I have been a fan of herorangecoat for quite a while now so when Georgia invited me to this gig I did everything I could to be there. I had never been to the Attic in Leeds before and it is a delightful, friendly and intimate place, perfect for herorangecoat’s understated modern folk sounds. But before heroangecoat takes to the stage we were treated to a rather excellent support act, Wychbury. They are made up of a very talented duo of Che Bradley and Rhiannon Kenny-McGrath. Originally from the midlands but now an essential part of the Leeds folk scene. Their blend of modern and traditional folk was made for such a wonderfully set up small space like the Attic. Rhiannon’s voice is haunting and was spinetingling when working though Wychbury’s version of “Geordie”, an old folk ballad that rails against class and injustice. I bought their CD and I will definitely be seeing them again some time.
Now it was time for herorangecoat accompanied by her multitalented band. The gig was to celebrate the launch of her’ The Woodland Sessions (Studio) EP’ , a project made possible thanks to the Youth Music NextGen Fund where Georgia wrote and recorded tracks in woodland locations over single days. The earlier EP has the original woodland recordings. Herorangecoat’s style is emotionally raw, intimate, alt.folk tales drawn from her life experiences. She herself says that most of her songs are sad songs. Maybe that is true, but everyone one of them conveys an undercurrent of hope. She wears her heart on her sleeve and bares her soul with aching passion and compassion. I love how she uses the space between the notes to build a gorgeous tension. The audience was enraptured and locked into her performance the whole time. This was an ethereal performance that stayed with me long after it ended. If you haven’t listened to or seen herorangecoat yet then you really need to!
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