OXFORD: St Alban's Church

Friday 7th February, 2014

7:30pm

Event information

The tight-knit members of The Deep Dark Woods are old friends and trusted collaborators. Lead singer Ryan Boldt writes most of the lyrics, but songwriting credits on ‘Jubilee’, their latest album, are also shared with Chris Mason, Lucas Goetz, former band mate Burke Barlow and new addition Clayton Linthicum. The band recorded ‘Jubilee’ mostly live off the floor, which allowed for a collective and often spontaneous approach to song craft. Lyrically, Jubilee shows artistic growth and finesse, and the new album features some of band’s finest songs yet.

Fond of and adept at improvisation and experimentation on stage, The Deep Dark Woods have cultivated a moveable scene of like-minded artists. The desire to translate the intuitive aspects of their live performances to a record led them to producer Jonathan Wilson. As patron saint of the present-day Laurel Canyon folk revival, which breathes new life into California’s richly experimental musical history, Wilson is a going concern in the woozy world of neopsychedelic breakout acts, most notably as producer of Father John Misty’s 2012 success Fear Fun. “His involvement with some musicians who have had an influence on us also tipped us off that maybe this was the right guy. They had a vast knowledge of the equipment and techniques that were used to make some of our favourite records,” Goetz says of the choice to work with Wilson and engineer Bryce Gonzales, who both joined the band during the two-week cabin recording experience.

The Deep Dark Woods have appeared at numerous high-profile festivals and stages, including Newport Folk Fest, Bonnaroo, and Austin City Limits. The band has made a fan of influential BBC roots guru Bob Harris, and recently made their silver screen debut in "Save Haven," the newest Nicholas Sparks blockbuster film.

Trembling Bells.

Trembling Bells are 21st century troubadours who know their history, joyously attempting to synthesize traditional folk forms with the bathetic romanticism of country music, the deceptive complexity of medieval music and the swagger of classic Rock. Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen are the guiding lights in a music that embraces British folk-rock, American roots and electric psychedelia. They are on a quest to connect with the core tradition of Song and live deep within its mysteries … a rhapsodic celebration of the power of Song.  

In Spring 2012 the Trembling Bells played, sang and dueled with Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, performing a new collection of songs written by the Trembling Bells some of which appear on the collaborative album ‘The Marble Downs’, out on Honest Jon’s.  

In this album Alex Neilson has synthesized his love of seat-of-your-pants improv and raw folk into his songwriting with the Bells. While Bonnie has long since shed the Appalachian dirt of his earlier records to enter a fertile period of grace. Now these paths converge on ‘The Marble Downs´ – a triumphant exercise in major key ensemble playing concerned with minor key heartbreak, and a marriage of some of the most mercurial and imaginative musicians of our time.  

Trembling Bells have enjoyed much success since their inception in 2008. The band have gained favour with such musical titans as Joe Boyd, Paul Weller and the The Unthanks as well as unanimous critical acclaim for their first three albums, Carbeth and Abandoned Love and The Constant Pageant (all on Honest Jon’s records). They featured heavily in the Wire cover story alongside Alasdair Roberts documenting the emerging experimental folk scene in Scotland (Caledonia Dreaming, March 2010), while also being mentioned in Rob Young’s book, Electric Eden.

Charles Street
Oxford
OX4 3AH

www.empty-rooms.com