Something is stirring in Manchester, something which could give you pause to think and alter your perceptions. The city is home to folk collective Brown Wimpenny who have just rush released a new single ‘The Sheffield Grinder/Black Joak’.
Imagine an eleven strong band who’re all young and love traditional music, they’ve the joy, fizz and runaway train energy of early Pogues, the social conscious of Dick Gaughan and a sharp political nous as well as deep pride in where they’re from. In plain and simple language they’re great.
Wimpenny have been quietly building a reputation for popping up in alt rock venues and even warehouses across the region playing to distinctly non folk audiences whilst delivering their addictive, melodic refitted versions of trad songs and tunes. In fact I first read about them a year or so back in a psych rock magazine!
They’re all from diverse backgrounds and approach each item with what feels right and seems to fit appropriately – forget the image of your typical folk group though – what can you expect from a bunch which includes those working in alt rock, industrial/ noise, classical and sundry more obscure genres? United by a love of Brit folk – particularly northern material – they’re deliciously eccentric and just what your critical facilities have been waiting for.
They’re part of a nationwide resurgence of energy within the folk tradition, with a new generation looking once more at the incredible well-spring of folksong at their disposal, forging on in myriad new directions and creating sounds that’ll flip your wig.
London-rooted Broadside Hacks has acted as a pollinator for much of this and the label / live promotions aggregation have just shared the first official release from Brown Wimpenny. Out now, the rousing ‘The Sheffield Grinder/Black Joak’ matches a 19th century industrial protest song with a hint of Morris. A potent punch to the gut, the single epitomises the depth and reach of this ongoing movement within (and sometimes adjacent to) the folk realm.
It’s a busy time for Broadside Hacks, who are putting the finishing touches to planning for a label roster tour of the UK and Ireland. A series of releases on the label are planned for Autumn from Spitzer Space Telescope, Milkweed and Goblin Band.
(Photo credit :Anna Korbel.)
More Wimpenny details and single download from https://brownwimpenny.bandcamp.com
