keith.dalton@espmag.co.uk
Keith Dalton has the ESP guide to the best news and views from the local live music scene…
Evil Scarecrow
Opaque
The Tin Pigeons
Church starting the event on Friday June 20 featuring Tourdion bringing French dance music played on a wide range of instruments like the hurdy gurdy. They promise great music and also the chance to try some traditional Breton dances. This is followed on Saturday by the Liam Robinson Band bringing traditional music from Lincolnshire and surrounding area. It’s disappointing to learn that the very popular Stamford Riverside Festival isn’t happening again this year. Two years ago it was hit by excessive flooding on The Meadows. As a consequence the insurance on the event has made it unviable. Hopefully one day it will return because it gathered a huge following over its 25 years. Now here’s the good news. Visitors to the Stamford Festival have the opportunity in June to visit an entirely new venture which is aiming to encourage a wide range of music throughout the town in different venues, and the organisers hope that this will grow in future years. It starts on Friday June 20 and runs to the following Sunday June 29, with diverse venues all around town, like Mama Liz’s Voodoo Lounge, The Green Man, The Arts Centre and two churches (United Reformed and Barn Hill Methodist). The organisers are mostly gigging musicians themselves, and one of them, Penny Stevens of Pennyless, told ESP – “It’s a very exciting project and although we started with small intentions it seems that with so much interest being shown we’re already at 15 different gigs around Stamford. If it proves popular then there is no reason why it can’t get bigger next year.” So what inspired it? Penny told me – “A few of us were talking one night after a gig and we were discussing all the wonderful venues around Stamford, and how we would all like to really establish a great music vibe in the town. We know the pubs in the area have a vibrant music scene over the weekends, and we wanted to broaden the offerings by trying to also attract more visitors to see many different genres of music. So we formed an organising committee and the idea of coinciding with the Stamford Festival was a natural connection.” The bonus is that as most of the events are away from the river there’s a better chance of it surviving any adverse weather. There really is something for everyone with United Reformed
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Saturday June 21, brings two rock gigs with Petrology delivering some classic rock from the 70’s and 80’s to their home town at The Green Man, whilst Evil Scarecrow are at the Voodoo Lounge with their entertaining parody heavy metal show with humorous stage antics. Support comes from two young Peterborough bands, Death Valley Piledriver and We Few Hollow Men. Caprice and Steve Bean are at The Stamford Arts Centre on Monday June 23, with the latter playing virtuoso classical, flamenco guitar and Caprice playing European café music on violin and accordion. At the same venue on Tuesday June 24 there’s an evening of a capella folk music from the powerful voices of trio Hex. In addition some poetry, harp and birdsong from Oundle’s Nick Penny and David Garrett. Mama Liz’s bar host Paspatou on Thursday June 26 featuring an entertaining show of traditional music played on a bizarre range of instruments including PVC tubing! The Arts Centre, on Friday June 27, has Orphicon String Quartet playing a range of music from minimalism to The Beatles. In addition local six piece clarinet ensemble Second Time Around play a set of classical and jazz. Saturday June 28 William East Quire perform in costume, some rural church music and poetry at Barn Hill Church whilst Voodoo Lounge features The Tin Pigeons and Opaque. Finally, on Sunday afternoon there’s an open stage and BBQ hosted by the very popular Pennyless, who’ve been featured at many festivals in the region in the last twelve months. This is at Mama Liz’s and there are bound to be a few surprises and guests on the day. We all want this sort of musical variety back in Stamford, so do support it and it will become a regular fixture in the local calendar. Most of the gigs are free, but there is a small charge to a few. For detailed information on the acts and on charges go to www.facebook.com/stamfordmusicfestival
Lexie Green, Peterborough based singer/songwriter has released her debut solo album entitled ‘Breathe’ released under Fifty Road Records. Written, recorded and produced by Lexie, ‘Breathe’ contains an exciting mix of her own compositions, and they show off the versatility of her voice. Tracks ranging from the soulful swing of ‘In This Together’ to the countrified ‘Born This Way’. But her voice really stands out on the title track, ‘Breathe’ and my favourite ‘Goodbye Herotio’. I asked Lexie what her favourite track was. Coincidentally she named the same track but told me – “My favourite does change quite a bit. The trouble with being a songwriter is that after so long mixing a favourite song, you get fed up with hearing it, so you change your mind to another! But later you swing back to it.” Lexie is a prolific songwriter, and found the choice of tracks for the album really difficult to make. The nine tracks were chosen in collaboration with Pete Brazier who mixed the album. It was Pete, known for his work with Simon Cowell, Dolly Parton and John Martyn, who persuaded her to record the tracks that were written some time ago, but never published. “Pete awarded me Best Song at the Strawberry Fair and asked me if he could listen to some of my other work. Having listened to over 60 of my compositions, we eventually brought it down to nine tracks for ‘Breathe’,” she told me. Sounds like there’s plenty more ready for the next album then! Lexie has performed around the UK in venues and at festivals such as Brighton Fringe, Strawberry Fair, Ely Folk Festival and at the Peterborough Christmas lights switch-on, whilst her most recent local performance was at the Hearts in Harmony CD launch at North Street Bar. June starts off with a double date on June 7. Firstly, a return during the day to The Strawberry Fair in Cambridge which she’s looking forward to – “Last year we were in the acoustic tent, this year we are on one of the main stages.” The band is Lexie on vocals and guitar, Sam Carter on drums, and Steve Wilson on bass. Then in the evening of June 7, they appear at The Angel in Yarwell. That’s a busy day, so what about the future? “Hopefully the album will be well received and I’d love one of my compositions to be picked up for a commercial, but as long as people want to see me perform my music, I am happy with that.” With her quality of voice there’s no problem with the latter, and the album is well worth a listen. ‘Breathe’ by Lexie Green is available now and you can get more on www.lexiegreen.com