The Magpie Arc – Autumn Leaves

In anticipation of this weekends Ely Folk Festival, which will be reviewed next week on this site, here are a few anticipated highlights from the line-up over the coming three days. The Magpie Arc are a cross-border folk supergroup featuring Nancy Kerr, Findlay Napier, Tom. A Wright, Alex Hunter and one of the folk movements all time legendary guitarists Martin Simpson (and how great is it to find him playing electric guitar in a group environment?). All I will say is that a band with such pedigree in its line-up winning favourable comparisons to Fairport Conventions ‘Liege & Lief’, after their ‘Glamour In The Grey’ debut album, has got to be worth some time and attention; I shall be watching and listening with interest.

Danny & The Champions Of The World – Sooner Or Later

Heading up an evening of Americana will be this wonderful collective, formed in 2007 after the break up of the band Grand Drive. They are based in London and led by singer-songwriter Danny George Wilson who presides over performances and writing that sail pleasingly close to the soulful and rousing spirits of Bruce Springsteen and Van Morrison. Not only that but their live sets are pretty damn life affirming and committed too so this promises to be a great one.

Fred’s House – Gaslight

One of the standouts among the many interesting local Cambridge acts performing this weekend are Fred’s House. They were formed in 2010 and their numerous releases have seen a gradual shift away from folk-rock origins towards a more pop-friendly sound leading to favourable comparisons to the likes of Fleetwood Mac and Crosby Stills & Nash. As this clip proves, these are likenesses that the band are more than capable of meeting head on, grabbing by the ears and shaking down into an enticing, groove friendly, melodic, song driven cocktail entirely of their own making.

Elly Tree – The Minotaur

Generously sprinkled among the more attention grabbing, rhythm and electricity pumping acts are plenty of traditional acoustic guitar and voice purveyors such as Elly Tree. It is important too that this side of a folk festival is not lost, this is where the roots of it all are found and, personally, I love those summer afternoons when an event such as Ely Folk Festival provides you with a tasty real ale whilst a tuneful troubadour entertains us with folksy story songs as heard here. Elly (real name Helen Woodbridge) is a singer-songwriter based in Ipswich, Suffolk.

Ezio – The Same Mistake

One of the real underground national treasures of the Cambridge scene for more than thirty years now is indisputably Ezio Lunedei, accompanied, as he has been all along, by the guitar shredder extraordinaire Booga. Weirdly, I think his name may have always held him back, you just do not expect such west referencing singer-songwriter mastery to be coming from someone whose name implies their music will be Spanish holiday disco music (or something). Put simply, if a song like ‘The Same Mistake’ were written by a Neil Young or a Mike Scott it would be regarded as a classic piece of melancholic, country-tinged, song writing genius for that is exactly what this is. Furthermore, Ezio has an armoury of similarly fine songs spread across his whole back catalogue.

The Cain Pit – Devil’s Side

Finally for this half dozen festival taster selection I am flagging up some thrilling punky bluegrass action that will be gate crashing the festival proceedings on Saturday night. Heading down from the mean streets of Norwich, the band were formed during the pandemic by cousins Daryl and Scott Blyth before expanding to a five piece. Their distorted blend of frantic banjo picking, double bass thwacking and raw pounding drum beating energy has seen them described as ‘punkgrass’, an appropriately original description for a sound with a thoroughly enticing approach. If you have never got a tattoo, that might change after you see The Cain Pit!