Intensely familiar - review of Sam Carter

Sam Carter at New Greenham Arts on Friday, June 28, 2013

YOU know when you hear a song played that seems so intensely familiar that there is no way that you haven’t heard it performed live before - possibly more than once? That happened to me with Sam Carter’s Dreams Are Made of Money. It rang such a strong bell that I could picture myself, as  part of an audience, singing along to the chorus. I even told Carter himself after the show, that I must have seen someone else cover his song, but I couldn’t remember who. He had no idea who this could be, simply commenting “ah well, the PRS cheque will still come to me”.

Unfortunately, there will be no Performing Rights Society cheque winging its way through his letterbox on this occasion - after several hours of trying to work it out, I concluded that in fact I had seen Carter himself performing Dreams Are Made of Money on the BBC TV show Later... with Jools Holland last autumn. As me and Jools Holland are not one and the same, I have decided that it is the insane catchiness of this future folk standard that has burrowed it into my mind, and there it will stick forever more.

Carter is fully aware of the compulsive nature of the song’s tune - he first heard it himself performed in its original version as Antioch, a hymn performed acapella by four harmonising voices, while gleaning inspiration for his most recent album, The No Testament, which is partly influenced by the American tradition of shapenote singing. He told the audience that after one hearing of the song, he was unable to shake it from his head, and so reinvented Antioch as a hymn for the modern world.

Whether self-penned, traditional or a mix of both, many of Carter’s songs have tales behind them, often drawn from his more painful life experiences, including rejection in Pheasant (“you flattened me like a pheasant on a country road”) and a disintegrating relationship in She Won’t Hear. It seems like the women in Carter’s life can’t expect a song written about them until the love is gone.

Most personal of all, and stunningly moving, was Here In The Ground, the title song of Carter’s 2008 debut EP, written about the death of Carter’s older sister at the age of three, when he was a toddler. This contrasted with the following song, a cheery little ditty called Lumpy’s Lullaby, written for the child of Carter’s surviving sister while still in utero. Almost certainly entirely lacking in soporific tendencies, it was a sweet reminder of the circle of life, and how it can impact on one family.

As Carter himself quoted on stage (from whom, I can’t remember), “no one lives long enough to write a traditional song”, explaining that a song has to be passed through generations of musicians, changing and developing along the way, before it can be considered “traditional” - and, of course, no one remembers the original composer by then. On the eve of his 30th birthday, and with his BBC Folk Best Newcomer Award three years in the past, it may be that with at least one song (Dreams..., of course), and possibly with more, both written and unwritten, Carter has confirmed his place as a composer of future folk standards. Let’s hope that his name is remembered for them.

• First published in the Newbury Weekly News on Thursday, July 4, 2013

Smooth as selkie - review of Lady Maisery at New Greenham Arts

Lady Maisery at New Greenham Arts, Greenham, on Thursday, May 23

 WHAT do you mean you haven’t heard of the bansitar? It’s a musical instrument that combines the sound of a sitar with the tuning and playing technique of a banjo. And do you know what diddling is? It’s a style of singing without words, once common in England, used to create music for dancing without the need for instruments. OK then, how about a bit of clog dancing? You don’t see much of it round these parts, but the tradition continues in the north of England, where it grew up around the factories and workhouses.

Lady Maisery is an all-female trio, Hazel Askew, Hannah James and Rowen Rheingan, who all grew up steeped in the folk tradition and performing from an early age, before coming together to form a harmony group focussing on the vocal traditions of Britain and further afield, with Scandinavian, Celtic and Appalachian songs also getting a look in.

The general cheeriness of Lady Maisery’s performance - and of the often upbeat tunes - contrasts with the themes that pop up regularly in their songs, particularly those on their newly-released second album Mayday, which intentionally scrutinises the human (and often female) struggle for power and equality.

And thus, thought-provoking modern folk songs such as The Crow On The Cradle by Jackson Browne and Palaces Of Gold (inspired by the Aberfan disaster) by Leon Rosselson were performed alongside old songs about honour-based murder, illegitimate births (covered up by Scottish songs of selkies - fabled man-seals - making night time visitations), and the importance of clinging on to that precious “maidenhood”.

Even West Berkshire resident Kate Bush got a look-in, with a particularly lovely interpretation of her song This Women’s Work, a song about childbirth sung from the partner’s viewpoint, which Lady Maisery originally recorded as a charity single to celebrate International Women’s Day. 

Some of the lyrical vibes may have been a bit on the heavy side, but Lady Maisery’s performance certainly was not. The trio were warm and engaging, their harmonies gorgeous, and their between-song chats both enlightening and often mood-lightening. The vocal focus of their performance blended with their other musical abilities, playing the fiddle, banjo, harp, accordion and concertina.

Oh yes - and then there’s the diddling. There’s something innately cheery about diddling. You can’t listen to a diddle and not smile, even if it comes straight off the back of a song about death - their sign-off song, Sleep On Beloved, isn’t just about someone having a snooze. But however chilling and stark some of Lady Maisery’s songs may be, it’s nothing that a diddle and a little bit of clogging can’t solve.

• First published in the Newbury Weekly News on May 30, 2013

Perfectly Jolly People - interview with Julian Tulk

LOCAL singer-songwriter JULIAN TULK is setting off an around-the-world trip in the summer - but before he goes, his gift to Newbury is a night of music at Ace Space. “People in Newbury are used to seeing live music for free down the pub”, he tells CATRIONA REEVES, “but they’ll be getting three bands for not much more than the price of a pint”.

HEADLINING the gig organised by Tulk at Ace Space on Saturday, May 18 will be The PJP [aka Patrick James Pearson] Band (pictured above), supported by Tulk’s new outfit, Horse Around Home, and PJP’s tour opener Harry George Johns.

Tulk first came across PJP frontman Pearson when working on his last album at the Devon studio run by producer - and former Newbury musician - Pete Miles, who suggested that he get Pearson involved in the recording. “PJP are based in Plymouth,” explains Tulk. “There’s a really thriving music scene down there; folk and punk, underground stuff, and Pat’s one of the best acts to come out of it.

“He’s an exceptional songwriter, keyboard player and guitarist. Many of his lyrics have an edgy protest edge to them, and it’s really emotional stuff. He’s a great performer, and he’s got a really energetic band around him. When you watch them live, you can’t help but pay attention.”

Tulk’s own new outfit, Horse Around Home, reflects where he feels he is currently at in his life; newly married with a young son, resulting in “quite a lot of family-orientated stuff; it still sounds like me though; good, straight-up folk-rock-pop songs. I sing it like I mean it.”

He may now be a family man, but Tulk isn’t exactly settling down; later this summer he’s due to set off travelling with his wife and son for a year or so, meaning that the Ace Space gig may be the last opportunity to see him play live for quite a while. 

Tulk has a word for those who may be procrastinating about buying tickets for the gig in advance: “People in Newbury are reluctant to commit to spending money because they’re used to being able to pop down the pub and see live music for free. But Ace Space is a great venue, and there’s nothing like going to a real gig, where it’s all about the music and everyone is there to see the bands.”

Tickets for The PJP Band, supported by Horse Around Home and Harry George Johns are £5 in advance from Hogan Music, Ace Space on  07905 590214 or from Julian himself. If your bulging social calendar means that you’re still reticent to commit by buying an advanced ticket, entry costs £6 on the night. Doors open at 7pm - be there early to see all three acts.

• First published in the Newbury Weekly News on Thursday, May 2, 2013

Straight outta Cowley - review of Stornoway

Stornoway at New Greenham Arts, Greenham on Monday, February 18

NOT actually from the Isle of Lewis as the name suggests but in fact formed in Oxford (they clearly considered it a more atmospheric name than “Cowley”; Stornoway are on the more interesting end of the spectrum of the new folk rock sound so often drowned out by the likes of the ubiquitous Mumford &  Sons. For a start, they have a saw-on-woodblock combo as a percussion instrument, and a large metal cylinder that gets bashed to oblivion. And - possibly most pleasingly - a lot less banjo.

As the first band to be allowed a standing gig at New Greenham Arts, Stornoway conquered the Monday night blues to attract a sell-out crowd, the largest probably seen on the former USAF air base since the Prodigy played in one of the old aircraft hangers in the mid-90s.

They may not have visited their remote namesake town until 2010, but Stornoway’s sound is certainly evocative of the windswept Outer Hebrides: lush layers of music sweep and soar before being stripped back to a soundscape of near-bleakness for acoustic moments and even acapella singing. There are two sets of brothers in the band, and the phenomenon of sibling harmony that arises from a shared vocal timbre is a string to Stornoway’s bow.

A slight naive tilt to some of the lyrics of songwriter and frontman Brian Briggs grated a little with the overall maturity of Stornoway’s music. For the otherwise gorgeous Farewell Appalachia!  Briggs appears to have imbibed a thesaurus of countryside terms: Through the scree at the foot of the bluff/  And I drank from the brook/ And I slept in the lee of the wood. And the line in their UK number four chart hit, Zorbing, “I feel like I just started uni” just makes me feel a bit old.

Aside from traumatising some audience members (ie me) with the realisation that at least some of these immensely talented “songsmiths, scholars, scientists and men of the earth” are young enough to be my offspring, Stornoway attracted a wonderfully wide spread of ages to NGA, and the ability of this band and their ilk to induct a new generation into the folk genre deserves a generous doff of the cap.

And anyway - any band that can produce a song as lovely as The Coldharbour Road can be forgiven a few duff lyrics along the way.

• First published in the Newbury Weekly News on Thursday, March 5, 2013

Be Young, be foolish, be Gabby - review of Gabby Young & Other Animals

Gabby Young & Other Animals at New Greenham Arts on Saturday, February 9. 2013

THE GENRE purveyed - and arguably invented - by Gabby Young is described as Circus Swing; and while this comes from its gypsy-style musical roots (a heady mix of Eastern European and English folk, with a hefty dose of swing jazz), Young’s stunning visual appearance and the party mood provided by her performance brings all the fun of the big top to the stage. If you visited Gifford’s Circus during its summer sojourn in Victoria Park, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

The “Other Animals” menagerie was stripped down to a trio for Young’s sell-out New Greenham New Folk performance, with Young’s powerful classically-trained voice being accompanied by guitarist and pianist (and partner) Stephen Ellis, and violinist Milly McGregor. It may have been a small gathering of musicians, but the sound was anything but stripped down - who needs a brass section when you’ve got kazoos?

Wiltshire-born Young’s flamboyant visual persona has received media attention, and she has fun with it - she  has her own internet boutique, called Gabberdashery, and a previous tour saw the Other Animals performing in her favourite vintage clothes shops. The band’s on stage party mood is irresistible, and they soon had the seated audience singing, clapping and stomping along, bringing a summer festival mood to the New Greenham auditorium on a February evening.

Young’s songs are strong and beautiful, and unlike some funtime festival bands, they transfer perfectly to album (the other animals have released two to date; with 2012’s And The Band Called For More being contained in a stunning petal-fold sleeve, worth the money alone purely for presentation). Not all songs are upbeat party numbers, and many appear to be very personal in their sentiment, but all are performed in Young’s powerful yet velvet-smooth voice that grabs and holds you from beginning to end. Think of Florence & The Machine with a sense of humour, and you’re halfway there.

A gorgeous treat for at least two of the senses, Gabby Young & Other Animals are a must-see if they pop up at any festival you might be at this summer. And certainly grab your tickets quickly if Young visits these parts again. I’m hoping that next time, she brings enough kazoos for the entire audience.

• First published in the Newbury Weekly News on February 14, 2013