There were two acts performing last night, both with their own inimitable style.
Opening proceedings were a duo wonderfully named ‘The Alchemists Wardrobe’, consisting of Niks on Didgeridoo, Tabla and Slide Electric Sitar (I kid you not) alongside Lara Conley playing Bodhran, Acoustic Guitar and Bow Harp. I can understand that some people may not get it. With such an eclectic mix of instruments their fusion style will not suit everyone. It certainly suited me. I was blown away by their ability to blend varying styles of music with such an unusual instrumental range and Lara’s stunningly beautiful haunting vocals added a vital element to the overall sound. They have just launched their CD entitled not surprisingly ‘Folk World Fusion’ and I would recommend all readers to grab a copy.
Ending the night was Appledore band ‘Firewater’, arguably a more traditional offering playing a range of tunes from Irish to Bluegrass. You do however need the ability to perform these tunes to their fullest and Firewater, lead by guitarist and vocalist Tony Finney ably supported by Les Hanson on bass, Pete Martin on banjo, Steve ‘Pig’ Colwill on fiddle and vocals and Richard Malfait on guitar, mandolin, tin whistle, harmonica and vocals certainly do that as was evident from the number of people, including our host Hector Christie, who were up at the end of the night dancing and jigging along to the band.
I love the idea of a proper music venue where people can go and enjoy the music without competing against other elements found in a pub environment and I hope people will come and support all the musicians trying to make this work.
Keep an eye on the local press, Facebook, etc and come along and show your support.
