Lady Maisery

What a wonderful gig tonight at the Philharmonic Music Room by the supremely talented, and very lovely, Lady Maisery. Not just one of the best bands on the folk scene but on any scene!

L-R Rowan Rheingans (voice/fiddle/banjo), Hazel Askew (voice/harp/concertina/ankle bells), Hannah James (voice/accordion/percussion).

Not only are they consummate performers but also warm and approachable human beings - who were very kind about letting me take a second set of shots of them after I messed up my camera settings the first time I tried (the front-of-house lighting was a bit of a challenge, hence the abstract effect at top right!).

Their harmony singing is sublime and their instrumental skills provide the perfect settings for their songs. Their repertoire includes wonderful traditional songs, such as ‘Let No Man Steal Your Thyme’ www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sBefPDnDpQ, carefully chosen covers of songs such as Richard Fariña’s ‘Quiet Joys of Brotherhood’ www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hdnptgqiga4 and their own original compositions, including Rowan’s ‘Sing for the Morning’, www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtCYX7YF_Os written whilst she was on a long cycling holiday in France, and Hazel’s ‘Order & Chaos’, www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5Xw62pK_OU inspired by the beauty of physics. There’s also a strong commitment to social justice running throughout their work, which always chimes well with me!

They closed out the night with a tour de force rendition of the traditional tune ‘Bagpiper’s’ and a tune Hannah wrote for her aunt’s birthday, ‘Sheila’s 70’ - both feature spine-tingling examples of their skills at ‘mouth music’ or ‘diddling’ - do give them a listen! https://youtube.com/watch?v=DfwLn9v2Yl4

The band were recording the proceedings for possible inclusion on a forthcoming live album, so I’m hoping that my hand clapping, toe tapping and occasional ‘backing vocals’ may yet turn up on the finished product!