It’s our 10th anniversary this August and we have so much to celebrate … FolkEast is all about coming together for three days to fill your boots with music, food, ale, art, family and friends in the glorious parkland of Glemham Hall in Suffolk. Where there is space to breathe, time to share, plenty to do or to do nothing at all. Welcome to FolkEast. We are looking forward to celebrating with these wonderful artists … so, fill your tankard with Jackalope ale and join us at glorious Glemham Hall.
The Return of Imagined Village…..
Billy Bragg | Eliza Carthy | Martin Carthy | Simon Emmerson | Johnny Kalsi | Andy Gangadeen | Jackie Oates | Simon Richmond | Sheema Mukherjee | Barney Morse Brown
The most ambitious folk fusion band of the 21st century, The Imagined Village set out to match English traditional songs against the sounds of contemporary multi-cultural England, with influences from Asia, the Caribbean and elsewhere. And they did so with an extraordinary line-up that included folk celebrities Eliza Carthy and Martin Carthy, Simon Emmerson (of Afro-Celt Sound System fame), sitar exponent Sheema Mujherjee, that rousing dhol and tabla percussionist Johnny Kalsi, and drummer Andy Gangadeen. They recorded three albums, played at major festivals from Glastonbury to Cambridge, headlined at concert halls and appeared on Later…With Jools Holland, performing a stomping, percussive re-working of Cold Haily Rainy Night (the song that won them Best Traditional Track at the 2008 BBC Folk Awards). Then, after recording Bending The Dark in 2012, they took an unexpectedly lengthy break, from which they have at last thankfully returned. The Imagined Village will be playing at two major festivals this summer (FolkEast on Aug 19 and Beautiful Days on Aug 20), with members of the original line-up. So why has it taken them so long? They have all been busy with other projects, of course – though Simon says that Eliza has constantly been pestering him to organise a re-union. But the real catalyst came during the Covid lockdown, when the band recorded a glorious (and socially-distanced) new version of Sandy Denny’s setting for The Quiet Joys of Brotherhood, which can be heard on the 2021 compilation The Electric Muse Revisited. It reminded The Imagined Village that they are still a very special band. This promises to be the folk comeback of the year.
Kate Rusby is often hailed as the ‘first lady of folk’. Announcing herself to the music press in 1999 with a Mercury Music Prize, she has forged an impressive 30-year career, breaking records and headlining everywhere from the Royal Albert Hall to Cambridge Folk Festival. A remarkable, interpretive singer, Kate’s soulful vocals resonate with the wistful beauty of an earthbound angel. Inhabiting a lyric with unforced conviction – no matter how old or how modern – she has that rare ability to transport her audience, touching them emotionally and making each tune live vividly within their experience and imagination. Audiences are sure to be thoroughly entertained by Kate’s choice of much-loved classics from her back catalogue stretching over the past 30 years of music making, together with a selection of fresh new songs from her most recent albums and new releases including her brand new album ‘30’. As ever, she will be joined on stage by her band, each a virtuoso in their own right and including her husband and producer Damien O’ Kane. They will be sure to delight you with their exceptional talents The crossover appeal Kate enjoys is unprecedented for a folk singer and has been achieved without resort to compromise. Her recent reimagined covers album Hand Me Down was her highest charting album to date. Rusby’s wondrous singing and hugely engaging Yorkshire wit and the intuitive support of the band ensure that audiences will be treated to a truly remarkable and unforgettable concert experience.
The Young’uns’ live shows are renowned roller coaster rides. With heart-on-the-sleeve storytelling, beautiful lyrics, warm harmonies and relentless repartee, Sean Cooney, Michael Hughes and David Eagle (the award-winning stand-up comedian) write and sing folk songs for today. Born from empathy, crafted with care, fired by hope, and shared with joy, The Young’uns’ songs have been described as ‘a heartfelt secular hymnary for these troubled times and a rallying call for humanity’ (The Scotsman). They have led the band to three BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards (including Best Album in 2018 for Strangers) and the creation of the acclaimed international theatre show The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff (based upon their 2019 album of the same name). Nearly twenty years after accidentally stumbling into the alien world of their local folk club as drunken teenagers, (and gaining their cureless name in the process) these three thirtysomething friends from Stockton and Hartlepool have never lost the joy of that first night of singing together. Whether performing in front of 5,000 people at Glastonbury Festival, writing a song about pigs with a group of school children, or presenting a programme on BBC Radio 4, Sean Cooney, Michael Hughes and David Eagle are just the same.
The Unthanks return to live touring after two years off the road, showcasing forthcoming new album, Sorrows Away, alongside favourites such as Magpie, The King Of Rome and Mount The Air. Since the release of BBC Folk Album of the Year, Mount The Air in 2015, The Unthanks have both scaled up to symphonic levels with Charles Hazelwood and the BBC Proms, and stripped down to the unaccompanied singing they grew up with, for Diversions Vol 5. They’ve written six scarecrow soundtracks for Mackenzie Crook’s beautiful adaptation of Worzel Gummidge, while finding time to interpret the work of female writers including Emily Bronte, Molly Drake and Maxine Peake. But projects and diversions aside, Sorrows Away is the long-anticipated follow-up to Mount The Air, and as the title suggests, promises to be a blues-buster and a step into the light for a band known more for melancholy and well, sorrow! At the nucleus of a constantly evolving unit is the traditional upbringing of Tyneside sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank and the arrangements and writing of composer, pianist, producer and Yorkshireman, Adrian McNally. Descriptions of The Unthanks range variously from “music that asks you to consider everything you know and un-think it”, to “a take on tradition that flips so effortlessly between jazz, classical, ambient and post-rock, it makes any attempt to put a label on them a waste of time”. Using the traditional music of the North East of England as a starting point, the influence of Miles Davis, Steve Reich, Sufjan Stevens, Robert Wyatt, Antony & The Johnsons, King Crimson and Tom Waits can be heard in the band’s 14 records to date, earning them a Mercury Music Prize nomination and international acclaim along the way. Folk music can commonly and affectionately be defined as low culture, but The Unthanks aspire to prove that the beauty and truth present in the oral history of the people, is anything but common. Their approach to storytelling makes easy bedfellows of tradition and adventure, direct social commentary and sophisticated harmony, heart-breaking empathy and glacial minimalism, earning them an army of writer and performer admirers including Mackenzie Crook, Maxine Peake, Nick Hornby, Martin Freeman, Elvis Costello, Robert Wyatt, Rosanne Cash, Dawn French, Adrian Edmondson, Stephen Mangan, Colin Firth, Martin Hayes and members of Portishead and Radiohead.
On a summer’s day in 2016, the organisers of FolkEast Festival masterminded one of the most intriguing and exciting collaborations on today’s folk scene. Peter Knight, legendary violinist and ex-member of folk-rock band Steeleye Span was paired with leading melodeon player and ex-Bellowhead member, John Spiers, for a special one-off performance which left audiences in awe. With no space to be found in the marquee, people stood five deep in the pouring rain in order to witness the bringing together of two of the most genuinely gifted musicians in their respective fields. With a standing ovation and roars for more, and much to the delight of folk fans everywhere, Knight and Spiers decided not to leave things there. The pairing of violin and melodeon is not a new one, but in the hands of Knight and Spiers, improvisation and invention meet the listener at every turn. Together they have created a musical document that resonates with history, but also something that should inspire future generations of musicians to engage with Britain’s folk dancing heritage, and the beautiful, mysterious tunes that can be found within that heritage. These uniquely gifted musicians make a sublime pairing, and create a live performance to be remembered for a long time.
By the time John Spiers and Jon Boden had hung up their highly regarded hats as the Spiers & Boden duo in 2014 they had earned a place in the hearts of the folk audience that few could rival. Described by The Guardian as ‘the finest instrumental duo on the traditional scene’, Spiers & Boden first rocketed onto the music scene in 2001, quickly winning a clutch of BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and went on to become one of the best loved duos on the English folk scene and beyond. John and Jon also founded and fronted the pioneering and hugely successful folk big band Bellowhead, whose stellar career increasingly came to dominate their time. But now, after exploring solo projects, the duo is back with a the album ‘Fallow Ground’ (Hudson Records), plus festival appearances and a 23 date UK comeback tour in October ’21, which included the sold out Spiers & Boden Festival at Cecil Sharp House, London. ‘I guess we were looking for songs during lockdown with a sense of fun and light relief. I realise that there are zero songs about death on this album, which is probably a first and may get us expelled from the English Folk Dance & Song Society. Yes, traditional songs with a joyous edge’. Jon Boden. Despite the impact of Covid-19 on live music audiences in autumn 2021, the Spiers & Boden tour went on to numerous sell outs and ‘Fallow Ground’ reached number 3 on the UK & Ireland Official Folk Albums chart for September ’21 and is a Mojo magazine top 10 album of 2021.
Leveret is a unique collaboration between three of England’s finest folk musicians. Andy Cutting (button accordion), Sam Sweeney (fiddle) and Rob Harbron (concertina) are each regarded as exceptional performers and masters of their instruments. Together their performances combine consummate musicianship, compelling delivery and captivating spontaneity. Leveret’s music is not arranged in the conventional sense and the trio rely on mutual trust and musical interaction to create new settings of their repertoire in the moment, with no two performances alike. Their playing is relaxed and natural, drawing audiences in and inviting them to share in music making that is truly spontaneous and yet deeply timeless. Fiddler Sam Sweeney was the 2015 BBC Folk Awards Musician of the Year and the inaugural Artistic Director of the National Youth Folk Ensemble. He is known for his work in Bellowhead and The Full English, and his solo albums The Unfinished Violin and Unearth Repeat. Melodeon genius Andy Cutting, a four-time BBC Folk Awards Best Musician, is a compelling solo performer and works with Blowzabella, Topette, June Tabor, and Roger Daltry. Concertina wizard Rob Harbron leads the English Acoustic Collective Summer School, released his own solo album Meanders in 2019, and is known for his work with The Full English (Best Group and Best Album BBC Folk Awards 2014), Emily Portman and Emma Reid. Leveret’s music is firmly rooted in the English tradition but sounds fresh and new. With their first four albums and over a long string of sell-out gigs, the trio have built a strong reputation as superb musicians, fine tunesmiths and captivating performers. Their recent release Variations Live showcases their trademark groove, energy and intuitive playing in a set recorded live during the last few gigs they did before lockdown in 2020 – truly great music from a band at the top of their game.
Ground-breaking, chart-topping, genre-bending, globetrotting, instantly enthralling… it’s little wonder that Talisk rank highly amongst the most in-demand folk-based groups to emerge from Scotland in the last decade and more. Mohsen Amini (BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards’ Musician of the Year 2018), Graeme Armstrong and Benedict Morris (BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year 2019) fuse concertina, guitar and fiddle to produce a truly innovative, multi-layered signature that has captivated audiences around the globe. At its core, three seemingly acoustic instruments – but in the hands of three master craftsmen; one unmistakable, bold sound and a captivating live show. Alongside extensive touring, Talisk have stacked up major awards for their explosively energetic, artfully woven sound – including Folk Band of the Year at the BBC Alba Scots Trad Music Awards, a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award, and the Belhaven Bursary for Innovation. Appearances at leading festivals across multiple continents have amassed a die-hard following – including closing out Saturday night’s main stage at the 2019 Cambridge Folk Festival, Denmark’s Tønder Festival, the Rainforest World Music Festival in Malaysian Borneo, WOMADs UK, Chile and Las Palmas, Edmonton Folk Festival, Milwaukee Irish Festival, three back-to-back years at the Philadelphia Folk Festival, and six appearances at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections. Following their critically acclaimed debut, Abyss, Talisk’s sophomore album, Beyond, quickly amassed five star reviews and rose to No.1 in the iTunes world music charts upon its late 2018 release. With streaming figures into multiple millions, and new music on the horizon in 2022, audiences worldwide are hotly anticipating the latest chapter from a group. #
One of the most exciting bands to have entered the UK folk scene in the past twenty years, The Lost Boys is the brainchild of BBC Radio 2 Folk Award winning singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Sam Kelly. The Lost Boys band has gained a reputation as one of the best live acts in the UK and they have packed out festival tents and venues the world over since they started in 2016.
With the virtuosic talents of Jamie Francis (banjo), Graham Coe (cello), Toby Shaer (whistles/fiddle), Archie Moss (melodeon) and Evan Carson (drums), The Lost Boys have become known for their eclectic and innovative reworking of traditional songs and tunes from England, Scotland, Ireland and the USA, as well as stunning original music and the occasional surprise classic rock cover.
Expect to hear uplifting melodies, soaring harmonies and high-octane instrumental performances of the highest calibre – all lead by Sam’s stunning vocals and tempered with a dash of cheeky humour. After the critically acclaimed album ‘Pretty Peggy’ saw them nominated for best group at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2018, The Lost Boys recently released The Wishing Tree; a hotly anticipated new album of brand new material.
Combining exquisite folk with influences as diverse as blues, Indian classical, and beatboxing, the BBC Folk Award winners, Hannah Martin and Phillip Henry, take their strong roots sound, mixing original songwriting with stomping beatbox harmonica, soaring fiddle and vocal harmonies, running wilder with each repeat play.
Edgelarks began their musical journey together living in a small caravan in the hills near Exmouth, Devon, UK. Phil had returned, Chatturangui in tow, from studying slide guitar in India with the master musician Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya. Hannah had grown up playing fiddle at traditional folk sessions. The pair met when they were both recruited to alt-roots outfit The Roots Union, travelling from festival to festival, tent to tent, wandering the highways, byways, and old forgotten pathways of these islands. When the band folded, Phil and Hannah formed a duo. They followed in the footsteps of the ancient troubadour tradition, picking up tunes, songs and stories along the way. Spotted busking on the seafront at Sidmouth Folk Festival by champion of independent music Steve Knightley, they soon found themselves touring nationally, supporting the likes of Show of Hands and Seth Lakeman, and eventually winning the prestigious Best Duo award at the 2014 BBC Folk Awards.
A busy collaborative period has included work as part of the Gigspanner Big Band (featuring members of Bellowhead and Steeleye Span); and performing at BBC Radio Two’s Festival In A Day to a Hyde Park crowd of 50,000 – supporting Kylie Minogue!
British folk and roots duo Honey & the Bear combine delicately interweaving vocal harmonies with emotive and evocative songwriting. With a diverse range of sounds and textures, and rhythms that flow from the fast and furious to gentle ballads, their live performances are spirited and dynamic. Conjuring stories in song, they tell tales of Suffolk folklore, courageous people they admire, their passion for nature and the odd heartbreak or two.
The multi instrumentalist pair, comprised of songwriters Jon Hart (guitar, bass, bazouki) and Lucy Hart (guitar, ukulele, bass, banjo, mandolin & percussion), have been writing and performing together since early 2014, having met at a songwriting event two years previous. Since then, they have played at many revered venues and festivals across the UK as well as travelled across the channel for their first European tour. They supported Sam Kelly and the Lost Boys on two UK tours and opened for The Shires at world renowned Snape Malting’s Concert Hall.
In July 2019 they released their first full studio album ‘Made In The Aker’ which was followed by a UK tour as a four piece band in October 2019 alongside fellow musicians Toby Shaer of Sam Kelly & The Lost Boys & Cara Dillon and Evan Carson of Sam Kelly & The Lost Boys and The Willows . The album was well received by both their ever growing fan base and the critics.
2020 and the onset of the coronavirus pandemic saw the duo grounded and many gigs cancelled, but their music has prevailed in the form of Sunday night facebook live streams of which they performed thirty-two throughout the year 2020. After challenging themselves to write a new song for the first 12 weeks of the livestream, they successfully managed to produce a second album in the Autumn. ‘Journey Through the Roke’ which was released on 23rd April 2021. The album features many talented musicians including Toby Shaer (whistles, harmonium, flute, fiddle, bass), Evan Carson (drums, bodhran, percussion), Archie Churchill Moss of Moore Moss Rutter (melodeon) and Graham Coe of The Jellyman’s Daughter (cello).
More musical joy to follow …
And there will be ceilidhs and workshops, the Youth Moot and young folk frolics, Jackalopes and dwile flonking, storytellers and authors, discussions, debates and sessions for song and instrument, Gardeners Cornered and throw down potters, makers and shakers, poets and performers and everything in between. With one foot in Suffolk and the other in the mythical arena of Eastfolk.
Photo Credits:
(1) FolkEast,
(2) The Imagined Village,
(4) Peter Knight & John Spiers,
(5) Talisk,
(6) Honey and The Bear
(unknown/website);
(3) The Unthanks,
(by Walkin' Tom).
