Merry Hell – Come On, England!
Merry Hell Music – 2017
Billed as the new National Anthem, Come On England is lifted from Merry Hell’s outstanding current album Bloodlines. While the title might sound like a Sham 69 football terrace chant, it was written by Mery Hell’s Bob Kettle. It features the band’s voices en-mass and is a stirring shanty-like folk rock call to take arms against the rising tide of homegrown nationalism and fascism following the Brexit referendum and to instead celebrate England’s historical tradition of seeking tolerance and equality (watch the video below).
A similar sentiment fuels the equally anthemic We Need Each Other Now’s clarion cry for unity in the face of all that would divide the world. That too features on Bloodlines, which you really should possess in its entirety, but even if you already do, the EP has two otherwise unavailable tracks. A live favourite, John Kettle’s hymnal-like Lean On Me, Love (are you sensing a theme here) is a taster for their forthcoming acoustic album. Also recorded live, The War Between Ourselves is Virginia Kettle’s punchy song about interpersonal conflict driven by urban tension, from road rage to marital strife to hostility across the garden fence, originally featured on the Blink…And You’ll Miss It album. If you don’t feel the need to go out and hug a stranger after playing this, then you could be in with a chance of being the next UKIP leader.
Order it via Merry Hell here: http://www.merryhell.co.uk/shop.html or Amazon
Upcoming Merry Hell Tour Dates
Cottingham Folk Festival
Friday 25th August 2017
Towersey Festival
Monday 28th August 2017
Grateful Fred’s, The Atkinson, Southport
Wednesday 6th September 2017
Wigan Diggers Festival
Saturday 9th September 2017
Gorjys Secrets Festival, Conway
Saturday 16th September 2017
Forest Folk Club, North Boarhunt, Hampshire
Monday 18th September 2017
Folk Afoot! Wyvern Theatre, Swindon
Thursday 21st September 2017
Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal
Saturday 23rd September 2017
Looe Festival
Saturday 30th September 2017