New Folk Season, Black Swan Folk Club
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Show: New Folk Season
Venue: Black Swan Folk Club
Date: Ends 19/07/07
Undeniably, folk music conjures up certain images: Arran sweaters, earlobe-finger interaction and troops of face-painted men wielding wooden sticks and waving cotton hankies. Unfortunate, but inescapable facts. Yet, be not hasty- when York’s Black Swan Folk Club introduces its Spring/Summer programme, it would be plain daft to dismiss off-hand some of the most unique and enjoyable live experiences to be had in our fair town.
The programme will provide weekly events on Thursday evenings, both at the NCEM and in the impressive surroundings of the Black Swan Inn’s tapestry-laden Wolfe Room, already home to assorted aural offerings on a near nightly basis. Acts vary from traditional to original, British to American, Folk to Country and all points in between.
Amongst the musical patchwork purveyed include some of the younger bands and singers updating acoustic music for the twenty-first century: Spiers & Boden provide a fresh, energetic take on traditional songs at the NCEM on March 13 and the University of York’s OK Brandy perform their own interpretations and compositions near the end of June.
Equally, if introspection is your obsession, there are many fine singer-songwriters that will visit the Swan’s upper room over the next few months. Acts such as Kieran Halpin, John McCormick and Bob Fox provide more intimacy and passion in each song than can be found in a hundred James Blunt albums. Regular ‘open mic’ nights provide a suitably chorus-driven equivalent to drunken karaoke or the near-paralytic wails accompanying a typical Wednesday night on the town. All guest nights at the Black Swan are priced between £5 and £8. To clarify, the equivalent of the customary treble at Nags and an Oki’s burger.
So, if you’re interested in trying something a little different from Mr Brightside and the traditional Tuesday night trek to Toffs, take a short sojourn further down the Stonebow to the Black Swan. I assure you it will be an eye-opening experience.
