Veterans’ folk tales portray dark side of music
FOLK Rock pioneers Steeleye Span are fast approaching their 50th anniversary and will be in Aberystwyth at the end of this month.
The band’s eighth album in 12 years – 2016’s Dodgy B******s – saw them return to the folk tales and characters that have always been at the heart of the Steeleye sound.
Dodgy B******s saw them continue drawing stories of murder, religion, incest, skulls, honour killings and tormented spirit, creating an inspired and dark take on the music of the British Isles.
Steeleye follow Dodgy B******s up with a UK tour which sees them introduce a new sevenpiece line-up, with Roger Carey joining on bass and Benji Kirkpatrick adding bouzouki, acoustic guitar and vocals. The band also revisit the record that began their career. Released in 1970, Hark! The Village Wait not only introduced the band to the world but also played a vital part in the history of folk rock, helping kick-start a sound that would come to define British traditional music over the following years.
Featuring a number of songs that have become part of the Steeleye legend, the group have revisited moments on stage and in the studio before, but on this tour, they will play Hark! in its entirety for the first time.
They are playing on Thursday November 30 at the Aberystwyt Arts Centre, on the University’s Penglais Campus.
Doors open at 8pm For tickets at £20, contact the Box Office on 01970 623232.