Tag: braydon lee

Who are you most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest?

CrownFest at The Crown in Bishops Cannings is making a fantastic comeback this July with a stellar lineup, particularly supporting local acts, begging the question, who are you most looking forward to seeing there?

It’s not as easy an answer as it might sound, and hey, I’m not intending to answer it myself; I’ve got to remain impartial. I could be like Graham, though. You remember Graham? With the quick reminder? On Cilla Black’s Blind Date? Or am I showing my age now?!

Ruby?

Hum, maybe not, cos you never saw him, he was just a voice, leading to the fact no one stopped to give a toss about his romantic welfare. What if Graham was single, and lonely, helping all those contestants find love, when behind the scenes he’s hurting, inside?! An outrage, that’s what it was; where was Graham’s weekend in Benidorm with a hot chick in legwarmers, a rah-rah skirt and more hairspray than it takes to hold a life together?!

George?

Anyway, I digress. There’s those easy options for me, and if you’re a regular Devizine reader then not only are you a smidgen crazy, but you’ll be aware how crazy I am for Ruby Darbyshire, our newest sublime singer-songwriter on the circuit, my dear longtime favourite George Wilding, who’ll take any requests and turn them into magic, and of course, those irresistible indie pop darlings Talk in Code, all of which you mustn’t miss. Promise me this much?

Talk in Code?
Lucas Hardy?

Salisbury’s finest Lucas Hardy, who leapt on stage at the Wiltshire Music Awards and couldn’t wait for me to introduce him; the guy is a legend! Braydon Lees, though, that kiddo is making news. I’ve seen him a couple of times and he’s a breath of fresh air.

Braydon Lee?

But if most of these have become my friends, there’s some new to me, so, who knows, they could be the ones you are most looking forward to seeing. You are coming, right? Tickets are £32.50, from here, Saturday 4th July at the Crown in Bishops Cannings, with the lovely beer garden, campsite and pizza! 

Two stages, this time, and the others I’ve yet to tick off are: The Publicans, Innovator, 5 Nights at Adyans, Dylan Bratley,  and Mother Ukers. The jury is out on them, but I can assure you the two tribute acts are awesome. Kinisha. as Tina Turner played the last CrownFest, which was a bit of a wet one, but we were rollin’ (ooh), rollin’ (ooh) rollin’ on the river.

Kinisha?

If Kinisha is a given to me and past CrownFest attendees, I’ve suggested the other tribute after seeing this guys blow the roof off the Vic in Swindon. Hey look, I’ve made friends out of so many of the musicians performing at CrownFest, but I’ve been an Adam Ant fan since I was knee-high to a grasshopper and Ant Trouble is the only band you’ll ever get anywhere near to the real thing.

There’s a lot on this bill, and all of them worthy of being the answer to our question, who are you most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest. Perhaps I’ve got the lowdown on more of them than you, but you’ve taken heed of my worldly advice and, just like Graham with his quick reminder, it’s got to be George, Ruby or Talk in Code.

Or, perhaps I’m just the dandy highwayman you’re too scared to mention, spending my cash on looking flash and grabbing your attention?!

No, that’s really not me at all! You’d be far better off buying a ticket for CrownFest, than waiting for me to look like anything merely resembling “flash”…or spending my cash, come to think of it! Adam Ant in Bishops Cannings, though; how can you resist? I think, despite the fact any one of these fantastic acts could easily be the one I’m most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest, Ant Trouble might just be the icing on the cake.

Extended Lineup for CrownFest

It was back in October when we revealed CrownFest at The Crown in Bishop’s Cannings was returning this summer, and January when we last mentioned it, because the organisers Stone Circle announced that its proceeds will be donated to Wiltshire Hope & Harmony’s Dementia Choir. I like to tease you during those cold winter months, and get us looking forward to warmer days coming…..

Now the time is nearly upon us; frosty starts but some glorious sunshine brings a sigh of relief, as spring has sprung. Time to remind ourselves of some of the local festivals on our horizon, but this isn’t about simply regurgitating what we’ve already said about CrownFest, because there’s been a few updates since, worthy of your attention…..

What is new, is that the music will be presented over two stages rather than the single stage. Acoustic acts will be in the marquee, while bigger bands will be soundchecking and warming up on the main stage. This is great news, for continuous entertainment, and you’d have to wonder otherwise, just how they’d squeeze so many acts into just one day.

And, before I waffle too far, that one day is the 4th July 2026; closer than you might think!

Tickets available HERE. A standard adult is only £32, children are £10, and there’s a £75 family bundle option too.

So, what I’ve already told you: Kinisha’s renowned Simply the Best Tina Turner Tribute and Adam & The Ants tribute Ant Trouble headline, closely followed by Wiltshire’s premier indie-pop favourites and winners of six Wiltshire Music Awards, Talk in Code. Purveyors of Irish & Celtic folk The Publicans will also be playing, along with Salisbury’s rock cover band Innovator, rock covers band Tipsy Gypsies, the one and only George Wilding, Mother Ukes, and the blooming marvelous Lucas Hardy.

And if all that isn’t already enough, what you might not have noticed, is some fantastic additional acts recently added. Firstly, the sublime Ruby Darbyshire is now on the lineup, who is worth the ticket price alone! Young Calne singer-songwriter, Braydon Lee, is a name on everyone’s lips right now, we fondly reviewed his latest single, and he’s coming too. Eighteen-year-old singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist Dylan Bratley also made the team; a new name to us but I’ve just checked out his rather cool Noah Kahan cover on TikTok, looking forward to hearing him live.

Lastly, is an upcoming Salisbury sixth form band, organiser Eddie Prestidge likened to Nothing Rhymes With Orange, called Five Nights at Adyans. The Salisbury Journal recently mentioned them playing Wiltshire Creative’s “Glow with the Flow” event for young musicians at Salisbury Art Centre. They revealed “the band is composed of four boys, Jasper Hill, Owen Morgan, Thomas Clark, and Toby Allen, who are all currently in Lower Sixth at Bishop Wordsworth’s school, and have been friends since they were in Year Seven. The influence behind their name is a play on the famous video game “Five Nights at Freddy’s”, combined with the influence from their classmate called Adyan, whom they often bring up on stage.” 

This kind of leaves me wondering what Adyan does, if he’s like a young Bez from the Happy Mondays, and if he will show up at CrownFest! Adyan or no Adyan, CrownFest is getting better and better, the latest poster unusually puts the lesser-known acts above the headliners, showing a real dedication to upcoming performers, and that’s a great look! All roads lead to Bishops Cannings this coming 4th July…. get on one of them!

An Endless Summer with Braydon-Lee’s New Single

If, inspired by the likes of Ed Sheeran and James Arthur, the majority of Gen Z loves a good power ballad, the beginnings of the next generation, Alpha, seem to be following suit. And if that’s the thing, fifteen-year-old Calne singer-songwriter Braydon Lee was already in the forefront locally, but in my unprofessional opinion, his second single newly released, Endless Summer, provides the truckload of potential necessary to make this a nationwide phenomenon……

Oi kids, we had heartbreakingly emotional roller-coaster power ballads in the eighties too, you know; practically invented ‘em?! Just with a lot more guitars and hairspray! Yet, I’ve been reconditioned by gigging with my daughter, where Noah Kahan at the O2 impressed me on a Springsteen level, into appreciating these soulful melodic beats, derived, debatably, of folktronica and contemporary RnB. If I’ve acclaimed anyone on the local scene for adopting this in a manner marketable on an international level, it has to be Swindon’s Brandon Clarke, aka Weather. It just so happens, Brandon has produced this track, and together, Braydon and Brandon, their dedication illuminates on this ingenious and poignantly buoyant love song.

This is an absolutely wonderful tune, a hefty guitar riff bassline drifting you along a crestfallen narrative with euphoric backing and Braydon’s eloquent vocals shining through. Braydon has penned a sublime anthem to pluck any heartstring, and he delivers it with the passion and emotion of a professional singer twenty years further down their line.

It’s this bucketload of unpatronising top marks from me, which though I thought I’d seen him before, searched my own blog and came up trumps, (I caught the end of his superb appearance at last year’s FullTone Festival) I predict one day soon, no one will need to search for Braydon Lee; they’ll all know him, love him, and have brought his merch from the O2 shop!

“It was my YouTube cover of Sam Barber’s Straight and Narrow that started getting me attention,” Braydon explained. Now, I’m just a two-bit blogger not wishing to put stars in anyone’s eyes, but while running off a quick cover will gain attention, Braydon needs to concentrate on carving an original style, with the noticeable hook, and herein lies the groundbreaking moment, Endless Summer accomplishes this. 

You can pen a thousand good songs, but finding that awakening hook is key. An Endless Summer, working outdoors through the night, I like this idea, although this is metaphorically akin to the Summer of ‘69 when Bryan wished the season would go on forever, so Braydon might romantically hook his duck, I reckon. And on those levels this works, and will gain more than the attention of his heart’s desire. The first geezer I’m sending this review to will be Mr Threlfeall at BBC Introducing, hoping Braydon is already on his radar.

It comes with a professionally shot video created by Swindon’s 1988 Media, and as a package this has impressed me. I urge you to pay it some attention, or at least pass this message onto your offspring; Braydon is one to watch….

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