Live Review Karine Polwart
Leeds Guide reviewer Amy Clancy takes shelter from the Halloween cavalcade of horrors and finds an oasis of folk-tinged serenity.
Photo by David Angel
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After a weekend spent side-stepping the grotesque and ghostly forms staggering en masse around Hyde Park, by Sunday I was more than ready for the reassuring melodies promised by an evening with the BBC award-winning, Scottish folk singer, Karine Polwart.
Out of the cold and away from the ghouls, the Brudenell Social Club dimmed its lights and turned folk club for the occasion. It was the perfect venue for what became an intimate evening of poetic lyricism and a bit of Donald Trump bashing.
Singer-songwriter, gifted guitarist and Leeds College of Music graduate, Dan Wilde, returned to his old stomping ground to provide a wistful and engaging introduction to the gig. The accompaniment of Dan Rogers on double bass added an extra depth to his captivating vocals and candid lyrics. Among the set was a new, timely and soulful track rebuking the process of applying for distinctly soulless jobs, which seemed to strike a chord with many in the crowd. His musical talents are evident, so I’m hoping that any supermarket moonlighting he does undertake will be short lived.
Before leaving the stage to hearty applause, Dan promised a "BIG" sound from Karine and fellow musicians Steven Polwart (guitar and ukulele) and Inge Thomson (accordion). It turned out he wasn’t just being polite. Their harmonies filled the room, not least when the whole audience joined in. Much to my relief, I didn’t see a single person with a finger in their ear - it wasn’t that sort of folk gig - but swaying along to the sounds of the accordion was, apparently, mandatory.
Karine’s lilting vocals brought her allegorical songs to life, bewitching the audience with haunting melodies. She was sure to cover the award-winning favourite, ‘Daisy’, and to end on a crowd-pleasing sing-along with ‘I’m Gonna Do It All’, which drew everyone back to reality in a rather self-conscious and unconvincing outburst of optimistic revelry. Still, I left with a warm, fuzzy feeling that kept me buoyed as I once again braved the outside world of pumpkins and zombies.
Karine Polwart and Dan Wilde played the Brudenell Social Club on Sunday 30th October, 2011
Posted on Monday 7th November 2011
Amy Clancy
Brudenell Social Club
33 Queens Road, Burley, Leeds, LS6 1NY
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