Leveret - Wonderful Folk tunes in a fabulous setting

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Leveret bounce us into Springtime 

Leveret are comprised of three fine Folk musicians, namely Andy Cutting, Rob Harbron and Sam Sweeney. They can all be variously found in Belllowhead, Blowzabella and working with Jon Boden’s, Kate Rusby and more, but here they mostly rework found tunes mostly from the 1800’s and play them alongside some of their own compositions. As was pointed out to the audience at the start, these are tunes, not songs. In fact, if the band started singing it was recommended the venue be evacuated. 

I’m sure I have heard Sam sing before, and it wasn’t that bad; perhaps fortunately, tonight wasn’t the night I got to find out. Tonight was all about the tunes, opening number including ‘George III’s March’ which gets in the mood from the start with plenty of foot tapping from those on the stage and watching. It’s a family affair tonight too, with Sam’s mum requesting ‘Evening  Hymn’, which seems very fitting for our surroundings.

The church itself is something to behold, stunning inside and with acoustics to match, apparently built for the poor of the 1800’s so they could sit downstairs and not pat a pew fee, while the rich sat upstairs. This evening was as much a history lesson at times as it was musical. Back to the music and we were treated to ‘The Rising Sun’ the first time it had been played in a while, as it seemed to have fallen out of favour, then back into favour with some members of the band. 

All the songs are very traditional sounding, with fiddle, melodeon and concertina all combining perfectly to create the wonderful sets of tunes. It’s clear they are all masters of their crafts, the music becoming all-enveloping, full of spirit and drawing on the emotions. The last tune before the break continued our educational journey with ‘Lante/ Aphelion’. The first, we discovered, was a Greek Nymph and the second, the furthest point of an orbit.

A brief interlude is followed by a technical issue, but the joys of being a folk band, we just go acoustic for a couple of numbers. Fortunately, soon after, the speakers decided to finish their break too and play ball for the rest of the event. It was fascinating to hear how the concerts come together. No two nights are the same with different setlists. There is no set length of each tune, yet the musical hegemony just comes together seamlessly.

Another observation is the wonderful tune titles, more freedom perhaps than with a song where it normally has some lyrics that fit the title. In the second half we had titles including ‘It’s a Square Word / Cossack Square’ ‘Jack a Lent’, and 'Molly’s Apple Pie’. The time flew by so quickly at this event, as I alluded to earlier, you are swept up in the music. 

Remember, we were talking about those song titles. The last track was ‘The Captains Lady (Mount and Go)’, apparently not about what you thought it was, with your dirty mind, but the tune to a Rabbie Burns poem. Rather sensibly, Rob can’t see the point in walking off and walking back on, so it’s bow, tune bow and off into the night we go. But feeling incredibly uplifted thanks to some wonderful Folk, playing some wonderful Folk. 

Review and Photos by Jon Cooper

Check Out! the Video for 'Hemp Dressers / Wakefield Hunt' Below...