Merry Hell arrived at The David Hall, South Petherton after having played at The Great British Folk Festival in Skegness (read Colin Irwin’s report here). It certainly wouldn’t be unreasonable to have to excuse them for being a bit jaded after nearly 270 miles of travelling. After all, the previous evening they had been playing to a crowd of a couple of thousand and here they are in a village in Somerset with another long journey ahead of them the next day. But you would be seriously misjudging the band as they are polite and absolutely up for the gig. They prove this by delivering to the crowd a joyous, engaging and wonderful evening.
The band rose from the ashes of The Tansads following a series of reunion concerts in 2010. At the core of that band were the Kettle brothers, Andrew, John and Bob, who are all present in Merry Hell alongside Tansads keyboard player Lee Goulding and drummer Andy Jones. An additional songwriter came in the form of Virginia, a Kettle by marriage to John, with Nick Davies on Bass and Neil McCartney on violin completing the current circle.
While Andrew Kettle says that Merry Hell are non-political, as becomes apparent across the course of the evening, they are acutely aware of the effects that the polarisation of opinions has had on our country and a number of their songs reflect the desire for strength in caring and community that has been partially eroded.
The first half kicked off with Loving The Skin Your In and by the third song, Stand Down, with yet another infectious chorus, the singing and dancing has inevitably broken out. The following song, John Kettle’s powerful anthem We Need Each Other Now, is an absolute clarion call for hope in the inherent goodness of people. In the troubled and divisive times in which we live it asserts that because man is a social animal that we should not forget the compassion and empathy which are fundamental to being human.
As well as being an evening of joyous celebration as demonstrated on Bob Kettle’s Come, On England which celebrates some of the simpler pleasures and spirit of life for the common man and Bury Me Naked which sets the South Petherton crowd singing and swaying, the band also balance their setlist with moments of reflection. Lean on Me Love, fulfils the latter as a down to earth song of love and friendship that acknowledges and captures those feeling of despair that sometimes assail us all while There’s a Ghost In Our House, with its powerful, punchy beat, looks at relationships, regret and how we can fail to talk to those closest to us.
With the first half ending on Virginia singing Violet, a cautionary tale about being dating ladies who are not shy with their opinions, I manage to have a chat with Andrew Kettle during the interval. I ask what it is like to be in a band with your brothers, Andrew says that in the past he fell out with his brothers and he was pretty wild at times, but now they are older he really enjoys being onstage with them and can’t imagine not doing this. They clearly love their relationship with their audience, there are no egos flying around, these are people who genuinely love the buzz of what they do and love the interaction with the crowd something which is more than apparent on their recently released DVD ‘A Year in the Life of Merry Hell’ (more on this below).
The second set kicks off with Drunken Serenade, the song which gave Anthems In The Wind its title. Merry Hell mixes the more serious content with the lighter stuff, so the mood of the evening never drops and the audience are always with them. The proof of that is in the Baker’s Daughter, which has a chorus with actions. Suddenly this part of Somerset becomes very northern as they sing ‘Aye up, she rises’.
At the end of the show, the group come down and chat and sign CDs. Yes, other artists also do this but there is no sense that this something they feel that they have to do. Merry Hell manages to create a community spirit, no artifice, no contrivance you feel included and not just an observer. With Merry Hell that distance between the stage and the audience is negligible, there is a special bond and these are genuinely some of the nicest people you will meet.
A Year in the Life of Merry Hell: Merry Hell has released a documentary film ‘A Year in the Life of Merry Hell’, which aims to give friends of the band more insight into the personalities and the experiences of the individual members, the band, the songs and their hopes for the future. Filming follows the band between February 2018 and 2019, a period where the band played more gigs than ever before. The DVD promises to offer more than just a glimpse of life on the road, it taps into the very essence of what it means collectively and individually to be part of Merry Hell as well as the many friends they’ve made on that journey. May they continue to do so.
Order it from their store here: http://www.merryhell.co.uk/shop.html
For details of all upcoming gigs visit: http://www.merryhell.co.uk/gigs.html
Photo Credit: Inset image by Damian Liptrot.