William Doyle
+ Strange Boy
Serving up art-pop for the anthropocene, "Springs Eternal" is the Mercury-nominated, critically acclaimed artist William Doyle's most ambitious and most playful creation to date. Taking a panoramic view of the ecstasies and agonies of life in the 2020s, the record asks how we exist as fragile flesh and blood - our hearts beating and our minds racing - in an unprecedented, almost unimaginable time of runaway climate destruction and technological expansion.
"Springs Eternal" presents a strange and thrilling cast of characters - from cowboys to castaways - who just might be Doyle, once or twice removed. "Most of the songs are in the first-person, but rather than being autobiographical, I was trying to imagine hyperreality versions of myself," Doyle says. "What if decisions I made in my life had resulted in the self of each particular song? How many degrees of separation am I from those realities? It's a frightening thought, and frightening thoughts often make for good songs."
Cambridge Portland Arms, Wed, 20 Mar 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Sam Lee
+ Sam Eagle
7.30 - 8 Sam Eagle
8.30 - 10 Sam Lee
March 2024 sees the release of Sam Lee's fourth studio album, "Songdreaming", the follow up to 2020's "Old Wow", an album variously described as "a dazzling fusion of nature and song" (The Observer) and a "sublime album that demands to be heard in the 21st century" (The Daily Telegraph) amidst a host of critical acclaim.
"Songdreaming" represents the latest stage in the development of Sam Lee's music, from its roots in traditional folk song to a new way of imagining and performing these old songs, making them relevant for a modern audience.
This event is seated, and seats are unreserved.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Thu, 21 Mar 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Lady Nade Sings Nina Simone
Renowned for her distinctive and award-winning vocal prowess, Lady Nade possesses one of the most singular voices in the UK music scene.
Critics and fans alike have often drawn comparisons between Lady Nade's voice and the legendary Nina Simone. An artist known for paying homage to those who have profoundly influenced her journey, Lady Nade holds Nina Simone in high regard.
Nina Simone, an icon and consummate musical storyteller of the twentieth century, left behind a legacy of liberation, empowerment, passion, and love through her extraordinary body of work. By the end of her life, she had garnered an unprecedented level of recognition. Her music reached millions through recordings, film, television, and the digital sphere. In the last decade of her life alone, she sold over a million CDs, solidifying her status as a global best-seller.
As a black woman, Lady Nade acknowledges Nina Simone's trailblazing role in paving the way for artists of her generation. Simone's tenacity encouraged them not to abandon their dreams and aspirations. Lady Nade is honored to celebrate Nina Simone's life and enduring legacy alongside some of the UK's most accomplished musicians.
This high-energy performance is a heartfelt dedication to recreating the transformative sound that blended popular tunes of the era into a distinctive fusion of jazz, blues, gospel, and folk music.
This event is seated, and seats are unreserved.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Fri, 22 Mar 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Baskery
+ Christie
The queens of banjopunk, three Swedish sisters by the name of Baskery, who've played music since they were old enough to hold an instrument. Baskery play a combination of classic 'roots music and Americana' with a twist of rule breaking punk turn this much loved style of music on it's head. Their sound oozes style and playfulness and has helped them accrue a number of plaudits and accolades.
The first album, "Fall Among Thieves" (2008) was recorded in Stockholm, co-produced by Lasse Mårtén (Pink; Peter, Bjorn and John; Kelly Clarkson; Lykke Li; Primal Scream). It quickly established them as an act that people took seriously. In the years that followed they've released several albums and EPs working with the likes of Blackpete (Depeche Mode; Joe Jackson; Peter Fox), Matt Wignall (Cold War Kids; J. Roddy Walston; Wargirl) and were also signed by Dan McCarroll (President and A&R) to Warner Music. "Coyote & Sirens" was released in October 2018, produced and engineered by Andrew Dawson (Kanye West; Rolling Stones; f.u.n; The Revivalists).
On the live scene Baskery are experienced in putting on a show have played over 400 of their own in 2015 the sisters were invited to join legendary artist Robbie Williams as opener and special guests on his arena-tour throughout Europe. Later the same year they also toured the US with Gary Clark Jr and Brandi Carlile and the festival requests roll in Colours of Ostrava, Bonnaroo, Utopiafest, Newport Folk Festival, Arroyo Seco and Bottlerock.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Sat, 23 Mar 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
The Longest Johns
Having met and bonded over sea shanties across a kitchen table in their native Bristol a decade ago, The Longest Johns ? Jonathan ?JD? Darley, Andy Yates and Robbie Sattin ? have sailed the seven seas in the name of the "rock ?n? roll of 1752" to grace the stages of international folk festivals, tour the UK, Europe and North America, and appear on TV.
To celebrate ten years of pitching and rolling in brotherly harmony, in October the band are set to release a tin anniversary edition of their self-released debut EP Bones in the Ocean. That follows their latest tour of Canada in September as they build towards the release early next year of a new studio album ? their ninth but the first as a three piece
following the departure of co-founder Dave Robinson in May.
By any standard The Longest Johns have enjoyed a whirlwind of a journey these last ten years. As well as eight full length albums, they've released four EPs and nine singles, including the 2021 version of 'Wellerman' that began a sea shanty craze on social media as a 150-year-old folk song from New Zealand became a worldwide viral sensation, sweeping the group to the #2 berth on the US Spotify Viral Chart and #5 Global.
They've racked up more than 500 million streams across all platforms, signed up more than half a million YouTube subscribers and logged some 200,000 hours watched on Twitch. Their gaming partnerships include Sea of Thieves and Wanderworld and they?ve recorded the soundtrack to No Man?s Wife, a new film made by the co-producers of the Fisherman?s
Friends films.
Cambridge The Junction, Mon, 25 Mar 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Jolie Holland (be Good Tanyas)
+ Mark McKowski (Lost Brothers)
Over the span of her career, Jolie Holland has knotted together a century of American song - jazz, blues, soul, rock and roll - into some stew that is impossible to categorize with any conventional critical terminology. This is her burden and her gift, to know all of these American songs of the last ten decades in her head and her heart, and to have to wrestle with their legacy. She dives straight to the pathos of a song the way the very greatest singers, singers like Mavis Staples, or Al Green, or Skip James, or Tom Waits do.
Upon first encounter her songs seem challenging, perhaps unsettling at times, but as so many poets and rockers have shown us (from Dante Alighieri to William Blake to Sylvia Plath to Patti Smith to Nick Cave to Mark E. Smith) that's where the beauty lies. As evident on her first recordings, Holland apparently has no fear of the truth, and there is no emotional core that she cannot reach in song. In fact she thrives on the red hot centre of a musical composition, in all its strange and brutal detail.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Mon, 1 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Ugly
The group have become renowned amongst peers for their shape shifting sound that blends experimental post-rock with swelling choral textures. Tracks have been produced at Church Studios by Balázs Altsach, assistant to Paul Epworth who has worked on music for The Last Dinner Party, Wet Leg and Blur.
Hailing from Cambridge and its surrounding areas, UGLY originally evolved through the band's choral background. Glimmers of its influence can be heard throughout their catalogue - instantly gripping infectious melodies, explosive dynamic changes and rich, intricate harmonies.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Wed, 3 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Toby Sebastian
+ Nature TV
Toby is an English musician and actor who was born in Oxford and grew up in Spain with his three sisters. Touted as "One To Watch in '23" by Rolling Stone Magazine, Toby released his first track of 2023 "Too Good" and the first track from his upcoming album. Too Good draws on the sounds of the late 60s and early 70s, and artists such as Marc Bolan and David Bowie. The track delivers a modern and comical look at the insecurities Toby experienced when he was younger, with driving guitars, relentless backbeat and catchy melodies.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Fri, 5 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Will Page (noble Jacks)
Well known as the fiddle playing front man of Americana band, Noble Jacks, Will Page is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Sussex. Will has toured relentlessly, including with his band, with sold out shows across the UK and beyond including notable festival performances at Glastonbury, Isle of Wight Festival, Cambridge Folk Festival, Dranouter Festival (Belgium) and AmericanaFest Nashville (USA) to name more than a few.
Will launched his solo career with his debut single, "Strength To Carry On", which attracted support from regional radio stations including BBC Radio Ulster, Scotland and Wales as well as global online radio such as The Folk Club Radio Show with Stuart Green who said "Will's new single "Strength to Carry On" has an uplifting tune and emotive vocals, combined with a personal narrative about using the strength within to overcome adversity. A great debut!"
"Strength To Carry On" demonstrates his exciting simultaneous fiddle-shuffle-singing style of playing and showcases his skills as an earnest songwriter. Will was nominated instrumentalist of the year at the UK Americana Music Association Awards (AMAUK) in Jan 2020 plus live act of the year in the 2023 awards with the band.
Watch out for new music as Will gears up for his debut album with notable collaborations including writing and recording with folk legend Steve Knightly of Show Of Hands! Expect heartfelt vocals accompanied by guitar, harmonica, energetic fiddle and foot-stomping rhythms!
Cambridge Green Mind @ The Blue Moon, Thu, 11 Apr 2024 at 7:30pm buy tickets
John Bramwell And The Full Harmonic Trio
Following news of his stunning new album "The Light Fantastic" and five intimate dates for February 2024 earlier this month, John Bramwell has announced an additional twenty four UK and Ireland headline dates for spring/summer 2024.
Anyone who has heard John's work with seminal Manchester band I Am Kloot, will be cheered by the news of this impending release. Nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2010 for their acclaimed "Sky At Night" album, I Am Kloot never quite received the widespread success their music deserved.
This new album is a masterclass in emotionally charged and melodically driven tunes for the adventurous. All 12 tracks were written by John except for "Nobody Left But You" which he co-wrote with album producer Dave Fidler. "After both my Mum and Dad died, I started writing these songs to cheer myself up," John admits with typical candour. "The themes are taken from my dreams at the time. Wake up and take whatever impression I had from what I could remember of my dream and write that."
Norwich Green Mind @ Norwich Waterfront, Fri, 12 Apr 2024 at 6:30pm buy tickets
Dominie Hooper
Simmering memory and unspoken truth righteously seethe in songs with tenderness, anger and startling leaps of joy and optimism. To see it live is to truly feel it. Dominie Hooper, long-time session musician, collaborator and multi-instrumentalist, takes flight in the centre of a stage wrapped in musical alchemy with bandmate mainstays Phil Self and Dave Hamblett.
Her folk-steeped debut EP "Anno" was described as "beautiful, challenging, fruitful... captivating" (Liverpool Sound & Vision), and "confident and impressive" (Fatea Magazine), and was triumphantly celebrated with a sell-out debut headline tour in June 2022.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Thu, 18 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
John Smith
Born in Essex, raised by the Devon seaside, and making his bones in the bars and clubs of Liverpool, John has released six studio albums and amassed over 100 million Spotify streams. He is currently hard at work on album #7, with a set of brand new songs to play live.
He has performed all over the world at festivals and in sold-out concert halls, barely pausing for breath during his eighteen years as a full-time independent touring musician.
Steeped in the lineage of British folk and American guitar music, taking his cue from Richard Thompson, John Martyn and Ry Cooder, Smith has evolved and pioneered a transatlantic blend of guitar techniques. His deeply romantic and vivid songwriting, combined with his innovative guitar work, have won him a loyal following.
His career began opening for folk greats including John Martyn, Davy Graham and John Renbourn, who called him "the future of folk music". He has since opened for Iron and Wine, Patty Griffin and Ben Howard, and guested with artists such as Jackson Browne, Martin Carthy, Roseanne Cash, Richard Hawley, Jarvis Cocker, Jerry Douglas, Glen Hansard and Rodney Crowell. In his occasional role as sideman, he has played guitar for artists as diverse as David Gray, Lisa Hannigan, Lianne La Havas, Joe Henry and Joan Baez.
"It's rare these days to find an audience so wrapped up in a performance as this one. 5/5" The Independent
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Fri, 19 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
The Baby Seals
The Baby Seals are a punk garage band based in Cambridgeshire, made up of Kerry Devine, Amy Devine and Kate Shore.
Their debut album - "Chaos" - is slated to be released by Trapped Animal in 2024.
"The Baby Seals are a smart, talented group of girls who know how to shout back against oppressive patriarchal values; and have a shit load of fun at the same time" - Gigslutz
"A great lairy sound, I love people who promote the idea of being happy with your body during a time when people see whitened teeth and implant-filled arse cheeks as perfection" - Fresh Off the Net
Cambridge Portland Arms, Fri, 19 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
October Drift
Following the success of their debut album "Forever Whatever", released at the start of 2020 and with a solid foundation built over years of touring and writing, October Drift affirmed their place as an important new presence, with their heavy, pop-inflected rock delivering a rejuvenating injection of fresh blood to the genre. The album was met with widespread critical acclaim on release, garnering praise from the likes of CLASH, Kerrang! Louder Than War and many more. Their newly released sophomore album "I Don't Belong Anywhere" - via Physical Education Recordings - is a taut, visceral record, a step forward for the band into an even more powerful, brutal sound. Far less introspective than their debut, "I Don't Belong Anywhere" is October Drift's totem for bringing us all together again. "A feeling of not belonging is something everyone feels or has felt," explains vocalist and guitarist Kiran Roy
Having already thrilled audiences at festivals including Glastonbury's John Peel Stage, Reading & Leeds and BST Hyde Park, as well as on a major European tour with Editors, We Are Scientists, Archive and Slow Readers Club; "Forever Whatever", The "Naked" EP and the new album "I Don't Belong Anywhere" together condense years of relentless touring and expertly crafted performance into showcases of flawless song-writing; statements of intent from a band more than ready to cement their place as future icons.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Mon, 22 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Pet Needs
"Intermittent Fast Living", the third studio release by PET NEEDS in as many years, is inspired by the relentless, breathless, stop-start lifestyle PET NEEDS have found themselves living in recent times.
Founded originally by brothers Johnny and George Mariott and later joined by Jack (drums) and Ryan (bass) only a matter of years ago, PET NEEDS' career has been sky-rocketing ever since the release of their acclaimed debut "Fractured Party Music" back in 2021. From getting signed to sold out shows, rave reviews to rabid fans, and embarking on extensive global tours with the likes of Frank Turner, The Lottery Winners, Skinny Lister; demand for these four lads from Essex has been on a trajectory with the stratosphere.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Tue, 23 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Lynks
A force of the unnatural. A pop-star fed through a Nutribullet. A human bag of speed. The fourth horseman of the queer apocalypse. Lynks is here.
There is nothing quite like Lynks. An unpasteurized shot of electro-punk chaos compressed into the shape of a human man, wrapped up in a gimp mask, creating tiny queer utopias wherever they goes. And what utopias they are; sub-blowing, criminally danceable beats, anthemically witty lyrics about the darkest corners of modern life, and pure, unapologetic, camp excess colliding in a fog of sweat and confetti.
Cambridge The Junction, Wed, 24 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Eevah
Leeds based band EEVAH began 2019 in the form of a classic 80's electro pop duo, weaving etherial guitars and catchy pop hooks around epic synths and pre-programmed beats.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Mon, 29 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Jane Weaver
+ Adwaith
Reclaiming her universe, Jane Weaver returns with brand new single "Love In Constant Spectacle", evoking spectacular images perhaps impossible to capture with the human eye, nor aperture.
Taking measured steps that lead you to something very special, our protagonist pours all her creative resources before the needle drops. Secretly, this might be more conceptual in its execution, than initially meets the eye.
Cambridge The Junction, Mon, 29 Apr 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Roddy Woomble & Almost Nothing
Almost Nothing is a new band from Scottish musician and writer Roddy Woomble.
The debut album was written and recorded throughout 2021/22 in collaboration with four different producers: Scott Paterson (Protection), Andrew Wasylck, Le Junk, and Luciano Rossi.
Almost Nothing is an exercise in artistic freedom, the album shifts from electronica to moments of shimmering art pop - a genre fluid record - melodic, poetic, catchy and just confusing enough to escape full comprehension.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Thu, 2 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
The Wedding Present
+ Melys
Indie legends The Wedding Present formed in 1985 in Leeds, England, by members of The Lost Pandas. The band has been led by vocalist and guitarist David Gedge, the band's only constant member.
Closely linked to the C86 scene, the band has charted a total of eighteen singles in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, including a historic run of twelve singles - one for each month - in 1992, which tied Elvis Presley's record for most top 40 hits in a single year.
Cambridge The Junction, Fri, 3 May 2024 at 7:00pm SOLD OUT
Bare Jams
Bare Jams started out in 2011 with the aim of breaking their serial festival fence-jumping habit. Schoolmates Ollie and Sam hunkered down in Sam's garden shed, later known as the Bare Jams cave, to jam and write original music, performing as an energetic acoustic duo.
After recruiting D-Slice on bass the band began to evolve into to a flamboyant, high energy ever-changing collective; finally settling on their current 6-piece line up in 2018: a sonically tight tour-de-force of experienced musical alchemists effortlessly cooking up a credible fusion of musical styles with a sound that is uniquely their own. They are a frequent must-see on festival aficionados' lists with the band's reputation for tight and exuberant, yet wholesomely candid performances frequently filling tents to their sweaty capacities.
Never ones to keep still, the band continues to delight fans old and new bringing a relentless energy that envelopes a core moral message to both their live performances and recorded music.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Fri, 3 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett
This magnetic bond still holds after more than 40 years of attempted escapes and still loved for their total in-yer-face originality, the contrast between the dead pan humour of Barrett and mad onstage antics of Otway are hilarious to watch
Ever keen to add a new dimension to the show, Willy has a new addition to his array of instruments: beware the Moose Homp!
Willy's interest in making instruments began when he commandeered two guitars made by his dad in 1965. One from an old guitar neck and a scaffold plank which became affectionally known as the Les Dawson, and the other branded the Mk1 Schitstik electric slide of similar pedigree. These instruments were used on many of the early tracks, including Really Free and Racing Cars.
Willy's remark "this will be the last time that many of you will see us together again" was often hastily misinterpreted as the final throw of the dice, but the reason given "it's not us packing up, it's you lot dying off, you know who you are" is often overlooked by eager scribes. And so the rumours abound.
Recently John celebrated his 5,000th gig to a packed house at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire.
For any Otway/Barrett virgins out there who don't know what to expect, be prepared for everything from bare-chested theremin playing to wah wah wheelie bin as the duo jump from one hit and 40 near misses to another: an amazing and irreverent performance by two master entertainers.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Sat, 4 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Van Houten
+ Staycations + Leon O'Leary
Van Houten's core is based on life long friendship, an inability to exist without each other, and an obsession with creating a sonic mixing pot of intimate lo-fi rock and cavernous Shoegaze. Their sound envelops the listener, combining upbeat pop melodies and hooks with downbeat lyrics one minute, before full introspection and aural catharsis the next.
The Leeds based band's new music sees them find their own, unmistakable sound, something which has been 7 years in the making. It's been worth the wait, allowing them to explore sounds, textures, and raw emotions. Supporting each other through difficult moments has been key to the band finding their feet and growing into what they are today.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Sun, 5 May 2024 at 5:00pm buy tickets
Blue Bendy
Building on the momentum of their 2022 EP "Motorbike" Blue Bendy are stretching out into vast new sonic terrain. Their following two singles "Mr Bubblegum" - a joyously intricate piece of experimental guitar pop - and the frenetic, propulsive yet incredibly deft sprawl of "Cloudy", saw the band reach new heights creatively. Of the former, The Guardian enthused: "indie is riddled with addled, verbose frontmen right now, but none so rapturous as Blue Bendy's Arthur Nolan: here he dances all over splayed post-rock and micro-cataclysms".
Having toured as main support for Squid and Cola as well as playing packed out tents at festivals like End Of The Road and Green Man, Blue Bendy have struck a balance between being obviously skilled musicians, writing complex, layered, overlapping and ambitious compositions, while also utilising space, breadth, and restraint. Their music is bursting with dynamism, exploring push-pull dynamics that results in something ceaselessly unpredictable.
It results in a sound that is rare for a new band: as experimental as it is confident and assured, as tender as it is visceral, as quiet as it is loud, as bloody as it is teary.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Tue, 7 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Eliza Carthy
+ Jenn Reid
Eliza Carthy is undoubtedly one of the most impressive and engaging performers of her generation. Twice nominated for the Mercury Prize and winner of innumerable other accolades over a 20 year career, Eliza has performed and recorded with a diverse array of artists including, Paul Weller, Rufus and Martha Wainwright, Patrick Wolf and Bob Neuwirth. More than most, Eliza Carthy has revitalised folk music and captured the most hardened of dissenters with intelligent, charismatic and boundary-crossing performance.
Eliza grew up immersed in the world of traditional music. She still divides her time between touring and recording with her legendary father Martin Carthy, as well as engaging in numerous pioneering solo and band projects, including work with Pere Ubu and Melanie Challenger, an artist in residence in Antarctica. In what has become something of a parallel career, Eliza has co-presented the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards, been a regular guest-presenter on the BBC Radio 2 Mark Radcliffe Show and has made many appearances on BBC TV's "Later with Jools". In her own right, Eliza has been the subject of an hour long ITV documentary ("Heaven and Earth") and "My Music" on Channel 5.
Comedian and writer Stewart Lee describes Eliza as "Not the Messiah, but a very naughty girl".
This event is seated, and seats are unreserved.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Fri, 10 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Jack Ladder
A singular character in Australian music, sardonic and sentimental, Jack Ladder brings his towering and tender baritone to bear on tales of beauty, love, hope and redemption. A master of musical narrative, he conjures lyrics that celebrate the absurdity of the human condition in songs that groove in subtle ways.
Ladder has toured with and worked alongside some of the brightest names in the business - Bill Callahan, Angel Olsen, John Cale, Sharon Van Etten, Father John Misty, Weyes Blood, Alex Cameron and The Killers.
Cambridge Green Mind @ The Blue Moon, Tue, 14 May 2024 at 7:30pm buy tickets
Willy Mason
Willy Mason and his band will be returning to the UK in May of 2024 in anticipation of a new album later in the year.
Mason was born in White Plains, New York, the son of Jemima James and Michael Mason, both songwriters. Mason is a direct descendant of the 19th-century philosopher William James, the brother of novelist Henry James.
When Mason was five, he and his family moved from Tarrytown, New York to West Tisbury, Massachusetts, on the island of Martha's Vineyard.
He attended Chilmark Elementary School through 5th grade, West Tisbury Elementary School and Martha's Vineyard Regional High School, where he participated in several local bands such as Keep Thinking, Cultivation, and Slow Leslie. He also was in the MVRHS Minnesingers and performed in musical theatre productions.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Thu, 16 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Josephine Foster
Josephine Foster is a North American singer-songwriter Colorado. She has lent her warbling mezzo-soprano and interpretive wit to nearly two decades of self-produced recordings. Her songs are rooted in early American folk-blues as well as classical art song and Tin Pan Alley.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Tue, 21 May 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Memorial
Memorial is a project rooted in friendship, one fuelled by unflinching honesty. Ollie Spalding and Jack Watts were friends first, and song-writing partners second, and this quality sets them apart. They're marked by that peculiar alchemy when two voices become one, a special sense of human connection wrought through harmony and emboldened with experience. New album "Redsetter" is their coming-of-age moment: gilded indie-folk with an optimistic sense of maturity, it dares to look towards the light.
"We had literally no idea what was gonna happen!" Ollie gasps when looking back on the pair's self-titled debut album. Sculpted over the pandemic and released on Real Kind Records - the boutique Communion imprint chaired by Lucy Rose - the record displayed their core values. "The emotion has to be right," says Oliver. "When we record songs, we want to stay true to the emotion - as though those songs had just been written seconds before they were recorded."
Cambridge Portland Arms, Mon, 10 Jun 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
The Delines
+ Our Man in the Field + Freddy Trujillo
The Delines are a retro country band from Portland led by vocalist Amy Boone (The Damnations TX), alongside the keyboard work of Jenny Conlee (The Decemberists) as well as fellow Portlanders Sean Oldham and songwriter/novelist Willy Vlautin (Richmond Fontaine) and on pedal steel, Tucker Jackson (Minus 5); founded in 2012.
The name 'The Delines' came to Willy in a dream. He claims we were playing a nice venue somewhere and it was written across the kick drum. The idea for the band itself came long before on a tour with Richmond Fontaine. Amy was singing the female roles from "The High Country" and "Post to Wire", originally sung by her sister Deborah. Backstage Amy would sing soul and opera numbers to warm up and get her mind off the psycho logger tunes and a-holes she was locked in a van with. Some of the soul singing must have found its way into Willy's consciousness however and upon returning home he penned several songs he hoped Amy would sing. Willy sneaked over to John's studio and whipped out some demos to share with Amy and Sean. They dug 'em!
Cambridge The Junction, Wed, 12 Jun 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Sleeper Unplugged
Sleeper are coming to Bury St. Edmunds for the first time with their stripped back acoustic set, but it's lacking none of the energy of their full band set!
After hibernating for twenty years (where did the time go!?) Britpop favourites Sleeper are back on the road, performing live. Original members Louise Wener (vocals, guitar), Jon Stewart (guitar) and Andy Maclure (drums) are newly joined by Kieron Pepper (previously of The Prodigy) on bass.
Sleeper enjoyed huge critical and commercial success in the mid 90s, achieving 8 Top 40 singles across 3 Top 10 albums with well over 1,000,000 sales. The band also had two tracks featured on the era defining soundtrack to "Trainspotting"; named as one of the best film soundtracks of all time by the likes of Rolling Stone.
Sleeper garnered front covers across the music press and appeared numerous times on key music shows of the time like TFI Friday, Jools Holland and Top Of The Pops, an episode of which Louise Wener presented.
Together, the band played the main stages of Reading, Glastonbury, V etc along with sold out touring across all of the UK and a support slot with REM at Milton Keynes Bowl.
Bury St. Edmunds Green Mind @ The Apex, Fri, 14 Jun 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Josh Rouse
With Brill Building wit, and a Midwestern sense of melancholy Josh Rouse has built a career that spans almost 25 years, reaching back to his acclaimed 1998 debut "Dressed Up Like Nebraska" and continuing to his breakthrough albums "1972" and "Nashville". His well-crafted and hook-laden tracks are coupled with closely-detailed, well-observed vignettes in his lyrics.
Now passing 50, Josh faces the next phase of his life. "I remember seeing Tom Waits on the cover of a magazine with the headline 'Tom Waits at 50'.? Josh recalls "I was in my twenties and that seemed so far off... but he made a great record ("Mule Variations") and I hope I have too."
Cambridge Portland Arms, Tue, 25 Jun 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are back with their sixth studio album. The Australian psych-rock five-piece have been working on "Fronzoli" - a title meaning 'something unnecessary added as decoration' - since the release of 2022's "Night Gnomes". "Dilemma Us From Evil" is the latest single to be released from the record and is a prime example of Psychedelic Porn Crumpets' mind-bending blend of heavy melodic guitars and harmonic lyrics and eccentric song-writing oeuvre.
Cambridge The Junction, Sat, 29 Jun 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
John Bramwell
As the singer in I Am Kloot from 1999 to 2014, John Bramwell achieved a Mercury Prize nomination for 2010's "The Sky At Night", a Top 10 chart position for 2013's "Let It All In", numerous UK and European tours and a triumphant farewell at the Queen Elizabeth Hall with an orchestra in 2014. Now, as a solo artist, he's travelling a very different path, his stunning new album "The Light Fantastic" is almost a complete U-turn from his Kloot days. Darker clouds have been banished, there are strings and four-part harmonies (a warming development, since Kloot never had any backing vocals) and a dozen gloriously exhilarating, beautifully crafted and observed songs about life, humanity, the universe and everything.
As John puts it, "It's been great to find the joy of making music once again. These are the most uplifting songs of my career."
Cambridge Green Mind @ The Blue Moon, Thu, 18 Jul 2024 at 7:30pm buy tickets
John Bramwell
As the singer in I Am Kloot from 1999 to 2014, John Bramwell achieved a Mercury Prize nomination for 2010's "The Sky At Night", a Top 10 chart position for 2013's "Let It All In", numerous UK and European tours and a triumphant farewell at the Queen Elizabeth Hall with an orchestra in 2014. Now, as a solo artist, he's travelling a very different path, his stunning new album "The Light Fantastic" is almost a complete U-turn from his Kloot days. Darker clouds have been banished, there are strings and four-part harmonies (a warming development, since Kloot never had any backing vocals) and a dozen gloriously exhilarating, beautifully crafted and observed songs about life, humanity, the universe and everything.
As John puts it, "It's been great to find the joy of making music once again. These are the most uplifting songs of my career."
Cambridge Green Mind @ The Blue Moon, Fri, 19 Jul 2024 at 7:30pm buy tickets
Robyn Hitchcock
acoustic
With a career now spanning six decades, Robyn Hitchcock remains a truly one-of-a-kind artist: surrealist rock 'n' roller, iconic troubadour, guitarist, poet, painter, performer. An unparalleled, deeply individualistic songwriter and stylist, Hitchcock has traversed myriad genres with humour, intelligence, and originality over more than thirty albums and seemingly infinite live performances. From The Soft Boys' proto-psych-punk and The Egyptians' Dadaist pop - to solo masterpieces like 1984's milestone "I Often Dream of Trains" and 1990's "Eye" - Hitchcock has crafted a strikingly original oeuvre rife with sagacious observation, astringent wit, recurring marine life, mechanized rail services, cheese, Clint Eastwood, and innumerable finely drawn characters real and imagined.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Fri, 6 Sep 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Robyn Hitchcock
electric
With a career now spanning six decades, Robyn Hitchcock remains a truly one-of-a-kind artist: surrealist rock 'n' roller, iconic troubadour, guitarist, poet, painter, performer. An unparalleled, deeply individualistic songwriter and stylist, Hitchcock has traversed myriad genres with humour, intelligence, and originality over more than thirty albums and seemingly infinite live performances. From The Soft Boys' proto-psych-punk and The Egyptians' Dadaist pop - to solo masterpieces like 1984's milestone "I Often Dream of Trains" and 1990's "Eye" - Hitchcock has crafted a strikingly original oeuvre rife with sagacious observation, astringent wit, recurring marine life, mechanized rail services, cheese, Clint Eastwood, and innumerable finely drawn characters real and imagined.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Sat, 7 Sep 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Tom Mcrae
Tom's 9th studio album is an album of duets with some of his favourite French artists. McRae decided to collaborate on these 11 new songs with various artists as a way of acknowledging his deep love of French music, and deepen his relationship with mainland Europe, following Britain's disastrous decision to leave the EU.
Tom's debut album went Gold in France in 2001, selling over 60,000 copies, and he has divided his time between Paris and Wiltshire since 2021. Says Tom: "I grew up being intrigued by classic French songs. Before streaming services made all music readily available, only the huge crossover pop songs made it across the channel, but while my friends were listening to Vanessa Paradis, I was listening to Serge Gainsbourg. It seemed exotic, adventurous, and to be from another planet, let alone a country only 21 miles away from my own."
Cambridge Portland Arms, Wed, 2 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Green Mind 23rd Birthday: Sivu (full Band Show)
+ Tape Runs Out
Sivu recently released his incredible album Wild Horse Running, alongside trailer single Apollo, where his more acoustic leanings mixed with influences like Wild Beasts, Hot Chip, SBTRKT and Beck to devastating effect. While recording the album he assembled a crack team of musicians to bring the album to life and he's bringing this home for the first time for the Green Mind 23rd birthday!
Cambridge Portland Arms, Fri, 4 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Tom Robinson Band
The Tom Robinson Band (TRB) first became known in 1977 as vocal supporters of Rock Against Racism. A year later they performed for 80,000 people at their Carnival Against The Nazis in Victoria Park, London alongside Steel Pulse, The Clash and X-Ray Spex. The band featured Robinson on bass and vocals, with drummer Dolphin Taylor, keyboardist Mark Ambler and the trademark incendiary guitar playing of Danny Kustow.
TRB's Top 5 debut 2-4-6-8 Motorway became one of the era's landmark singles and was followed by their Rising Free EP featuring Robinson's LGBT anthem Sing If You're Glad To Be Gay. The EP reached #18 in the UK singles chart, despite Radio 1 banning the song.
Their album Power In The Darkness went Top 5, resulted in the singles Up Against The Wall and Too Good To Be True, and was certified gold in the UK and Japan in 1978. The followup TRB TWO was produced by Todd Rundgren on which the lead single Bully For You was co-written by Robinson with Peter Gabriel.
The original TRB lasted only two years before breaking up, fighting (as Robinson puts it) "like cats in a sack".
Tom later co-wrote songs with both Peter Gabriel and Elton John and had further solo hits in 1983 with War Baby and Atmospherics: Listen To The Radio. His 15th studio album Only The Now (2015) included guest appearances by Billy Bragg, Nadine Shah, John Grant, Ian McKellen, TV Smith, Lisa Knapp and Martin Carthy.
Tom's current band toured the entire Power In The Darkness LP in 2018 to mark its 40th anniverary ending with a sold-out show at Shepherds Bush Empire.
As a radio broadcaster Tom hosts two shows a week on BBC Radio 6 Music. He also served for 10 years on the Ivor Novello Awards committee and was awarded a fellowship of LIPA in recognition of his support for new music with BBC Introducing.
Norwich Green Mind @ Norwich Arts Centre, Wed, 9 Oct 2024 at 7:30pm buy tickets
Tom Robinson Band
The Tom Robinson Band (TRB) first became known in 1977 as vocal supporters of Rock Against Racism. A year later they performed for 80,000 people at their Carnival Against The Nazis in Victoria Park, London alongside Steel Pulse, The Clash and X-Ray Spex. The band featured Robinson on bass and vocals, with drummer Dolphin Taylor, keyboardist Mark Ambler and the trademark incendiary guitar playing of Danny Kustow.
TRB's Top 5 debut 2-4-6-8 Motorway became one of the era's landmark singles and was followed by their Rising Free EP featuring Robinson's LGBT anthem Sing If You're Glad To Be Gay. The EP reached #18 in the UK singles chart, despite Radio 1 banning the song.
Their album Power In The Darkness went Top 5, resulted in the singles Up Against The Wall and Too Good To Be True, and was certified gold in the UK and Japan in 1978. The followup TRB TWO was produced by Todd Rundgren on which the lead single Bully For You was co-written by Robinson with Peter Gabriel.
The original TRB lasted only two years before breaking up, fighting (as Robinson puts it) "like cats in a sack".
Tom later co-wrote songs with both Peter Gabriel and Elton John and had further solo hits in 1983 with War Baby and Atmospherics: Listen To The Radio. His 15th studio album Only The Now (2015) included guest appearances by Billy Bragg, Nadine Shah, John Grant, Ian McKellen, TV Smith, Lisa Knapp and Martin Carthy.
Tom's current band toured the entire Power In The Darkness LP in 2018 to mark its 40th anniverary ending with a sold-out show at Shepherds Bush Empire.
As a radio broadcaster Tom hosts two shows a week on BBC Radio 6 Music. He also served for 10 years on the Ivor Novello Awards committee and was awarded a fellowship of LIPA in recognition of his support for new music with BBC Introducing.
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Thu, 10 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Ariel Posen
Ariel Posen's music occupies the space between genres. It's a rootsy sound that nods to his influences - heartland rock & roll, electrified Americana, blue-eyed soul, R&B, Beatles-inspired pop - while still moving forward, pushing Posen into territory that's uniquely his own. He turns a new corner with Headway, a solo album that finds the songwriter taking stock of his personal and musical progress.
Cambridge Portland Arms, Mon, 14 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Afro Celt Sound System
Afro Celt Sound System are among the pioneers of the contemporary world music scene. Their ground-breaking fusion of African, Gaelic and Bhangra influenced sounds has won the hearts and minds of audiences since the group?s beginnings over 25 years ago. With album sales now topping more than one and a half million, two Grammy nominations to date and tours all around the world, they are the legendary Afro-Celtic band bringing spirits and music from different cultures together to a breath-taking show.
In 1995, the first Afro Celt Sound System album was released to great critical acclaim. To quote Real World Records:
The world's press waxed superlative: "a hurricane let loose" declared Q Magazine. "Hearing is believing," announced Mojo. "Heady, heartfelt music," proclaimed the Wall Street Journal. Word of mouth spread. A host of imitators soon began crossing cultural boundaries, bent on embracing the future without losing sight of the past. None of them, of course, caught the essence of Afro Celts. Much copied, they were never surpassed.
In March 2023, ACSS founder Simon Emmerson sadly passed away after prolonged illness. Simon founded the ground breaking group and was the driving force in its innovative genre defying recordings and live shows. His loss will be felt for many years by both the band and their fans alike. Simon was steadfast in his belief that the band should continue after his passing, and had been working on the next album for some time.
Cambridge The Junction, Wed, 16 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm Tickets on sale from Wed, 20 Mar 2024 at 10:00
Bodega
Sometimes you have to move backwards to move forwards. Just ask punk cultural commentators BODEGA, whose new album sees them carve a new future from fuzz-soaked, consumerism-skewering shards of their past. "It's something we've been wanting to do for years," guitarist and vocalist Ben Hozie explains of "Our Brand Could Be Yr Life"; a collection of catchy indie-rock ruminations on the slow-creep of corporate-think into youth culture, first written eight years ago. Then known as BODEGA BAY, the Brooklyn group recorded those songs as a paradoxical double album.
Now, BODEGA - completed by lead guitarist Dan Ryan, bassist Adam See and drummer Adam Shumski - have reinterpreted "Our Brand Could Be Yr Life" for 2024. "We thought of it like a director remaking one of their old films, like when Hitchcock remade the Man Who Knew Too Much, or when Yasujir? Ozu re-did The Story of Floating Weeds," says Hozie, who it's never a surprise to hear talking about music through a cinematic lens. After all, this is a creative who, in addition to his work in BODEGA, moonlights as a celebrated indie filmmaker (PVT Chat, his 2020 drama about online sex work, won rave reviews).
"When you're older and better at your craft, you can revisit the same material but do different things with it."
Cambridge The Junction, Mon, 21 Oct 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets
Daft Funk Live
Daft Funk Live are one of the world's most prestigious Daft Punk tribute bands: diligently constructing a 'live' rendition of Daft Punk's legendary performances and appearances. They incorporate their own synchronised light shows together with live instruments to give a truly immersive and unique experience. Their stage production is meticulously crafted, paying the utmost respect to the infamous and illusive Robots.
"...totally superb, an incredibly detailed performance giving you a Daft Punk explosion of sound and colour. Five stars." - Max Taylor
(Groove Armada, Mika, The Bays, Creepy Neighbour)
Cambridge Storey's Field Centre, Sat, 30 Nov 2024 at 7:00pm buy tickets