In a year that has seen the no-show of a few personal-favourite festivals, it’s heartening to see a new one start up. While not exactly new, the last Bristol Folk Festival was 32 years ago, so its reappearance is still a cause for celebration.
Jam-packed with local acts, as well as big names to draw in the crowds, the hall was a hub of folk-related goings on all weekend. Passing crowds were treated to displays from local Morris and Rapper sides, with the smaller stages offering a host of home-grown talent. There really was something for everybody all contained within the confines of Colston Hall.
Emerging artists
Two smaller stages provided a platform for up-and-coming artists to shine, here’s a few which caught our eye.
Under the Driftwood Tree won a main stage slot throughthe festival’s Isambard Nu-Folk Award. With an eclectic array of instruments, including a didgeridoo, their light-hearted ’surf-folk-pop’ resonated with the assembled crowd. A special mention goes to their bassist who bravely overcame a cast on his ankle and still found the energy to hobble around for all he was worth.
Fourteen year old guitarist and singer Declan Miller embodies the term ’rising star’, playing with the confidence of one twice his age or more. With a set comprised predominately of original material he won over the crowd with his mature writing style and knowledge of the world outside the usual teenage domain.
Even before their debut album has hit the shelves, three-piece Pilgrims’ Way are already a charming and assured live presence. With accomplished musicianship and thoughtful interpretations of traditional songs, they surely have a bright future ahead of them. Highlights were an atmospheric retelling of Handweaver and the Factory Maid (with a great and unexpected use of a Jew’s Harp) and a rousing unnamed tune who’s potent fiddle, fiddle and melodeon combination left the audience well satisfied.
Dyer:Cummings are by anyone’s definition bright, young and folk. A ceilidh band by trade, here they did a concert set at the unforgiving early hour. A lesser band would have struggled, but they rose to the occasion and flourished. Their powerful sound is heavy on the bottom end with both a bassoon and electric bass in their ranks. A great sign of their audience’s goodwill came when they risked asking the seated to rise to their feet for the last number. Every last one of us did and they were forced back for an encore.
Finally, in a weekend full of accomplished musicians, the astonishing fiddle award goes to local musician David Garner, performing here with guitarist and singer Alan Doyle. The programme described his playing as ’dazzling’, which was in no way an exaggeration. With a precise fiddle style that was by turns fiery and then delicate when needed, the way his fingers flew along the fingerboard made it look all too easy.
Review by Mary Stokes and Christopher Friedenthal
