We are thrilled to welcome DETTA KENZIE for the latest in our series of Live at Lunchtime concerts on Saturday 8 March.

These events are family-friendly and under-18s go free (accompanied by a paying adult). There will be a very relaxed atmosphere, and if children make some noise, that's fine! There will be activity and colouring sheets for younger children and a break-out room at the back for anyone that needs it, where there will be toys and a bit of space, with the audio of the gig piped into the room.

Detta Kenzie is an English folk singer creating original songs alongside reworking traditional music. With both Irish and Scottish heritage, Detta is committed to collecting, restoring and sharing songs passed down in the oral tradition. 

In her original work, a deep connection to the natural world is ever present. Inspired by placenames, specific references to locations in Britain, Ireland and Australia bring a strength to Detta’s creations. Themes of womanhood, grief, rebellion and rage can be found in her deeply narrative based songs.

Having worked as a Secondary English Teacher before transitioning into music, Detta’s love of language shines through in her storytelling. Her words capture the diversity of the landscape and its ability to both mould and reflect human experience.

Detta will be joined on-stage by Tobias ben Jacob.

The concert itself is not specifically aimed at children, although is very family-friendly. These concerts are aimed at people who perhaps cannot make our usual Friday evening events, as well as our regular audience. And remember, if you already have a season ticket for Autumn/Winter 2024, you get this one for free!

The concert will be shorter than normal (just over  an hour with a short break halfway though) and there is no support. Doors open at midday and the music starts at 12.30pm. It will finish at around 1.45pm.

The event takes place at our usual CHRIST CHURCH DOWNEND venue, tickets are £10 per adult (plus booking fees) in advance, £12 on the door, and are available HERE and from MELANIE'S KITCHEN in Downend (cash only). U18s go free (when accompanied by an adult) but tickets should still be reserved. There will be tea, coffee and a small selection of soft drinks and THE GREAT CAKE COMPANY cakes available to purchase, and free squash for children, available from our bar. Please note that we will not be serving alcoholic drinks at these events. For further information, please go to downendfolkandroots.com. 

For further information, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or find us on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, BLUESKY or YOUTUBE.

 

How many people will pull on shades and go off and watch Timothee Chalamet's pitch-perfect Dylan impersonation this week? How many will wish for a time machine to shoot them back to Cafe Wha? or The Gaslight? How many will think that they've missed out on those harmonies, on delicate folk-y loveliness, on a different way of thinking? 
 
Those people need to see THE BROTHERS GILLESPIE. Two actual brothers with two incredible voices, one microphone and an acoustic guitar held like a shield.
 
Is it too crass to call them Northumberland's Simon & Garfunkel? Too ridiculous to imagine a world where Greenwich Village materialised between the Tweed and the Tyne? Is it silly to want to grab those nostalgists and say "Look! Here! Now!"?
 
 
They start with Pilgrim Song, taken from their latest album The Merciful Road, it's dusted with silver dew and exquisite harmonies. Sam Gillespie seems to sing effortlessly, the rays of a golden sun dancing with motes, waiting for his brother, James, to join him. Together they are warmth and depth, home and hearth. They are a bridge over troubled water, the sound of silence. They are astonishing. 
 
Golden One is an ambling, rambling reverie of a song, a walk across the fells, stopping, marvelling then doubling back. It doesn't meander so much as layer beauty on top of beauty. There are spirits and a turn-of-the-year spookiness as the two voices throw a velvet cloak over the Fell wanderers. Sam picks fluid runs from his guitar and the whole thing is utterly timeless. Truly, these are songs that could be from those battered NY coffee shops or, just as easily, plucked from ancient tomes.
 
 
So many of the songs this evening speak of the lifting of a veil, of finding something beneath our battered world. There's the joyful multiculturalism of Wingrove Road, the nature-filled, greenwood-tinge of Albion and the wide-eyed evocations of Child Oisín Blessing. All of which show The Brothers Gillespie to be eternal optimists, to see all of the best bits that our wide world has to offer.
 
A new song, The Worlds Unfold, is pure Simon & Garfunkel, glistening with layers of luminosity. The harmonies are simply gorgeous, the song gently wrapping us between sheets of golden silk as the brothers lift more veils.
 
While there's melancholy and introspection across the whole set, there's joy and uplift too. The Banks of the Liffey has that timeless quality, again, but it's full of positivity, the harmonies a celebration, the tune immediate and wonderful. Two voices that fit together, that uncover loveliness.
 
 
If The Brothers Gillespie conjure New York circa ‘61 then LIZ SIMCOCK is just as timeless, just as classic (with a capital C). Remember when you found those Vashti Bunyan and Karen Dalton records? Remember how you thought "I wish I could have been there"? Well, Simcock is right here, right now. People will rediscover her albums in thirty years' time, lavishly compile sleeve notes and wish that they were there too. She's that good.
 
Her voice on The Long Haul is caramel smooth and deliciously deep, the perfect accompaniment to a song that Joan Baez would be proud of. City Girl, too, captures a universal truth in that way that only the very best songwriters can. She touches on environmental issues, on love and loss, and being stood up on the way to a party. Armed with an acoustic guitar, a brilliant voice and a sharp, songwriterly eye, Simcock is the precious stone glinting on a pebble beach. 
 
That beautiful Mr Chalamet will encourage all manner of people into the cinemas over the next few weeks. He will, doubtless, cause a frenzy of interest in the folk music of 60 odd years ago. The thing is, there's brilliant folk music being made right now that deserves all of that Chalamet-shaped attention. The Brothers Gillespie and Liz Simcock are out there, waiting. Brilliant folk music that echoes the past but is here, now, and ready to be discovered.
 
Words: Gavin McNamara
Photos: Barry Savell
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Described by Folk Radio UK as "weaving an especially compelling magic", and "showing British acoustic music in its best possible light", THE BROTHERS GILLESPIE make music that is animated by lyrical songwriting, fine fingerstyle guitar playing, multi-instrumental musicianship and "the glorious tones of their blood harmony" (Sam Lee); and the duo headline Downend Folk & Roots’ monthly concert on Friday 17 January.

Brothers James and Sam Gillespie found their sound growing up in the fells and valleys of Northumberland, their songs often describing relationships with wild places and the experience of finding oneself in a world alive with soul. The music comes to them most strongly when walking in the borderlands with their packs and instruments which remains a regular practice for them. This spirit is channeled into their live performances which have a rare and intimate energy, both ethereal and earthy, romantic and radical.  

Their latest album, The Merciful Road, was recorded in a cottage by the banks of the river Tweed and blends rootsy, acoustic elements to create a rich warm sound with a touch of vintage magic. In some ways it is an album about finding the thread of love and belonging in a world that seems to be nonetheless unravelling.

Opening the evening will be LIZ SIMCOCK, whose songs - often autobiographical and highly personal - are immediately accessible to audiences and injected with poetry, emotion and splashes of humour. 2020 brought the release of her fifth album Winter Hill, a pared down acoustic album featuring one voice, one guitar and a handful of beautifully crafted and previously unreleased songs.
 
Tickets for the concert, which takes place at CHRIST CHURCH DOWNEND on Friday 17 January 2025, are available online HERE and from MELANIE'S KITCHEN in Downend (cash only). They are priced at £14 each in advance or £16 on the door. Doors open at 7.00pm and the music starts around 7.45pm. This event is also included in our Spring Season Ticket.
 
There will be a bar, stocking cider, soft drinks, wine, hot drinks and real ale from locally-based HOP UNION BREWERY. Audience members are encouraged to bring their own glass/mug/tankard, as well as reusable bottles for water, as part of the drive to be more environmentally aware; there is a 50p discount for those that do. There will also be sweet treats available at the bar courtesy of Radstock-based THE GREAT CAKE COMPANY, as well as a prize draw, which helps to fund the support artists for each concert.
 
For further information, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or find us on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, BLUESKY or YOUTUBE.

ADVANCE SALES CLOSED - TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

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