A Different Thread Live in Newcastle

Support from Banjo Jen + Caitlin Gilligan

Presented by: A Different Thread

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0	NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE: The Cumberland Arms
P	Thursday 8th June, 2023
N	7:30pm

Event information

A Different Thread headline this triple-bill Americana concert, with support coming from Banjo Jen and Caitlin Gilligan.

A Different Thread-
“Warm, deep, songwriters who have drank from the well of 20th century folk tradition” - Folk Radio UK

A Different Thread is a transatlantic band fronted by Alicia Best from Durham, North Carolina, and Robert Jackson from the Midlands of England. The two met busking in Ireland in 2016 and have been on the road ever since, touring and creating original music together. Travel and change are common themes in their music, from their lyrics all the way down to Alicia’s suitcase drum kit and live shows are said to be truly moving (in more ways than one). Pulling from their respective roots, they weave together elements of Folk, Country, and Appalachian Blues into a timeless blend of Americana, delivered with breathtaking harmonies, guitar, fiddle, harmonica, and double bass.

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Banjo Jen -
'Fantastic ...we don't hear enough brilliant music like this on the radio' - BBC Radio Sheffield

Sheffield-based artist Banjo Jen is difficult to categorise but easy to fall for. With razor-sharp songwriting, percussive Appalachian step-dancing and between-song banter to make you laugh out loud, her refreshingly original live act is guaranteed to win the heart of every crowd. Her songs explore light and shade, humour and sorrow, hopes and fears, the pleasurable and the darker aspects of being a mere floundering human trapped on this crazy rollercoaster ride of life.

Tipped by Maverick magazine for a ‘long musical career’, Jen hit the ground running by playing fringe events in Austin TX during SXSW 2017 - just a couple of months after her first ever gig. She's since been selected by the Americana Music Association UK to showcase at both Red Rooster and The Long Road festivals, was invited to perform at Eagle Music / Deering Banjo Company’s banjo event of the year, and has supported many touring international Americana acts and British folk artists.

Her latest EP “Cloud of Dust” is a collection of the more country-style songs in Jen's repertoire, recorded with a full band (including backing vocals by Lauren Housley, Bob Harris Emerging Artist 2022 award-winner, and production by Thomas Dibb, AMA UK award-nominee). Grab yourself some cowboy boots and catch Banjo Jen back on the road this summer!

Caitlin Gilligan-
“She sings with a singular clear-eyed intensity of her own.” Folk Radio

Caitlin Gilligan is from the rolling hills of rural Galloway. Now based in the North-West of England, her songs still echo the wildness of her Scottish youth.

Stirring age-old folk songs into a set of bare-boned and poetically-crafted originals, she demonstrates refreshing insight whilst simultaneously summoning the voices of times gone by.

She draws much inspiration from folk giants such as Anne Briggs, Nick Drake and Leonard Cohen as well as traditional vocal music of Scotland, Ireland and America. She has supported artists such as Martin Carthy, Martin Simpson, Sam Amidon, Rachel Sermanni, Emily Portman, Rachel Newton and The Rails. She played her debut Cambridge Folk Festival in 2019, where she was a selected highlight on The Den Stage.