make more amazing music in the future.
If you enjoy this issue and fancy saying thanks, you can make a small donation on Ko-Fi to help support my freelance work on the folk scene. Thank you!
TOP PICKS: ONLINE
The Official Folk Albums Chart Show* — Tuesday 9 May, 7pm BST & available to catch up afterwards
Folk on Foot website, YouTube and podcast feed. Commissioned by English Folk Expo and compiled by the Official Charts Company.
See which albums have made the Official Folk Albums Chart this month, with Folk on Foot. Packed with stories, music and exclusive content, this is always a joy to watch. I’ll also be on the show to talk about the latest folk news.
Free to access, but you can support the podcast by becoming a patron.
Naomi Bedford and Paul Simmonds — Thursday 11 May, 7.30pm BST
Rosslyn Court, Margate
Naomi Bedford and Paul Simmonds have made 4 acclaimed albums and been nominated for a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award (Best Original Song). They tour widely and have appeared at Cambridge Festival, Glastonbury, Celtic Connections and many others. Their Appalachian ballads album, Singing It All Back Home, was Folk Album of the Month in the Guardian, as well as being featured live in session on the BBC Radio 2 Folk Show.
Hybrid gig, so you can also go along in person. The first hour of the performance will be livestreamed free of charge (donations encouraged). The second half will be exclusively for the in-person audience.
An Evening With…. Amy Thatcher — Sunday 14 May, 7pm BST
Phoenix Folk on Zoom
Phoenix Folk are running an online event with accordionist Amy Thatcher, who is known for her work with Kathryn Tickell, The Shee and We Are The Monsters, as well as her duo with Francesca Knowles. Amy will be performing a 30-minute solo set, after which there will be a tunes session.
Pay as you feel via a Paypal tip jar.
Alden and Patterson — Thursday 18 May, 7.30pm BST
Rosslyn Court, Margate
Christina Alden & Alex Patterson are multi-instrumentalists and songwriters from Norwich. Their music is rich with intertwining harmony, sensitive accomplished musicianship and a creative song-writing style that is both delicate and moving. Deeply inspired by the world around them, they craft stories centred around our connection with nature.
Hybrid gig, so you can also go along in person. The first hour of the performance will be livestreamed free of charge (donations encouraged). The second half will be exclusively for the in-person audience.
The Young’uns* — Tuesday 30 May, 7.30pm BST
Live to Your Living Room / Folk Arts Oxford / The North Wall
The Young’uns live shows are renowned. With heart-on-the-sleeve storytelling, beautiful lyrics, warm harmonies and relentless repartee, Sean Cooney, Michael Hughes and David Eagle sing life-affirming folk songs for today. This is the last Live to Your Living Room gig before we take a break for the summer, and it’s been streamed live from the North Wall in Oxford with thanks to Folk Arts Oxford.
Tickets £10 / £16.50 / £25 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
Also online
Rosslyn Court are continuing to livestream the majority of their concerts. Find out more about everything that’s in store here.
Heal & Harrow has now become a podcast! Following on from the stunning album they released last year, Rachel Newton and Lauren MacColl have got together with writer Màiri Kidd to discuss the stories of the women who inspired the music. Heal & Harrow pays tribute to the thousands of people accused, tried and executed during the Scottish Witch Trials. Find out more here.
TOP PICKS: IN PERSON
Festivals
Orkney Folk Festival (25-28 May) is always a highlight, showcasing the best folk in Scotland and beyond. Artists this year include Breabach, Capercaillie, Elephant Sessions, Fara, Gnoss, Katherine Priddy, Kinnaris Quintet, Kris Drever, Spiers & Boden and more.
Chester Folk Festival (26-29 May) has lots in store, including concerts from Merry Hell, Will Pound & Tim Edey, Keith Donnelly, Ellie Gowers and more, plus ceilidhs and dance displays galore.
Chippenham Folk Festival (26-29 May) has a great line-up, including Cara Dillon, Le Vent du Nord, The Wilderness Yet*, James Delarre & Saul Rose and more.
Fishguard Folk Festival (26-29 May) will include ticketed concerts with Sam Sweeney, Granny’s Attic*, Janice Burns & Jon Doran*, Emily Portman & Rob Harbron and Broadoak, as well as lots of free events, including concerts, ceilidhs, sessions and workshops.
Fire in the Mountain Festival (1-5 June) takes place near Aberystwyth, and is dedicated to showcasing folk music from Wales and around the world. This year’s line-up includes The Gentle Good, Hannah Read & Michael Starkey, Julie Murphy and Ceri Rhys Matthews, Lady Maisery*, Lady Nade, Lunatraktors, Martin Carthy, Nick Hart, Owen Spafford and Louis Campbell, The Rheingans Sisters and more.
Magpie’s Nest (3 June) is a one-day festival run by the Nest Collective at Master Shipwright’s Palace in London, celebrating folk and roots music from around the world. The line-up includes Ryan Young, Idrisi Ensemble, Faith i Branko, Tommy Khosla & Jawari, Saije, Marlais, Saint Boy, Max Barton and ghostgirl.
Tradition Now (10-11 June) is a two-day celebration of folk music from Ireland and beyond, held at the National Concert Hall in Dublin. Artists taking part this year include Aoife Ní Bhriain, Catrin Finch, Hack-Poets Guild, Méabh Ní Bheaglaoich, Landless, Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin, A Lazarus Soul, Eimear McGeown and Libby McCrohan.
Jim Moray Festival (17 June) is a celebration of Jim’s three decades in the music business, taking place at the iconic Cecil Sharp House. Jim will be joined by guests including Kitty Macfarlane, Nick Hart and Frankie Archer. There will also be a live recording of The Old Songs Podcast with Jon Wilks.
Singing with Nightingales - Live in London
King’s Place, London
A chance to enjoy Singing With Nightingales without even leaving the city! This event will be hosted by Sam Lee, who’ll be joining live from a secret woodland location, and singer and harpist Georgia Ruth, who’ll be there in the concert hall. Together with guest artists, they’ll embark on a performance interwoven with the song of the nightingale, presented in immersive surround sound.
Sweet Thames Final Performance
Cecil Sharp House, London
This fun-filled performance event draws on the twenty-five recently collected oral history interviews for the Sweet Thames project hosted by Star Creative Heritage, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and supported by EFDSS and ten London Folk Clubs. Sweet Thames' aim was to research, preserve and share the heritage of London folk clubs, and this performance is a way to interpret and share the findings.
Karine Polwart
Portsoy, Saltaire, Settle, Kendal, Liverpool, Lincoln, Colchester, Shoreham, Worcester, Bristol, Cardiff
Karine Polwart is on a solo tour from 3rd June. The date at St George’s in Bristol on 16th June is particularly special, as Karine will be joined by Kitty Macfarlane for an evening of songs inspired by the natural world, as part of the Bristol Festival of Nature. There is also a singing workshop with Karine on 17th June, which I can highly recommend as I’ve just done a workshop day with her myself!
Kate Rusby
Derby, Manchester, London, Canterbury, Frome, Truro, Malvern, Harrogate, Newark, Huddersfield
Kate Rusby is also out on tour at the moment. Manchester and London have sold out, but you can still get tickets for the other dates if you’re quick!
Lady Maisery*
Alnwick, Otley, Cockermouth, Liverpool, Havant, London, Didcot, Coventry, Cambridge, Corsham, Cardigan, Wolverhampton, Nottingham, Beverley, Aberystwyth
I’m currently working with Lady Maisery to help promote their tour, and I’m looking forward to seeing them in Alnwick this week. As Hannah will be taking some maternity leave later this year, now’s your chance to catch a live performance of their magnificent new album, tender. Even as a long-term fan, their performances of this new album have really blown me away, so I can’t recommend this enough!
Also on tour soon!
Aoife Scott*, Billie Marten, Granny’s Attic*, Iona Lane, Kris Drever, Le Vent du Nord, O’Hooley & Tidow, Spiers & Boden, The Young’uns… and lots more.
OTHER NEWS
Singing Like Larks: A Celebration of Birds in Folk Songs by Andrew Millham
Birds are beloved for their songs and have featured in our own music for centuries. Singing Like Larks opens a window onto the relationship between birds and traditional folk music.
NEW RELEASES
14 April - Brìghde Chaimbeul, Carry Them With Us
Carry Them With Us is Brìghde Chaimbeul’s second album. Blending traditional music with minimalist drones and trancelike elements, Brìghde experiments to create something completely her own. The album also features acclaimed Canadian sound explorer and saxophonist Colin Stetson.
28 April - Skerryvore, Tempus
Skerryvore infuse Scottish roots with an alt-pop flavour in this upbeat new release, which is sure to take traditional folk to a whole new audience.
5 May - Jon Wilks, Before I Knew What Had Begun I Had Already Lost
Jon Wilks gets personal with this latest album, which sees him explore some of the songs that have moved him the most over the last few difficult years. The album also includes three original compositions by Jon, and features guest musicians close to his heart, including Lukas Drinkwater, Tom Gregory, Jackie Oates and Jon Nice.
5 May - Sam Sweeney & Louis Campbell, Shapes
This 6-track EP expands on the composing method Sam previously explored on his 2020 album, Unearth Repeat. This involved using the melodic shapes of traditional tunes found in 18th century manuscripts as a springboard upon which to experiment with different notes, time/key signatures and rhythms. The finished compositions were recorded at St Martin’s Church in Stoney Middleton, where the glorious acoustics let the raw beauty of each piece shine. This is the second of Sam’s EPs aimed at highlighting each member of his band, and follows on from Solo, which he released last year.
12 May - Gnoss, Stretching Skyward
This is an album inspired by change, and how quickly we’ve seen the world shift around us over the last few years. It focuses on 10 different stories with change at their heart.
12 May - Merry Hell, Let the Music Speak for Itself
Over the last 12 years, Merry Hell have produced 6 albums and toured widely - this double CD is an attempt to distill all of this into something that represents the flavour of the band and what they do.
12 May - Whapweasel, Seven
As the title might suggest, this is the seventh album from folk-rock band and festival favourites, Whapweasel. It features brand-new tunes written by band members past and present.
19 May - Kris Drever, The Best Of
This 36-song anthology spans the breadth of Kris Drever’s career, including three exclusive new songs. It also features lots of special guests, including Eddi Reader, Boo Hewerdine, Kate Rusby, Andy Cutting, John McCusker, Phil Cunningham, Heidi Talbot, Megan Henderson and more!
25 May - Ville & Tommie, Stuffed Pockets
This debut album from Ville & Tommie presents music free from borders, taking the listener on a journey from Scandinavian woodlands to Cornish coastlines and beyond. It’s been released on Penny Fiddle Records, which is dedicated entirely to string-based music, and particularly music that’s unexplored or can’t be categorised.
26 May - Shirley Collins, Archangel Hill
Shirley Collins has carefully curated the songs in this collection, which includes traditional choices as well as more contemporary songs by some of her favourite writers. The album is all about the legacy and evolution of music, and the importance of paying respect to the singers and songwriters who came before us, as well as passing songs to the next generation.
26 May - Jim Ghedi & Toby Hay, Jim Ghedi & Toby Hay
Two of the UK folk scene’s finest guitarists have come together a second time for this stripped back and minimalist album, which allows the talent of both musicians to shine brightly.
26 May - Heather Ferrier*, Engine for the Sound
Newcastle-based alt-folk accordionist Heather Ferrier is boldly breaking new ground as she crosses the boundaries between folk, jazz and classical music. With this new EP, she proves just how powerful music can be to express meaning without ever needing words. She’s joined by bandmates Adam Stapleford and Alasdair Paul, as well as guest musicians including Jordan Aikin, Niles Krieger, Sam Quintana and Callum Younger, to bring her unique musical vision to life.
RECORD OF THE MONTH
Record of the Month is Forms by Leveret, which celebrates the band’s 10-year anniversary. As many of you will know, improvisation is key to Leveret’s approach, with no two performances by the trio ever being quite the same. With this album, they’ve once again taken a new set of tunes and had fun exploring them together, maintaining the signature spontaneity and freshness that sets them apart.
As for the album title, there are a few possible interpretations. A hare’s nest is called a form, the tunes themselves are in many forms, and as the band noted, there were also lots of forms involved when transporting the instruments to Belgium to record it. Take your pick as to which of those seems most inspiring!
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The Folk Forecast is created for artists, for audiences and for the UK folk scene. All information is correct to the best of our knowledge. If you have queries about the events listed, please contact the artists or promoters. If you have any suggestions for inclusion in future newsletters, please email TheFolkForecast@gmail.com. We may not be able to include absolutely everything, but we’re interested in UK folk events with a broad appeal, and would particularly welcome suggestions from Scotland, Wales and Ireland. The Folk Forecast is compiled by one person, so please bear with me if I can’t get back to you right away.
* Alongside The Folk Forecast, I work with other organisations including Live to Your Living Room, Soundpost, Downlander Events, Folk on Foot, Fancourt Music (Granny’s Attic, Janice Burns & Jon Doran and The Wilderness Yet), Sidmouth Folk Festival and individual artists including Jo Freya, Lady Maisery, Heather Ferrier and Aoife Scott. Events where I have some involvement with the promoter or artist are marked with a star for transparency. Although I have various affiliations, I strive to be inclusive and tell you about anything I find which I think you’ll enjoy!