I went to see Laura Viers last night. This is one of her songs above from an album now a few years old. I enjoyed it too. Especially the songs where the violin played. I must admit I have been a bit taken back by just how popular folk seems to have become. I can remember when I was at university going to my first ever folk gig and thinking help please get me out of here. However last year I read a brilliant book on the subject called Electric Eden and this changed my mind (http://www.electriceden.net/). This was also inspired by a friend's (Stew) Xmas cd which contained a really good selction of folk songs. I once heard Elvis Costello being interviewed and he said quite simply that too many people are afriad of music. What he meant was people who had simply built up ideas aboutr a particular genre in their mind and had since stopped listening. I do still however have a few reservations about folk especially when it starts talking about 'purity' and 'authenticity'. In our mixed up and uincertain world I prefer music that has heart and soul, and takes pleasure in crossing boundaries and drawing from different traditions. In other words music that is not afraid of music. This said it was a good night and a very nice birthday present (thanks Esther!).
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
Laura Viers
I went to see Laura Viers last night. This is one of her songs above from an album now a few years old. I enjoyed it too. Especially the songs where the violin played. I must admit I have been a bit taken back by just how popular folk seems to have become. I can remember when I was at university going to my first ever folk gig and thinking help please get me out of here. However last year I read a brilliant book on the subject called Electric Eden and this changed my mind (http://www.electriceden.net/). This was also inspired by a friend's (Stew) Xmas cd which contained a really good selction of folk songs. I once heard Elvis Costello being interviewed and he said quite simply that too many people are afriad of music. What he meant was people who had simply built up ideas aboutr a particular genre in their mind and had since stopped listening. I do still however have a few reservations about folk especially when it starts talking about 'purity' and 'authenticity'. In our mixed up and uincertain world I prefer music that has heart and soul, and takes pleasure in crossing boundaries and drawing from different traditions. In other words music that is not afraid of music. This said it was a good night and a very nice birthday present (thanks Esther!).
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ReplyDeleteIt was a good gig, she's been playing for a while. The quality of music coming out of those PA's was fabulous unsurprising really seeing as her long time friend Alex played alongside and an man (Tim) who seemed very comfortable with his Fender Telecaster twanged the night away!
ReplyDeleteStuart Maconie made a good speech in the BBC Folk awards the other night, all about how he thought folk was about peculiar men singing about young maidens. Very much in the style of the Elvis interview you mentioned. To be fair a lot of it is, The Unthanks sang 'King of Rome' written by a Derby man Dave Sudbury and as I listened to it I thought it was another typical folkie style, hardship song about his pidgeons. Then I stoppped thinking and listened. It was lovely http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=am4wgh859Og although I don't particularly like this style, many do, I enjoyed the lyrics. (http://mysongbook.de/msb/songs/k/kingrome.html)