I’m at a fair number of Folk Festivals during the course of a UK summer and, to be sure, there’s little to beat sitting in a British field, bathed in glorious sunshine, pint in hand, listening to some of your favourite folk artists. If only the glorious sunshine was guaranteed because there’s no denying that even a dull grey day knocks some of the shine off, and when the heavens open and the field turns into a quagmire… Well let’s not dwell on that because around 6 years ago, Enjoy Travel, a company with a couple of decades experience organising music and dance events, decided to produce an alternative, and Costa del Folk was born. The first took place on the Costa del Sol in March 2014 and, in subsequent years, there have been two a year, a Spring event in Spain, now settled in Ibiza, and an Autumn event based in the Portuguese Algarve.
The formula is simple, arrange exclusive use of a 4- or 5-star hotel for a week, and book an impressive array of UK and international folk artists, established names along with up and coming ones. Then create a package to include flights, hotel transfers, accommodation, food and music. Easy to describe, but it takes an experienced travel operator to bring it all together. Having been at both of last year’s events, I can say, without doubt, it all works splendidly.
Talking with people attending Ibiza and Portugal last year, a high percentage had been to multiple Costas, it seems the Costa bug is one that can bite deep. So, when it comes to booking artists, festival programme director, Geoff Sargieson, listens carefully to their feedback. Heading the list of regulars whose return is always requested are Show of Hands. They were booked for the first festival and have been thoroughly involved in all subsequent events, more or less becoming the house band. At the last Costa in Portugal, Phil and Steve, joined by Cormac Byrne, held an open rehearsal for a couple of hours one afternoon. Such was the enthusiastic response, the exercise will be repeated in Ibiza, this time with Richard Shindell, the American singer/songwriter touring with them later this year. It promises to be a fascinating bonus on top of their, and Richard’s, concert performances. If Richard’s name isn’t familiar to you, some of his songs almost certainly will be. Reunion Hill has been recorded by several artists including Show of Hands and Joan Baez while Phil Beer asserts that The Next Best Western is on a par with Little Feet’s Willin’ as the best ever road song.
Towards the other end of the new to established artists spectrum are Madrid based 4-piece Track Dogs, a band that few may have come across before, unless, of course, they read the FRUK reviews of the band’s last two albums. Track Dogs appeared last year, went down an absolute storm and are duly booked for a second appearance. Their mixing of folk with Latin rhythms, a touch of mariachi trumpet and a sprinkling of bluegrass is so infectious it’s guaranteed to get everyone on their feet.
Cormac Byrne’s percussion skills are always in demand and so, while in Ibiza this year, he’s likely to pop up almost anytime. But he’ll be highlighting his recent collaboration with Irish fiddler and multi-instrumentalist Adam Summerhayes, a collaboration that has led to an album, Stone Soup. The album is described as “No preparation, no composition – just communication: music created in the moment between two players” and is scheduled for release around the time of the festival. Scanning the artist list to see who else might be tempted to invite Cormac for a guest appearance, Seth Lakeman is returning to Costa, this time solo, but as Cormac was a long-time member of Seth’s band there’s got to be a chance.
The Outside Track’s recent fifth album, Rise Up, was given a thoroughly enthusiastic review by Folk Radio’s Neil McFadyen. Four women and one man with voices and instrumental skills reflecting their individual roots in Scotland, Ireland and Cape Breton, but using them together to produce pan-Celtic music of the highest quality. They played some UK dates in January following the album’s release but are now on an extensive tour of the US and Canada finishing up in Germany in April. Just in time for an appearance in Ibiza that promises to be something very special. And I could also mention that Cormac played as a guest on Rise Up.
Any gig by The Mighty Doonans has a fair chance of turning into a party and the set up at Ibiza is just perfect for them. They were at the first Costa and have returned regularly, the last time in 2017. A true family band, their mix of voices with brass, drums, keyboards and electric guitar, alongside traditional instruments like fiddle and uillean pipes, means they generate unique arrangements of traditional and contemporary material. A Mighty Doonans gig anywhere is one not to be missed but the setting and atmosphere at Costa del Folk Ibiza will ensure this one gets ramped up another couple of notches.
Tim Edey, another old hand at the Costas, is coming along this year as a solo artist. But it’s not in Tim’s nature to sit on the sidelines and a glance at the list of collaborations on his CV shows that other musicians are never slow to invite him to join them. So, fingers crossed, we can look forward to some rather special late-night sessions.
Among the artists making their Costa debuts, Hannah James stands out as she will be performing her JigDoll show, a combination of all her talents as singer, musician and dancer, all performed solo. It’s a fascinating show, hailed as a triumph when she first toured it in 2015. You can read all about it in this Folk Radio interview.
An artist new to the festival, and almost certainly new to most British folkies, Efrén López, a native of Spain’s Valencia region, has, since the early 1990s, been collecting and popularising traditional music, played on traditional instruments, from countries all around the Mediterranean. His trio will open the festival with music that reaches back into history, rich in influences, not just from his native Spain but incorporating music and instruments collected from Crete, Turkey, Bulgaria and further east into parts of Asia. It promises to be a fascinating opening set and you’ll get a flavour of it from his YouTube channel.
Award-winning Welsh traditional band, Calan, will be bringing their songs, both Welsh and English to Costa del Folk for the first time. Popular at UK festivals for several years, in fact, almost since they formed in 2006, their lively performances are sure to go down well. Rather less well-known on the UK scene, as yet, Heg and the Wolf Chorus from Bristol are no ordinary band. The word theatrical tends to crop up in any description, their songs telling stories that bear comparison with fairy tales, introducing a thoughtful counterpoint to the festival.
The Tweed Project is a name that first emerged in 2015 when the previous two years winners of the BBC Young Folk Award, Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar from 2013 and the Mischa Macpherson Trio from 2014 joined forces to play a mix of Scottish and English material. The project has re-surfaced this year with Greg and Ciaran joining up with the 2017 winners, Josie Duncan and Pablo Lafuente. I’ll be fascinated to hear what this collaboration produces. The four of them are going to have a busy time in Ibiza, they’re scheduled for two performances from each duo and a further two as the Tweed Project.
Rounding out the concert line up are two more acts that have proved tremendously popular on previous visits. The Spooky Men’s Choral offshoot, A Fistful of Spookies, are likely to be found singing, anytime, anywhere. Including fully clothed in one of the swimming pools the last time they were at Ibiza. Their combination of vocal dexterity and gags making them always welcome. The humour that runs through a set from Belshazzar’s Feast may be more restrained but is equally capable of reducing an audience to fits of laughter. Two acts guaranteed to ensure folkies don’t always take themselves too seriously. As with all the best musical humour, it doesn’t work if the artists aren’t, first and foremost, consummate musicians, and these two acts lack nothing on that score.
A seemingly ever-present figure during a Costa, Flossie Malavialle, is never short on humour either. She’ll take her turns on the concert stages but is also vital to the smooth running of the participation side of the festival, MC for the daily open mic events and always ready to join one of the many sessions that break out in the bars and other public spaces around the hotel. MC for the main stage concerts is that legendary figure of the UK folk scene, Mike Harding, another man who has been involved with the Costa del Folk project since its inception. For the more energetic, there are also daily ceilidhs with Simon Care’s Banter as the resident band.
All this takes place at a classic coastal location in a hotel that provides a near perfect setting. A main outside stage and bar for the afternoon and early evening concerts. For the late evening concert, an indoor stage in a hall large enough to hold everyone should the weather turn decidedly un-Spanish. Add to that a separate outdoor stage and bar for the ceilidhs, a basement bar for the late-night club and a main bar with ample space for sessions.
I’ll see you in Ibiza in April.
More details here: https://www.costadelfolk.co.uk/