Following last year’s Wasteland — described in these pages by Thomas Blake as potentially Jim Ghedi’s masterpiece — Jim Ghedi returns with The Hungry Child, out now on Basin Rock. Where Wasteland was bigger, darker and stormier than its predecessor, this new single thrusts Ghedi even further towards the edge of what folk can be in 2026.
For Ghedi, the principle was simple: go heavier or go home. “I wanted to push the sound even more heavier, chaotic almost like capturing the sound of destruction, as things are collapsing around us,” he explains.
The Hungry Child is drawn from a German poem written between 1806 and 1808, translated by Judith Piepe, who gave it the title The Procrastination Song. It tells of a starving child pleading for food and told to wait until it is too late. The sentiment hit hard for Ghedi: “The meaning is pretty explicit here with not a lot of room to shy away from it, the tragic world events which are currently taking place and the oppression of innocent people really connected to the sentiment of this traditional song. Seeing the symbolism of the mother or the guardian figure unwilling to recognise what was happening in front of them, the injustice and loss of life.”
The single arrives with a dark accompanying video shot in the Peak District by longtime collaborator and director Jordan Carroll. “Whilst we had a loose storyline to the film with regards to the folklore and history of coffin paths on the moors, specifically around Yorkshire, we really wanted to focus more on an aesthetic this time around,” Carroll says. “Playing with creative visuals to capture the energy of the track, and the texture of the landscape.”
News also arrives that Ghedi has composed his first feature film soundtrack, for A24’s The Death of Robin Hood, a dark adaptation of the 17th-century folk-tale Robin Hood’s Death. Directed by Michael Sarnoski — who approached Ghedi personally — the film stars Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer and Bill Skarsgård, and is released on 19th June 2026.
Ghedi heads out on an extensive Spring and Summer 2026 tour, opening with dates alongside Katherine Priddy, Goblin Band and Juni Habel.
Tour dates:
Tickets: https://www.jimghedi.com/tour
25th April — Liverpool, Tung Auditorium (w/ Katherine Priddy)
26th April — Leeds, Howard Assembly Room (w/ Katherine Priddy)
28th April — Oxford, Holywell Music Room (w/ Katherine Priddy)
1st May — London, Earth (w/ Goblin Band)
6th June — Newcastle, Marrapalooza Festival
18th June — Hebden Bridge, Trades Club
19th June — Stockport, Strines Nightingale
20th June — Frome, The Tree House
21st June — Penryn, Verdant Tap Room
23rd June — Penzance, Venue TBA
24th June — London, Horse Hospital (w/ Juni Habel)
25th June — Liverpool, Kazimier Stockroom
26th June — Sheffield, Sidney & Matilda (w/ Juni Habel)
27th June — Derby, Dubrek
28th June — Stockton, The Green Room
22nd August — Suffolk, FolkEast Festival