With Cambridge Folk Festival (30 July – 2 August) getting closer the full line up for the festival has now been announced along with the Club Tent Showcases which include Stick in the Wheel, Ange Hardy and Mishaped Pearls as well the artists chosen for this year’s Den stage which will include FRUK favourites Kings of the South Seas, Sorren Maclean, Rozi Plain, Stu Larsen and Dan Walsh. New main stage acts recently confirmed include Skinny Lister, Jaywalkers and BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award winners Talisk.
CLUB TENT SHOWCASES 2015
Each year the Festival selects five showcase artists to appear in the Club Tent, which it thinks will go on to great things in the future, such as previous picks Newton Faulkner, Seth Lakeman and The Staves. This year’s showcases are: Sam Kelly Trio, playing contemporary, high energy renditions of English, Irish and American songs alongside self-penned material and the odd rock cover; Australian folk rock and blues musician Kim Churchill, known for his dynamic live performances which focus on his deft guitar work while simultaneously playing percussion, harmonica and singing; edgy, authentic Dobro-driven traditional music from double-BBC Folk Award 2015 nominees Stick In The Wheel; folk singer-songwriter from West Somerset Ange Hardy, performing original contemporary songs written in a traditional style with an emphasis on vocal harmony; Mishaped Pearls, at the forefront of an exciting new wave in UK folk, rooted in tradition but expanding into progressive folk and rock, eastern modal music and elements of contemporary classical.
THE DEN 2015
The Den is the Festival’s Emerging Talent Stage, providing a platform for up and coming artists and has previously seen debuts from the likes of Jake Bugg and Hudson Taylor. This year’s exciting line-up includes: Irish alt-folk troubadour Ciaran Lavery, singing timeless songs of beauty and heartache in a voice filled with meaning, passion and heart; hip, young British singer-songwriter Flo Morrissey, currently garnering great reviews for her debut album; rising star in the folk roots firmament and BBC Young Folk Award nominee Hattie Briggs; London based singer-songwriter Jake Isaac, renowned for his deeply soulful tenor voice; sea shanties from Kings of the South Seas, comprised of well-known folk musicians Ben Nicholls, Richard Warren and Evan Jenkins; Seafret, an acoustic duo from the North East featuring the husky vocals of Jack Sedman and the magical guitar riffs of Harry Draper; singer-songwriter Sorren Maclean, whose delicate indie folk sound perfectly captures the desolate beauty of his homeland on the Isle Of Mull; infectious folk from Belfast’s The Emerald Armada, building a growing reputation for their energetic live shows; twin sisters Ward Thomas, enjoying success on both sides of the Atlantic with their intoxicating brand of UK country music; indie singer songwriter Rozi Plain, crticially acclaimed for her clever wordplay and almost child-like vocals; Dan Walsh, touted as one of the finest banjo players in the UK as well as being a superb singer, songwriter and guitarist; ground-breaking Canadian violinist/composer Jaron Freeman-Fox.
Having started life in 1965, the 14,000 capacity Festival draws acclaim for its combination of internationally renowned headline artists and support for up and coming young performers and continues to enjoy sell-out crowds year on year. 2015’s complete line-up for the main stages is as follows:
Joan Baez (Sat), Passenger (Sun), Frank Turner (Fri), Joan Armatrading (Sun), The Proclaimers (Fri) Punch Brothers (Sun), John Butler Trio (Sat), Nick Mulvey (Fri), Wilko Johnson (Fri) The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain (Sun), The Unthanks (Sat), Show of Hands (Sat), Katzenjammer (Thurs) Altan (Fri), Treacherous Orchestra (Sat), Gretchen Peters (Sat), The Skatalites (Sat), Danú (Sun), Stornoway (Sat), Martin Simpson, Andy Cutting & Nancy Kerr (Sun) Rhiannon Giddens (Sat), Shooglenifty (Sat & Sun) Peggy Seeger (Fri), Bella Hardy (Sun), Alvin Youngblood Hart (Sat), Amsterdam Klezmer Band XL (Fri) The Lone Bellow (Sat & Sun), Chris Smither (Fri), Angaleena Presley (Fri), Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker (Thur & Fri) Skinny Lister* (Sat), Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino (Fri), The Demon Barbers XL (Sun) Jim Moray’s Silent Ceilidh (Sat), Keston Cobblers Club (Sun), The Stray Birds (Sat & Sun), Rura (Fri & Sat) Olivia Chaney (Sat), Goitse (Sat & Sun), De Temps Antan (Fri, Sat, Sun), Lynched (Thurs), Ben Miller Band (Sun) Blackbeard’s Tea Party (Fri), Brian McNeill (Fri & Sat), The Willows (Sun), CoCo & The Butterfields (Sun) Fara (Thur & Sun), Mawkin (Thurs), Talisk* (Sat & Sun), The Elephant Sessions (Thurs), Hannah Sanders (Thurs), 3Sticks (Fri), Jaywalkers* (Thurs), David Gibb (Fri)
(*newly announced)
More here: www.cambridgefolkfestival.co.uk