Tag: live music

A Black Eye and a Bunch of Flowers for George Wildingโ€™s New Album

I’m uncertain if George Wilding sent us news of his newly released album, A Black Eye and a Bunch of Flowers, but we simply must have a listen or ten anyway. For whilst his fanbase should need no encouragement, I could (and will) waffle endlessly about it, unpicking greater detail as it embeds into my mind upon each listen, for it truly is everything I, and Iโ€™d imagine every fan too, has longed for in an album by George Wildingโ€ฆ.

He usually does send such news, but my spam filters very wrongly assume I’m more interested in liposuction, bath wraps, and exiled princes of small countries wishing to transfer a trillion bitcoin into my account. If that’s the modern world, that an email from our loved local living legend might sit somewhere in my spam folder, George himself irregularly posts on social media, and when he does he suggests he’s fighting algorithms. Evidently, he has a point.

Yet, while he’s hardly the internet guru, and blissfully lives within an analogue era of yore, in much the same way, and method, musical legends of that time could evoke any emotion onto a listener they desire to, through a unique and quintessential delivery of ingenious wordplay, rather than a โ€œreelโ€ of hard sell, George has mastered this too, with a natural flare incomparably superior to his peers. And it’s worthy noting he does so in such an amiable way, he’s instantly your friend.

Being George is this genuine article, to analyse his creative outpourings we are best ridding ourselves of the Whitney harvest of soulless, pitch-perfect AI generated voices, of music technology and the indispensable evils of streaming platforms.

George Wilding

We must return to a time where musicians are credited by their output rather than social media follows. Reflecting on his earlier, often ironically whimsical yet with an edge of youthful psychedelic swirling work, there’s progression. And being George mentioned the Velvet Underground in the track Elephant Man from 2014’s Being Ragdollin EP, flipping clichรฉ on its head to puncture pseudo-intellectual pretension, in this, if we were to compare his songs with The Velvet Underground, the new edge is more precise, less dreamy and more raw rock music, and perhaps ventures along a similar path to Lou Reedโ€™s later solo writings.

I’d perfectly understand if you discredit this comparison, for Reed was hardly acclaimed for his vocal range, all raspy and intoxicated, whereas George’s is pure silk, which although carries cynical, observational wit like Reed, wherever his mood might opt, does so easily on the ear. Itโ€™s infectious, and beyond the reach of many; separating not only his great songwriting from standard indie fare, but his production too.

This is not only why working with Joylon Dixon is a coupling of the gods, but also why, when George takes a stage for an audience-selected human jukebox, heโ€™ll take them on a similar spellbound path as he does with his originals. If this album does anything different, it should be that familiarising yourself with his original material is essential to your enjoyment, especially now he’s no longer aiming at the scene, rather moving from sharp youthful critique of arty posturing to channeling the depth of architects like Lou Reed themselves.

And while he rarely performs his originals, but I, for one, encourage him to, and when he once, upon a long time ago, told me he favoured the EP format to the LP, here it is now, aptly titled to coincidence with his contrasting irony; A Black Eye and a Bunch of Flowers. When leaking his intentions to release an album to me a few months back, and I reminded him about his once EP preference, he replied that he โ€œfelt the time was right.โ€

Starter for ten, it is. This twelve track strong album not only arrives at the right time, but the opening song immediately lambasts critics who might favour earlier works of an artist in comparison to newer, by suggesting rawness has lost edge, or the pressure applied to chase originality. If this is personally reflective, I should be careful, if it wasnโ€™t for the fact Iโ€™ve nothing bad to say about the maturity of his sound! The irony rests in the sound of this satirical stab, Catโ€™s Lost Lick; the tune replicates his earlier work more than any other on the album. If, as he suggests, the walls are built and itโ€™s a hard pill to swallow, itโ€™s exactly the type of genius songwriting to prove them wrong.

It also pitches both sides of the fence you may sit on Georgeโ€™s progression. For me itโ€™s a satisfying arc, and one which the second and ninth tracks highlight better than the opening. Babyshampagne is like the second single of 2026, Loser to Loser, both growers which carry delightful punches; if any type of punch could be deemed delightful, this is probably it. Loser to Loser kicks with an electric guitar riff, like an eighties power-pop anthem, but an โ€œooh-oohโ€ vocable breathing doo-wop or Motown into it, Babyshampagne mores simply, rocks out indie style.

If itโ€™s breezily contented indie-pop, thereโ€™s this element in many of his new songs, and a sense of commercial viability, tempting me to reach to bands like The Boo Radleys or Deacon Blue for a comparison, certainly more than the Velvet Underground. Though, whether George ventures for hints of quirky or experimental hidden details, it remains as incomparable and unmistakenly George Wilding as belters like Signs of Life, which is a smashing the windows in Wilding classic.

Also in writing, although thereโ€™s something broken in the relationship in Loser to Loser, for example, whereas past characters might let it get them down, they seem to face up to realities gratified, or at least nonchalantly. Perhaps to match with the catchy hook and lively ambiences, but it seems this system is repeated through the album too, as the upbeat continues for Body, Soul and Spirit, which is Housemartinsโ€™ Happy Hour feelgood, and The Monkey Gets It, which is full of uplifting spirit, as the name suggests.

The crooner ballad element rolls the tempo down for No Oneโ€™s Getting Out Alive, but builds to a wailing guitar climax. Year by Year is a reflective representation of all thatโ€™s satisfied with Georgeโ€™s acoustic live setting, and break-up song Feed Your Head brings back tempo but offers no such diversion, it simply rolls on a hard-hitting timeless indie-rock sound, as if Katrina And The Waves recorded Positively 4th Street.

With the vaudeville ambience of Queenโ€™s later material and sprinkles of doo-wop at the intro, the heartbreaking Isnโ€™t She Lonely single follows, which whisps around crooners with subtle psychedelic undertones. It highlights how George is skillfully capable of frolicing vocally with the schlager of artists like Tony Christie, and remains cool throughout by splicing this music hall vibe ironically with melancholy in the narrative. Itโ€™ll remind fans somewhat of Terrible Little Secret from Being Ragdollian.

When the fantastic journey is near completion you are treated to two poignant pieces to complete the effect, because if the previous ten songs haven’t convinced you of Georgeโ€™s stature, these will win you over. The Only Way and Postcards from a Motorway are Mr Wilding at his best, swirling you in atmosphere and this seamless ability to take you on his mission to wherever, through the ultimate expression.

Fans will leave the album remembering every element as to why and how they became a fan of George Wilding. Newcomers will be left in astonishment as to why theyโ€™ve never heard of him before; curse those algorithms one more time for us, sweetheart! This album encompasses everything you want from an artist, pays respectable homage to Georgeโ€™s divine back catalogue whilst simultaneously introduces you to a newer George with desires to experiment and reach commercially without ruining that original and raw brilliance.

Top marks, but you knew it would be!

Trending…..

Cephid; Electronic Music Producer and Town Crier Partnership in Devizes

Well, what else is there to oyez about? Congratulations must go to our Devizes Town Crier, Charlotte Howard-Macdonald, again today, as Brian Mathew MP tabled a motion in the House of Commons celebrating her achievement of winning the 73rd National Town Crier Championship in Rye, only two months after taking up the role…

Recognised as our first woman to serve as Town Crier for Devizes, Charlotte said, โ€œthis is a first; a speechless Town Crier! Thank you so much, Brian, for this wonderful and completely unexpected recognition, and to the MPs who have added their support. Seeing my name in a parliamentary motion is quite surreal!โ€

But whoa there, all this talk of female town criers, isnโ€™t there any room to celebrate the guys too?! Charlotteโ€™s husband Moray MacDonald is an outstanding producer of electronic music who creates the most wonderful soundscapes under the pseudonym Cephid. I first met the Lavington-based couple upon reviewing Cephidโ€™s album Sparks in the Darkness three years ago.

Moray cut his teeth touring with progressive rock and metal artists such as That Joe Payne, Godsticks, Kim Seviour and Ghost Community, more recently he remixed for OMD. Of Sparks in the Darkness I said at the time, โ€œgorgeous complex structures and intense electronic textures,โ€ making comparisons to everything from the Doctor Who theme, through to Kraftwerk, The Art of Noise, Yello and American electro outfit Newcleus, explaining โ€œCephid encompasses these, yet is ultra-modern, uses tech as orchestral, and is as fresh as the Buxton spring; like Jean Michel Jarre came after dubstep, as if 808 State created Tubular Bells!โ€

Forward wind to February last year, Moray finally staged the album at Bathโ€™s Rondo Theatre, and I had to make a beeline. It was a breathtaking show, to see the album played out live added to the magnificence of this achievement and made it all seem real. The added bonus was to see the laser harp Moray created at seventeen, but had never used publicly until that gig. And after this monumental occasion, the audience were invited to try the homemade electronic instrument themselves.

The gig caused me to contemplate the progression of electronics in music, and how we take it for granted. Though Devizes is a blues town, of conventional analogue instruments, Moray informed me of the townโ€™s little known influence on the development of electronic music by the way of Daphne Oram, a pioneer of electronic sound who was born in the town. On her centenary I ran a series of articles about Daphneโ€™s life, focusing on her largely unrecorded early years in Devizes.

Why am I reminding you of all this now, you might ask?! Well, thereโ€™s the thing. Tickets have just gone on sale, for Cephid is coming to St Maryโ€™s Devizes, for a one off electronic concert on 28th November, and yes, he will bring his laser harp. Moray is supported by Richard Anthony Bean, an electronic music composer and producer from Exeter; be there!

With Devizesโ€™ historic connection and affliction to the blues, it can be a challenge to introduce other genres of music to our town, although there is an audience here accepting diversity, of people who worship the eighties electronic scenes from hip hop to synth-based new romantic and new wave to gothic, and the ravers which followed, and from here stems the concept that technology is so commonplace in music we no longer see the seams.

These are the people I need to entice, because please, oh hear ye! Believe me when I tell you this show is incredible, and unlike anything else youโ€™ve seen in Devizes before!

Tickets are HERE, or at Devizes Books.

Devizes; a Place for Festival, or Negativity?

On the Festival of Discovery, other political discoveries, and is the Crammer full yet?! No to the latter, but local Facebook groups are full โ€ฆ.of negativity!

I’m in no place to review the Festival of Discovery which happened last weekend in Devizes, being Devizine was asked to contribute, and because of that contribution, I didn’t catch the amazing variety of goings on, being sentry at my post, save for a pasty break. But I think there’s positive and negative things to be said about it, plus a few points which require a degree of balanced clarification.…

Oh, for the forked tongues of keyboard warriors; those vocal minorities disgruntled by attempts to bring free community-driven festivities to town, when a majority braved the minor drop in temperature, just as everyone does for the far more inclement Christmas festival. While we still live in a democracy, sorry killjoys, but we’re duty bound to go with those who made the effort and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Starter for ten thousand, let’s clear this one up immediately. Yeah, you’re bang on the money, it would’ve been lovely to have had this happen during summer. One comment read, โ€œWhy have it in October with all the beautiful weather we have had this summer!!โ€ Iโ€™ll take it as a question easily answered, even if there was no question mark.

For those stating the bleeding obvious, in order to slam DOCA, and largely from a Conservative twonktank, please note, it is all about the money. The Street Festival doesn’t come cheap, and was cancelled in May 2024, during the final and brutal Conservative cut of Arts Council funding, on which DOCA relied on.

Fortunately, since the political party which, let’s not forget, were hosting cocaine orgies at 10 Downing Street, and fornicating like Emperor Caligula on a stag do in Thailand, while forty thousand of our most vulnerable perished in care homes, was obliterated, Labour has been a smidgen more generous towards the arts. Creative director Loz made a triumphant return to Devizes, got me on the blower only a month ago, to ask if I’d like to host an area dedicated to young talented musicians, for this festival she was rushing to announce.

Naturally, despite not being able to tick neither โ€œyoungโ€ nor โ€œtalentedโ€ boxes, I jumped at the opportunity. It took a lot of last minute organisation, as it did for the other dedicated volunteers of DOCA, who worked tirelessly to put this event on; shame on you if you favoured nitpicking on Facebook instead of attending it.

I wasn’t on traffic duty. I did my bit, with Simon, the best grand prix pit stop sound engineer, and Mr Ian James powering us up, and it was flipping amazing! Every singer-songwriter I could think of in the right age bracket turned up, seemingly not stuck in traffic neither flown in by helicopter Shirley Bassey style, gave it their 120%, and showed the few who bothered to turn out that local music is safe in gen z hands.

Having already lavished on the popular Confetti Battle and Colour Rush, I reasoned with Loz that what’s left in the kitty could’ve been put into bringing a spectacular Winter Festival and Lantern Parade. To which Loz shrugged and replied, โ€œyeah, you’d think so, wouldn’t you?โ€ Such it was revealed to me, the grant given has an expiry date prior to Christmas, and if it wasn’t spent it would be lost. So, it really was a case of, does DOCA put in the overtime and seriously get on the case of a celebration with an extremely short window of organisation schedule, or would Devizes have an ordinary weekend of shopping and dog walking?

So, rather than sitting picking their noses, we had the Festival of Discovery, and what did we discover?! Who’d have flunked bringing such a wonderful festival to Devizes would result in a plethora of harsh online criticism?! Did we even know of their existence before this weekend, or were they discouraging โ€œbots?โ€ Devizes used to be such aโ€ฆMatter of factually, Mr Grumpy lived in Crosspatch Cottage, actually located in Happyland, and I’ll leave this there.

Could’ve caused less of a stir if traffic was delayed due to a woman-beating Reform conference. The result of a family of ducks crossing a road in Devizes is traffic chaos; do we shoot the duck?! Actually, with the bitterness posted on the usual suspect Facebook groups, don’t answer that.

Congestion was a suggestion, and a valid point, it was slightly more chaotic than normal and that was unfortunate, for which DOCA apologised and took action, reopening the Market Place on Sunday. There may have been overlookings in signage of road closures, if so it could’ve been because of the lack of time to get this festival organised; a lesson learned, but which didn’t deserve the verbal punishment it received, from those unwilling to volunteer their help, I should add.

But, please save me the spiel about not knowing this well-advertised event was occurring, for I’ll only retort like a Specsavers advert and say, โ€œyou should’ve gone to Devizine!โ€ I wouldnโ€™t rely on the Gazelle & Herod telling you about an event, unless Martin Kemp, the Queen Consort, or Nigel Farage is attending it.

Oh, and by the way, it was DOCA who addressed the traffic issue and acted accordingly, not councillors, despite what one certain Mr Wallis might tell you. Though the same Conservative councillor waffled on his Facebook page speaking highly of the event for the illusion of balanced popular opinion, but trundled past the festival looking like his shoes were more important. This was the very same killjoy Devizes Conservative town councillor who once suggested the street festival wasn’t โ€œdiverseโ€ enough, despite it was so obviously the most diverse event Devizes has ever seen!

Whereas two councillors, one independent and another a Guardian, stopped by to praise my attempt to engage and stage young people. A third was the hopeful and right choice, Guardian candidate for Devizes East, Rosemary McDonald, who did likewise, and when she did, those Masters of the Tory Universe shamefully laid in waiting for her, like snipers at the gate.

Today the same councillor, Wallis, one which others earmark as some kind of arch- nemesis of Devizine, whereas I’d rather it be simply that whenever there’s trouble at mill, he’s grinding it, is showcasing their Devizes East candidate for the by-election, Laura Ayling. Apparently Laura is single handedly going to tackle antisocial behaviour in the Market Place, and is seen shaking the firm militant hand of none other than Dirty Harry PCC Wilko, right there, on the spot.

You have to chuckle if this is the spinning point for the desperate Conservatives, being the Devizes Guardians have already written to Wilko on the subject, requesting a larger police presence. Odd how, hey presto, as soon as the prospective Conservative candidate steps in, the apparently apolitical PCC too busy to reply to Guardians, who boasts of shooting people on his Faceache page, around the same time Wallis tried to encourage me to interview him because Iโ€™d find heโ€™s actually a โ€˜reasonable guy,โ€™ manages to suddenly find the time to majestically ride into town like Clint Eastwood for a photo opportunity.

The antisocial behaviour in the Market Place isn’t a political matter, it’s as it says, a social one, directed at Devizes police to keep the peace. It is unfortunately going to occur whoever sits in the seats, and however many officers they can throw at it. Therefore no political party is to blame, and no party can resolve it any better than another, in my honest opinion. But, it’s clear from this outrageous Facebook post, those trusty Tories will make it a core of their battleground, and play is going to get dirty. Their hypocrisy reaches its peak today, when I will thoughtfully let you in on a secret; Mr Wallis made an official complaint to the town council, because Rosemary was photographed in Sidmouth Street! Oh the outrage!!

Rosemary came to Sidmouth Street partially because I invited her to, begging your pardon sir, being that rightfully addressing youth issues in Devizes is part of her campaign, and core to one of our objectives, of which you saw the results of in the very street this weekend; thank you for coming, and I hope you missed the part where I sang with the legend who is Ruby! Devizes Market Place, Devizes in general, isn’t a battleground, and Sidmouth Street isnโ€™t the trenchline, Rosemary does, surprisingly, have a right to walk down it, just as we have the right to throw a party there.

Ha! And others even rallied in the comments sections to try and blame DOCA for this rise in anti-social behaviour, without any reason or logic, because once you publish your rant, no matter how valid your point, these threads of negativity spiral out of control. Hereโ€™s two classic quotes, for example: โ€œAnd a woman outside Boots openly peed on the pavement!!!โ€ And โ€œTrump could of organised better and it would of been the best best ever event!โ€

It’s a shame the original comments made from traders who directly benefited from the Festival of Discovery at the weekend were overshadowed by those who claimed they unfortunately didn’t, but it is the negative which pushes the circus into the big-top. The ignoramus absurdity that Trump should work for DOCA, and then heโ€™d put a stop to people peeing outside Boots, is why weโ€™re in the shit we are in, surely?! Brittox of Trump, letโ€™s rename it now, save him the bother when he arrives.

Yes, there were huge gaps in happenings in the Market Place, space is required for safety of some of those acrobatic and circus shows, but the remaining gaps were supposed to be filledโ€ฆ. by you! You! The ones, it seems, who opted to cry on Facebook instead. Is this the way of things now, or was this just an unfortunate isolated incident? Because I’m concerned.

This event was so well-organised and staged so many amazing features it should have attracted thousands. The fact it didn’t left me wondering why, and wobbled my head with many thoughts.

I thought about the Reclaim The Streets parties in the nineties, where anarchist eco campaigners took dumpsters and blocked streets, resulting in one giant rave, and no disgruntled whingers. I tried to imagine it happening in Devizes, and what the result would have been. We had no Facebook to bark at then, but even if Devizes was a Conservative safe-seat, still, I refuse to believe its population were ever party poopers, before this terrible today where the flag flies half mast.

Even in this modern era of Trumpconomics, Bristol sound systems simply hang speakers out of a window, and the community outside gathers to party like there’s no tomorrow, likely because there isn’t. There’s often even an elderly lady rocking with her zimmer-frame. Why are we so stuck in mud here in Devizes? It’s a brilliant little town, where they ironically hashtag #nothingeverhappensindevizes – I hope the users of this gag-tag aren’t the same ones crying like spoiled babies, because some people here thought it’d be nice to throw a random bash in October. Oktoberfest, anyone? It’s a thing elsewhere!

Then I gave consideration to Street Festivals of yore, how we all gathered to enjoy ourselves, and worry last weekend illustrates how times are unfortunately changing; you canโ€™t give away a festival in Devizes. I remember with fondness how I got up on stage at the last one, to introduce Nothing Rythmes with Orange, to a sea of people covering the entire Market Place and cramming down the Little Brittox to get in; what an incredible effort from the good people of Devizes. Thereโ€™s a photo Iโ€™ll drop below; ask yourself, are you there, and if so, did you attend this weekend, and if not, why not? Genuine inquiry.

Iโ€™m aware and appreciate the sterling efforts made by so many, including Councillor Ian Hopkins, who freely created the Street Festival, and remember what Loz brought to the table. A blaze of colour and curiosity, a natural development of the unusual, especially here in Devizes. I gave consideration to the Ceres/Ruth Pierce display, her parting gift to Devizes, which held everyone spellbound, even the drinkers who took the day as the piss-up they dubbed Black Rat Monday, stopped and watched in awe! Where was Lucy and Wilko to save us from those black rats back then, eh?! Back then, we coped with the extra traffic, we didnโ€™t require ten kazillion Facebook posts to remind us it was happening, we just made our way there, and celebrated all that is good about living and loving our town.

Loz and everyone contributing their time to DOCA, deserve the key to Devizes city, for the wonderful events they have driven, not the verbal criticism they so poorly often receive. It really makes me worry about the bigger picture, the terrifying thought that this rise of the far right will see the demonisation and degradation of arts throughout the country, not just Devizes. They seem to hate anything which challenges their regressive social restrictions or questions the insular society in which they wish to live under, and that just happens to be pretty much all interesting art and creativity.

Someone even had the audacity to redden about those brilliant Hydropunk neighbours of ours, pointing to the defunct hosepipe ban as a source of their anger, like a hundred litres of water is going impact the global water shortage; did they fail to observe the absolute thrills on the faces of our youngest residents as they flocked to play with the hydro apparatus, or did they simply not care for want of ranting?

Two other horrifying comments on the thread, abhorrent about this weekendโ€™s festival, suggests the struggle is real: โ€œStop public funding for “Arts” there are much more important things to spend public money on!โ€ where I wonder what else this person thinks the Arts Council funding should grant other than arts, or are they more simply seriously misinformed about how DOCA is funded, (through this grant and public donations,) and one other which puts an opinion quite bluntly; โ€œThis crap has to stop!โ€ Find that guy sulking in the kitchen at parties!

But to assume misinformation is root to the outcry doesnโ€™t excuse an ex-town-councillor exiled to Rowde Parish Council, Chris Greenwood, for he knows precisely what he means, and it was this monstrosity of evil: โ€œI have always been concerned by the wholesale lack of transparency and accountability from DOCA. They appear to be the one organisation that has the ability to close down roads in the Town Centre almost at random. Iโ€™m led to believe that DOCA is considering a rebranding exercise, as the Arts Council have apparently indicated that Devizes doesnโ€™t possess a broad enough spectrum, from which to extract an audience – either pedestrian or vehicular. One of the new names having been considered is โ€œRaking In The Moneyโ€ which does seem rather apt, as the Arts Council have stumped up a few hundred thousand over the years, until tightening the screws after the Flying Fiasco a few years ago! A significant chunk of the proceeds also have a history of being distributed well outside our Borough, rather than supporting local performers.โ€

Oh hi there Chris, your stab at humour is hardly on a Billy Connolly level. Did you come and see the eighteen local young performers I staged on behalf of DOCA this weekend? Because I certainly didnโ€™t see you wobble past in your Crocs at all. Did you notice local musicians John E Wright, Del-Boy Jepson and Sarah Tarry in the Brittox? And given that, who made you Judge Judy on such matters?! You misinformed Professor of Penistry!

I trust I can go out on a limb here, as heโ€™s unlikely to have read this far, and remind our readers that this is the despicable Mr Toad and Wallis bumchum who falsely claimed bird flu killed the freezing cold malnourished swan on the Crammer, so they could cull all the pigeons and gulls, and who banned me from his petty Facebook page for suggesting a police officer who was an active member of a hunting criminal ring who stupidly filmed themselves actually killing a fox, was a conflict of interest!

Are you therefore going to believe the absolute filthy pig swill which spews from these verminโ€™s mouths?! Or are you going to say, you know what, I might forget the petty nonsense from grandstanders and political pointscorers, and enjoy the time I have left on this godforsaken planet?! The Festival of Discovery was brilliant, with the potential to thrill the whole town, if they bothered to show their disgruntled mugs!

Devizine Launchpad on Sunday

Okay you lovely lot, who are deffo coming The Festival of Discovery this weekend across Devizes, and who, deffo, going to pay us a visit at Albion Place, yesterday I highlighted all the wonderful acts we have performing on Saturday, but we do it all again on Sunday too…..

So here’s what we have lined up on Sunday, and it is equally as amazing as Saturday, so don’t over do it the day the before, and find us, same time, from 11:30 until 5:30pm at Albion Place in Sidmouth Street. Here’s who we have playing for us; ooh, I’m so excited and couldn’t hide it even if I wanted too!

Read about Saturday HERE, otherwise, read on about Sunday below….

11:30: Tamsin Antignani

From Devizes and performing as Tamsin Rose, at fifteen Tamsin already has built an impressive portfolio both as a singer-songwriter and guitarist, and acting. Tamsin attends Stagecoach, and has performed in numerous stage shows and musicals, including the poignant lead as Anne Frank for the Wharf Theatre.

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12:05: Lois Millington

Lois is from Devizes, currently studying at Sixth Form near Winchester. Lois is our youngest writer for Devizine, ever! She also performs at open mics.

12:40: Indigo Avenue

Indigo Avenue is a duo consisting of Rufus Townsend and โ€ฆโ€ฆ.. Rufus is Trowbridge based, and the guitarist for Devizes-own riot grrrl band Steatopygous, who have recently toured with The Pumpโ€™s Sketchbook Records.

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13:30: Alfie Crinion

Alife is sixteen, and a singer-songwriter from Warminster who has already taken on stages in Warminster, Frome and Trowbridge. He busks in Bath regularly, sharing his original music and covers with the world. His original music follows a blend of indie rock, with RnB and chill guitar music.

This summer Alfie was invited on stage by frontman of the Kooks, Luke Pritchard, to play guitar with the band in front of thousands of people during their set at the Boardmasters Festival in Cornwall.

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14:20: Orla and Jack

Orla is a singer-songwriter from Bath, and she brings with her Jack Hughes, as an acoustic duo who have been performing together for a few years in various bands. Orla played Womadโ€™s launchpod stage, and I met her first at Courting Ghostโ€™s Three Trees Festival at Trowbridge Town Hall.

In our review of this brilliant festival I called her performance โ€œclearly one to watch. With crystal vocals she gave us some divine originals, including a particularly poignant one called Mouthwash, and made Crowded Houseโ€™s principal her own.โ€

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15:05: Seren Alyssa

Seren is a folk singer-songwriter from Warminster with a voice you wonโ€™t forget.

Seren performs a mixture of original songs and covers. โ€œMy favourite covers to perform are Fast Car by Tracy Chapman, Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield, and Black Star by Radiohead,โ€ she tells me. โ€œI first started performing in May 2024, and since then I have performed at CorFest 2025, Swinterfest, and have supported Irish folk musicians in Salisbury including The Henry Girls, Daoirรญ Farrell, and Tim Eady and Mike McGoldrick. I am inspired by a mix of artists/musicians and genres such as folk, indie, pop, indie rock, and jazz.โ€

Seren regularly performs with Meg Hoy, who performed as our headliner on Saturday.

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15:50: Poppy Rose

Poppy Rose is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and vocal coach from Bath, known for original acoustic pop. Weโ€™ve been reviewing her recordings for a few years now, but Iโ€™ve not had the pleasure of meeting her in person, until now. James of BBC Introducing in the West played her newly released and completely unique EP, Let’s Go Swimming.

Poppy also sings at functions such as weddings.

Website

16:40: Ruby Darbyshire

Ruby is a Scottish born singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist currently residing in Bradford on Avon. Ruby is likely no stranger to Devizes, regularly playing our venues and festivals here, as well as busking with bagpipes.

Ruby grew up playing music anywhere she could. From her first performance at the Edinburgh fringe festival, to Celtic connections and many folk festivals around Scotland, Ruby’s background created the best foundation for her ongoing career in music.

Her second EP released in August 2025 has created a stir. Her debut single Caller Unknown, with help from Tim Burgess of the Charlatans and produced by Freddie Cowan of The Vaccines, was first played on BBC6. Rubyโ€™s other music has found its way into Celtic music radio, Radio X, BBC introducing South West, BBC Bristol, Cornwall and Devon as well as Bath Radio and Radio Wilts and many local radio live lounge sessions. Awarded the Best Female Solo Artists at the 2025 Wiltshire Music Awards and Second Place Instrumentalist as a Highland Piper, opening the awards event as the special guest.

Website

Devizine Launchpad at DOCAโ€™s Festival of Discovery

So, youโ€™re joining us at Albion Place on Sidmouth Street in Devizes this weekend, right?! Donโ€™t say Iโ€™ve not told you about it once itโ€™s over!! Thereโ€™s so much going on for this Festival of Discovery and DOCA have worked tirelessly to provide an amazing FREE weekend, but Iโ€™m here to tell you a little bit more about who we have playing in the Devizine Launchpad areaโ€ฆ.

You can download the program HERE and find some amazing things going on throughout all three zones; amazing things Iโ€™ll likely miss because Iโ€™ll be with sound engineer Simon Stockley, Ian James of Light & Sound, and these amazing young and talented singers, songwriters and musicians:

I’ll start with Saturday and bring you news of Sunday tomorrow…..

Saturday 17th October

11:30: Stan Jenkins

Stan is a thirteen year old singer-songwriter and guitarist from Trowbrigde. A student of Bath & Wiltshire branch of The Rock Project, Stan joined the Trowbridge Town Hall Youth Board and with friend Oliver Clark recently sold out Trowbrigeโ€™s Old Town Hall organising a teen open mic evening.

I’ve not seen Stan perform myself yet, so get here early and let’s kick this off together in style!

https://www.tiktok.com/@stanj.music

@stanj.music

forgot to post anything from the open mic night #backtoit #music #bass #drums

โ™ฌ original sound – Stan Music

12:05: Sienna Wileman 

Sienna is a singer-songwriter and actor from Swindon. She began writing and performing aged ten, and released her debut single Petals in 2022 at fourteen. Her style is dark folk-rock to pop, with progressive accompaniments. Sienna vocalised for AuralCandy, and is inspired by her father, Richard Wileman of Karda Estra. Sienna is currently studying at BA Musical Theatre in Winchester.

Though I’ve not yet met Sienna in person, we’ve been covering her singles for a few years, and she contributed to the second 4 Julia’s House compilation album with Petals.

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12:45: Braydon Lee

Braydon Lee Jones is a fifteen year old solo acoustic singer-songwriter from Calne, and is rapidly becoming one of the South West’s most exciting young artists. Despite performing live for just over a year, his incredible stage presence has already landed him on major stages like the Bristol Harbour Festival and the Phoenix Festival in Cirencester. Blending a diverse mix of well-loved covers with a growing catalogue of country-infused original material, Braydon-Lee brings a fresh, high-energy performance that appeals to music lovers of all ages.

It has been a massive breakthrough year for the young artist, who was recently featured on BBC Introducing in the West and is currently shortlisted in the Top 5 for three separate awards, including Best Male Artist, Best Newcomer, and Best Original Track for his hit single, Endless Summer.

Unfortunately I missed Braydon at CrownFest this summer, but I did catch him for the first time at FullTone Festival a couple of years ago!

LinkTree

13:35: Jodie Lauren

Image: willhenneymedia

Jodie is twenty-three, a Cheltenham UGC travel creator, musician and vlogger.

With over 103k followers on Tiktok, Jodie creates aesthetic content to showcase hotels/airbnb brands in a natural and relatable light. Sheโ€™s worked for Tiktok Live, and has experience in social media marketing. Jodie also regularly busks and brings her own spin to popular covers.

That’s where I first saw Jodie, busking in the Devizes Brittox!

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14:25: Ed Dowdeswell

Ed Dowdeswell, a level 3 music student, is an emerging grassroots singer-songwriter and musician based in Devizes. The stepson of Jamie R Hawkins of The Lost Trades, heโ€™s learned from one of the best. Ed also fronts Chippenham band Olympiad.

Ed is often found at open mics, I first saw him at The Fold’s open mic in Devizes.

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15:15: Rosie Jay

Rosie Jay is an indie folk-rock-alternative professional singer-songwriter from Salisbury, currently studying music at Bath Uni. Rosie writes her original music and creates haunting and memorable lyrics and riffs that capture the world around her, creating a captivating experience for the audience an evening of walking in her shoes. She won two Wiltshire Music Awards last year, runner-up in a third!

So impressed with Rosie’s singles, we become friends a few years ago, and I first saw her performing at The Crown in Bishop’s Cannings.

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16:05: Emelia Houchin

Emelia is a singer-songwriter from Marlborough, currently studying for GCSE’s. With a passion for storytelling through song and performance, Emelia’s last performance at MantonFest blew me away, along with everyone else watching!

Emelia is a regular at MantonFest and RamsFest and also enjoys musical theatre, performing in school performances, and has previously performed professionally at the Watermill Theatre in Newbury.

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16:50: M3g

Meg Hoy, or M3g, is an original singer-songwriter of indie-folk from Chippenham. With numerous local appearances from The Pump to Swindon Shuffle to Minety and Chippenham Folk Festival, her self-penned songs are uniquely poignant experiences. Influenced by artists like Florence Welch and AURORA, she has been performing live since age 14 and has built a notable local presence, including winning The Neeldโ€™s battle of the bands, and opening for Frank Turner at the Bristol O2 Academy. Her music is celebrated for its emotionally transparent, unique lyrics, which she roots deeply in her personal experiences and her autism.

I first met Meg when my daughter Jess was doing work experience with Devizine, and she interviewed Meg. We’ve been friends since, and no matter how many times I’ve seen her perform, she always takes my breath away.

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I’m so pleased Meg is headlining our Saturday, and everyone else who is playing; I’m more excited then they are! But, we’ve another day on Sunday, same time same place, and don’t think for a second I’ve put all my eggs in one basket, because Sunday is going to blow your mind; I’ll be back tomorrow to highlight who’s coming on Sunday!

Delaying the Inevitable with Lou Trigg

Wowzers, it was four years ago since we last mentioned local singer-songwriter and musician Lou Trigg, when we reviewed her single to come out of Potterneโ€™s Badger Set studio, Flowers. Itโ€™s a good time to catch up, because Lou is releasing a three track EP called Delaying the Inevitable, this Friday (16th October,) where the finale is a second part to Flowersโ€ฆ.

At the time I called Flowers, โ€œa chorale delicacy,โ€ which โ€œtrickles along sublimely,โ€ and there’s been no change of style since, only a huge development in the narratives, and Louโ€™s ability to express them. All these songs are equally angelic and orchestrally ambient anti-ballads, which, with subtle piano, angelic backing chants, acoustic guitar and the occasional moody drum, perfectly balances the distinctive and euphoric desperation in Louโ€™s voice.

This time around Lou recorded them herself at Mudlark Sound Studios outside Bath, and Martin Spencer mastered them at The Badger Set. Thereโ€™s three tunes, subtle folktronica, complete, quite short, yet songs with that kind of ambience which leaves me wondering what magic someone like William Orbit would make of them.

You (Her) has a slight electronic buzz but is deeply poignant. It takes the โ€˜talking to the other womanโ€™ narrative of Jolene to the next level. I mean, we never know if Jolene acts on the obsessions of the storytellerโ€™s partner, itโ€™s all in the assumption, but here, the broken-hearted narrator sends the cheater directly to the third party, dejected but with a warning of his negative characteristics. Itโ€™s a moody break-up song where, even when thereโ€™s sadness, thereโ€™s something magically and satisfyingly uplifting in this beautiful song. This tenet flows through the three tunes.

Home has the hook and commercial viability, and drifts so wonderfully youโ€™ll believe youโ€™ve known this song all your life. The differences here being it seems more communal, and any doubts in the relationship seem subjective, that the object of her desires is metaphorically as comforting as home, when they choose to be. โ€œItโ€™s a song about your birthday wish,โ€ Lou described, โ€œthat every birthday, you wish for the same thing and will, until you get it, what you once had.โ€ 

The second part of Flowers is a melodic conclusion to the past ballad, and slightly more folk-inspired, with only a delicate and perfectly placed electronic click. It ventures to a dark denouement, capturing the mood of a victim of an emotionally abusive relationship and impels the listener to mourn, or at least take sorrowful heed. โ€œIt ends the story I began to tell,โ€ Lou explained, โ€œunfortunately, it didnโ€™t have the best ending, but I decided to share my story, as many women will have gone through similar. I thought it was an important story to finish.โ€

Thereโ€™s an honest melancholic passion driving these songs, reaching out to the spellbound listener. Lou stresses this closure of Flowers โ€œrelays a dark time in my life,โ€ and every sublime beat is a tear the listener feels on their own cheek. It really is on an Adele level of emotional expression. But the magic here is also lying heavily on the distinction of Louโ€™s powerfully unique vocal range, and the musical compositions reflecting them. And for these elements included, and so cleverly combined, these three beautifully poignant songs match what Adele left the world.

Now I know at this exceptionally high accolade of a comparison youโ€™ll cry, โ€˜oh you, with your saccharine flattery,โ€™ and assume that Lou must have some really posh biscuits in her biscuit barrel Iโ€™ve got my eye on! But Iโ€™ll tell you now, that bloke with the lovely smile, Mr Threlfall, has been spinning Home on BBC Introducing in the West last week, and Lou knocked these songs for a six at Komediaโ€™s Electric Bar last night. So, just you wait until Friday, check them out for yourself, and youโ€™ll realise thereโ€™s more than a packet of M&S All Butter Scottish Shortbread at stake here!

Delaying the Inevitable, is out this Friday (16th October.) Here’s Lou’s Spotify, follow and pre-save!

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What Iโ€™ve Been Missing, a New Talk in Code Single

Whatโ€™s that? What have we been missing? Well, itโ€™s been a while since the last Talk in Code single, and thereโ€™s one coming our way on Friday (16th October,) so thatโ€™s a good startโ€ฆ.

Ah, those gorgeous guys could turn a straight manโ€™s head, with their bridging the gap between eighties new wave electronica and nineties indie pop, dancing around it clad in Adidas, and generally creating timeless anthems; and this one is another high impact tune, with upbeat euphoric ambience, racing choruses and rousing hooks.ย 

What Iโ€™ve Been Missing fits their lovable trademark style, and is particularly reminiscent of the memorable eighties power pop of Go West, Duran Duran, or Deacon Blue. In equal measure it corresponds to contemporary indie trends from the likes of the 1975, The Killers, Two Door Cinema Club, Fickle Friends, Years & Years, and Keane. Unarguably another earworm their fans will be singing straight back to them.

What Iโ€™ve Been Missing, is to be released on Friday 16th October 2026 via Regent Street Records. Aligned to their discography, this substantive and dynamic track also has thoughtful prose of romantic circumstance. With a narrative of conflict between approach and avoidance, and its denouement, frontman Chris Stevens uses the hyperbolic idiom, โ€œWhere have you been all my life?!โ€ to define it. In the final discovery of a soulmate, he expresses, โ€œweโ€™ve all got that little something or someone, that missing piece in our lives. Or is it that we just crave more, all too often?โ€

“Imagine finding a person who you really click with,โ€ guitarist Alastair Sneddon furthers, โ€œall the anxieties about getting into a new relationship are there, close to the surface, waiting to burst out. It’s exciting, you know the person is going to fill that space that you have been feeling is empty, but it’s just difficult to say out loud; this is that internal monologue.”

If the theme is a sentimental catharsis, the release of emotion rests, and is delivered by the infectious soundscape their devoted fanbase adore them for. Chris expresses it as a โ€œretro-infused, euphoric indiepop banger which will have you dancing round the house in no time!โ€

What Iโ€™ve Been Missing was recorded at The Pines Studio, Berkshire.

Talk in Code took home six awards at the 2025 Wiltshire Music Awards, including Best Original Band, and Best Original Song. They have 1 million+ streams, 3 million views, and 35 radio ‘A’-list adds. They signed to London’s Regent Street Records, with active sync representation via Big Hug Music Group and Play Equals Sync.

Their recording and performing history details three albums, and a constant variety of gigs, festival appearances, and tours, where they appropriate their surroundings and thrill audiences. Talk in Codeโ€™s momentum progresses, sharing stages with Ash, Sleeper, Years & Years, The Feeling and Scouting for Girls across Victorious Festival, The Great Escape, Godney Gathering, Jurassic Fields, and performing at iconic venues such as The Cheese & Grain, Frome, The Horn, St Albans and The Fleece, Bristol.

Despite substantial growth, their loyalty to their supporters, dubbed โ€œtalkers,โ€ remains paramount in all their activities. Putting โ€œfan community first,โ€ Talk in Code has acquired an unparalleled fanbase and ingenious merchandising, through an active WhatsApp fan group to a unique Lego-inspired loyalty reward scheme.

What Iโ€™ve Been Missing is released on Friday 16th October, across all streaming platforms. Talk in Code have an instore session planned with HMV Swindon and later that evening of Saturday October 17th, they will be playing a hometown single release show at The Victoria, Swindon.

And believe me, you may have seen Talk in Code before, they get around a bit, but the best place to see Talk in Code, Talkers will tell you, is at their home-ground in The Vic, Swindon. With support From Bluebeard and the Desperate Hours, it’ll be a great night!

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Discovering the Devizes Festival of Discovery!

Yeah I know, right, itโ€™s come up on us rather unexpectedly, this Festival of Discovery thing, hasnโ€™t it?! Whatโ€™s itโ€™s all about then, I hear you ask. With DOCA busy with the hugely successful Confetti Battle and Colour Rush, theyโ€™ve not had time to update their website yet, so hereโ€™s what we know so far, and how Devizine got involved; letโ€™s discover what we can and The Festival of Discovery!

The Festival of Discovery is a new free weekend festival for Devizes, organised by DOCA. It is happening across the weekend of Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th October. The festival will consist of three zones. Each zone is closed to traffic and is curated with wonderful happenings for you to explore, all connecting with their theme. Some performers will be travelling between zones. โ€œMake sure you explore all of them,โ€ DOCA says, โ€œthere is something for everyone in each zone!โ€

One zone then, is at The Market Place and is labelled โ€œDiscover Community.โ€ This is the place to sit, eat, listen to music, watch shows, make something in a workshop and make new friends.

The second zone will be at The Brittox, โ€œDiscover Nature.โ€ Swap, learn, repair, watch nature-inspired shows, check out our willow installations, make a dandelion flower and ride on the Bewonderment Machine. Think about how we can help and appreciate the nature that is all around us. In this nature zone, a huge willow structure will weave its way through the Brittox, transforming the townโ€™s main shopping street into a unique woodland-inspired walk.

The third zone is in Sidmouth Street, the Youth and Community Zones; discover young perspectives. โ€œIf you are or have ever been young,โ€ DOCA says, โ€œyouโ€™ll enjoy this zone!โ€ There are games, inflatables, and a mini-stage for talented young musicians; the latter is where Devizine comes in, and the bit I want to tell you most about, despite the fact that I’m neither young nor talented!

Iโ€™m delighted DOCA has asked me to host this stage, and with it Iโ€™m bringing some friends along; only the finest lineup of youthful talent in Wiltshire! The focus is on acoustic and singer-songwriters aged from 13 to 23, but there will be cover artists too, a couple of duos, and we will give them the freedom to perform what they wish.

So, we will be in Albion Place at Sidmouth Street from 11:30am to 5:30pm both days, please, join us, and support these incredible young artists. Do not assume Sunday is going to be the lesser day, it seriously is not. Iโ€™ve had such a huge response to this, Iโ€™ve been crazy busy trying to organise it, and squeeze everyone in. Our grand finales on both Saturday and Sunday will blow your mind! And, if youโ€™re thinking, โ€˜itโ€™s just a bunch of kidsโ€™ you are still welcome, because you will be the most surprised!

So, in order of appearance from 11:30 till 5:30, we present, on the Devizine Launchpad!ย 

Saturday: Stan Jenkins, Sienna Wileman, Braydon-Lee Jones, Jodie Lauren, Ed Dowdeswell, Rosie Jay, Emelia Houchin, Meg Hoy.

On Sunday we have Tamzin Antignani, Lois Millington, Indigo Avenue, Alfie Crinion, Orla and Jack, Seren Alyssa, Poppy Rose and Ruby Darbyshire.

Itโ€™s going to be amazing, I’m more excited than they are! And I look forward to seeing you all there! Here’s some teasers…..

My River, New Single from M3G

Tomorrow, Friday 2nd October, sees a new single from Chippenham indie folk singer-songwriter Meg Hoy, or M3G, and it’s called My Riverโ€ฆ..

If you deem songwriters using rivers as metaphors as a bit clichรฉ these days, from Springsteen’s safety net for the burdens of youthful relationships, or Joni Mitchell’s desperate escapism, to Billy Joelโ€™s spiritual quest, or Neil Young’s haunting impulsive act, I’d nod, and tend to agree…but…

Rivers often, and arguably more simply, represent the relentless passage of time, a comforting escape from relationship issues, or bold life or spiritual journeys. I’ve expressed the originalityย  in past reviews of Meg’s songs, and how she angles subjects with breathtaking honesty, and completely unique prose. My River is the perfect example, for here’s a commonly used subject, but Meg uses the river more as emotional balance; a kind of psychological therapeutic acupuncture.

โ€œThe timeless presence of my river helps me find perspective through my pain,โ€ she said, explaining โ€œI grew up on and around the River Avon, it has been a constant in my life, something I can always rely on to be there.โ€

โ€œAnother constant over the past seven years has been my pains and aches throughout my body. I wrote this song as I was being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. Coming to terms with the fact that there is nothing physically causing all of my pain and that it would be around for the rest of my life was something I did not want to do. But as my pain will continue, so will the river that I love.โ€

Perhaps the most appropriate song about rivers to compare this by composition to, is The Byrds, Ballad of Easy Rider, which Dylan famously scribbled the chorus to on a napkin for the director, Peter Fonda, because both flow like rivers.

Acoustic for a minute, until subtle layers of chanting develop, and the whole composition of Meg’s river themed song builds in intensity to a climax of ultimate expression, just how a river builds its flow to an estuary. My River presents Meg vocally more mature than anything past. The effect is spellbinding.

โ€œThe name ‘Avon’ comes a Celtic word used thousands of years ago to mean river,โ€ Meg said, โ€œso the River Avon literally means the River River!โ€

Equally this song is so intensely beautiful, it should be named twice!

Devizine Launchpad! Hosting Emerging Talent Area at DOCA Festival of Discovery

Young, talented, I tick neither box, but I am delighted to tell you Devizine has assembled the very best of emerging musical talent from across Wiltshire, and weโ€™re showcasing them at Albion Place on Sidmouth Street, Devizes, for DOCAโ€™s Festival of Discovery on the 17th&18th of October. From 11:30am until 5:30pm we will squeeze in 16 young upcoming and professional acts; you will be amazed!

For many years now Devizine has been promoting local music, and over those years weโ€™ve seen young talent rise to professional capacity and become renowned nationwide names. Thereโ€™s an uprising, the next generation are here! I could fondly waffle on about them and have faith youโ€™ll take heed, but proof is the bottom line! Iโ€™m delighted to be able to host this amazing opportunity, presenting proof to you!

Subject to change, our line-up includes:

Saturday 17th October:

11:30: Stan Jenkins

12:00: Sienna Wileman

12:40: Braydon-Lee Jones

13:30: Jodie Lauren

14:20: Ed Dowdeswell

15:10: Rosie Jay

16:00: Emelia Houchin

16:45: Meg Hoy

Sunday 18th October:

11:30: Tamzin Antignani

12:00: Lois Millington

12:30: Indigo Avenue

13:20: Alfie Crinion

14:10: Jack Ralph

15:00: Seren Alyssa

15:50: Poppy Rose

16:40: Ruby Darbyshire

I hope to see as many of you as possible, supporting live local music, and the youngest of our most talented performers. More information to come, and we will include bios and info on all our artists. For now, just had to get the message out there; I think I’m more excited about this than they are!!

Loser to Loser; George Wildingโ€™s New Single

Second single of 2026 from local legend George Wilding, Loser to Loser is a grower which carries a delightful punchโ€ฆif any type of punch could be deemed delightful, this is probably it!

Thereโ€™s something breezily contented indie-pop about Georgeโ€™s recent releases with more commercial viability, rather than the often whimsically lost or dejected characters of his early works. Iโ€™m tempted to reach more to bands like The Boo Radleys or Deacon Blue for a comparison than The Velvet Underground.

Although thereโ€™s something broken in the relationship in Loser to Loser, where past characters might let it get them down, they seem to face up to realities gratified, or at least nonchalantly. Perhaps to match with the catchy hook and lively ambience. George declares in the song, a system of an accusation designed to confuse and amuse you.

It kicks off with an electric guitar riff like an eighties power-pop anthem, but an โ€œooh-oohโ€ vocable breathing something more doo-wop or Motown, but whether George ventures for hints of quirky or experimental hidden details, itโ€™s incomparable and unmistakenly George Wilding; a cracking single!

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New Ladies-Only Club Opens In The Market Place.

A ladies-only club, four gloriously eccentric rooms and a barista in a bowler hat: The Dressing House is anything but ordinary. Devizine contributor Charlotte Howard bought a ticket to its second soft launch to find out what was going on behind the doors….. Iโ€™d been dying to know what was happening at 40 Market Placeโ€ฆ

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World Food Day Ends Devizes Food & Drink Festival

Yummy, yummy, yummy, I got love in my tummy! Another great year for Devizes Food & Drink Festival ended on Sunday with the World Food Day at the Corn Exchange. A hugely popular free event which annually sees queues heading out of the Market Place of hungry Devizions prepared to sample small dishes of aโ€ฆ

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3 Daft Monkeys at The Barge on HoneyStreet

Witnessed amazing fireworks for Confetti Battle in Devizes, and I hopped eastwards to that sacred hippy haven in the Pewsey Vale, The Barge at HoneyStreet; what better place for equinox? For while there’s always a hedonistic happening here, this particular autumn occasion was unmissable; 3 Daft Monkeys were heading from Cornwall for their final nightโ€ฆ

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Ruby Darbyshire’s Freeman Tribute at Ilfracombe Festival

If it’s not unusual for Wiltshire singer-songwriter Ruby Darbyshire to break out the bagpipes at a gig, it’s often for a solo stint of piping. Yet Ruby continues to experiment with ways she can merge piping into her music, and this, recorded last weekend at Ilfracombe Maritime Festival, shows Ruby at her best, backed with a band playing a tribute to the victim of the worst miscarriage of justice in British history, Clive Freeman….

It was sent to us via Ruby herself, and we love it. Please like and share this video, it is outstanding. It explains why we support this artist as much as we do, hope to see her performing here soon, and wished we were in Ilfracombe last weekend! This is a watch party, I’ll say no more!

For A Lifetime, Luke Gittins

Newlywed, what lengths would you want your partner to go to with their wedding speech and gift? A six track EP of the most beautifully self-penned sentimental love songs?! Well, sorry, but honestly, unless youโ€™re luckily now married to twenty-five year old Ed Sheeran-endorsed Chippenham singer-songwriter Luke Gittins, I think youโ€™re asking a bit much!

Congratulations to the couple, wishing them all the best of health and happiness on their journey together. But, yeah, cheers Luke; thankfully Iโ€™m already happily married, but youโ€™ve set the bar quite high with this! Will every bride-to-be now be expecting their partner to break out the acoustic guitar and deliver vocals smooth enough to charm the pants off a donkey?! Because, if so, this might not end well! Certainly nothing as breathtakingly close to For A Lifetime.ย ย 

If thereโ€™s a reason why Ed Sheeran praised Luke, invited him on stage at the O2 Arena and to open his Berlin show, itโ€™s not hidden within this EP, itโ€™s on show in the opening bars. For all I know, his wife might prefer drum & bass, but if it was me, Iโ€™d be bowled out for six! This is David Gray losing his Roland Groovebox, this is Noah Kahan playing Vermont. Itโ€™s rich with textures, divine in delivery, but the sincerity of the prose in the song-writing is kingpin.

An honest breath of fresh air, each song is a meticulously crafted expression, simply but effectively. The pulsating yet subtle beat of the opening title track took me to Iโ€™m on Fire, and could easily cool Springsteenโ€™s desire. It also serves as an epilogue to the EPโ€™s narrative, talking of their first kiss and the change it made within him.

The second song concerns itself with the sensations of love and how unbelievable it can feel to find your soulmate, wrapped in a title of a wedding vow. Whereas the third is more metaphorical, using the unpredictable English weather to suggest their relationship will overcome the odds.

The fourth is akin to Billy Joelโ€™s Just The Way You Are, whereas Home expresses the place of memories, and though perhaps a cliche theme, Luke knocks it out of the park like a delicacy savoured, and lends the listener to be far too engulfed in the beauty of the EP to be concerned about any overused subject. These are classic sentiments expressed before, but Luke revisits them with the talent to make it fresh sounding; thatโ€™s the lucidity here. It ends as smooth as the intro, with a brimful of everlasting sentiment. And with that, this is a timeless work.

Playing guitar and writing since the age of eight, Lukeโ€™s popularity blossomed during the lockdown, sharing covers on TikTok. This is his second release since his debut, Waited A Lifetime in 2023. The personal tenderness of For A Lifetime reflects, with any song on it clasping the potential to rival John Legendโ€™s first dance song, All of Me. Now, get on and do the dishes, Luke!

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We Were Ready for Some Flocksteady Beats!

By Ben Romain. Images: ยฉAlice Rose Photography

Following a stand out long weekend of blues and americana at the Hillbilly Hootenanny, Victoria and I managed to squeeze most of the Saturday of Flocksteady Bleats into a busy weekend of grown-up stuff and birthday dinnersโ€ฆ

Neither of us would declare an informed opinion on reggae, other than knowing we like some reggae, but not educated enough to know what sort of thing it was in a very wide genre (perils of genre pigeonholes shortly!)

So, we expected some familiar themes and sounds, we have classic reggae down with some Trojan records box sets Iโ€™ve had decades, most of Bobโ€™s original albums, and a few more here but thatโ€™s all- old school traditional reggae; mellow, principled, full of steady beats, and rhythm and love for music.

Before I waffle on a little about some wonderful bands, I want to touch on genres, brieflyโ€ฆ

Obviously, reggae and ska have been infused in popular culture, as well as roots music for generations; original punks I know love reggae, and ska, and vice versa. Thatโ€™s perhaps about identity, attitude, and lifestyle delivered from different angles.

It occurred to me immediately that the first band we caught, Technicolour Steam Train were reminiscent of The Beat (saw them a few times and love them) or The Selector.. they certainly had the brass and the skanking vibes down; yet they were rubbing shoulders with the lively presence of Da Fuchaman, perhaps a current take on a diverse scene maybe and more traditional laid back grooves of The MCAuff family and The Ligerians..

In all fairness the Baa team had been clever in all things marketing, the colours and some of the great names on the flyers gave a ready impression of reggae and beat-laden tunes to someone like myself ignorant to the detail or in fact to any of the bands other than sadly not being able to make the Friday for The Intercepteurs, who a good friend of mine was there to see, knowing them as she does very well and I was assured they played a blinder!

Other than some Google searching which had us tapping our toes, and feeling like this would be educational, we would unavoidably come away with slightly improved knowledge and likely new music to play at home!

The headline in all of this is to try something different. The line-ups here stretch across broader styles, I imagine deliberately so, and by doing so, broaden our horizons within a comfortable and fun environment. There are kids dancing, there are older couples relaxing in comfy chairs together, there are whatever we are variously dancing (especially Vickie!) or enjoying the spectacle with a cocktail! Itโ€™s a wonderful way to experience music, perhaps the best way.

Try something different and surprise yourself, at the Baa, if one band is not your thing the next one will be different enoughโ€ฆ perhaps they will be?

We found ourselves enjoying most of it; meeting many of the musicians, chatting about their sets, and buying CDโ€™s, which I have been listening to all week. Certainly to someone like myself for whom the soundtrack to my life provides the much needed balance to remember all that is good about humans, that life is good, even if the world can be more immediately thought of as bad or difficult..this music has a relaxing and positive impact, which is well suited to our times.

By the way, we got exactly what we envisaged, armed with the knowledge from our first visit, a different crowd, largely, I think but the same relaxed, safe, fun atmosphere, and great music.

So, here are some thoughts on the most impactful of the dayโ€™s bands for us:

Technicolour Steam Train-

A young looking band, a confident, bouncing, literally frontman delivering great songs, to long time fans of The Beat, like us, his getting the crowd skanking was great.. and they certainly did that!

Awesome musicians, hard-working brass musicians on one side were holding much of the core sound, something that is a delightful part of this kind of music for me.

Like my previous opinion stated, seeing live music is different gravy, their enjoyment, and instruments to the fore, which are not a part of, or at least so front and centre of the sound as they were here in many bands. Itโ€™s great seeing how or what they play when you are appreciating the music.

At times a sort of more modern sounding rhyming, not necessarily so much our thing but impressive none the less, as itโ€™s certainly an amazing skill when the lyrics are delivered with such haste!

Da Fuchaman & the Fire Blaze Band-

Lyrics exploring music as a conduit to leaving your troubles behind, and positive thinking can probably resonate and lift most people who experience the huge presence of this amazing collective.

The larger than life stage presence and energy of its Jamaican born front man and singer, the awesome way he brings his singing troupe to the fore, taking the lead, and ensuring they have a strong voice.. doing their own tracks in the set too.

Not sure what an expert would call the particular sound but we loved it, uplifting and certainly updated over our limited previous knowledge of reggae, with seriously good vibes.

Dancing about in the audience, getting them lifting, bouncing, getting us singing a few songs in his set you can only respect. We had the pleasure of a brief chat with him after, and there is another thing about this sweet spot in festival or venue size, you can experience a huge range of bands with different followings, and you can often say โ€˜Hiโ€™, you can talk about the music, you can share appreciation if youโ€™ve had a great time, get your CD signed as a reminder of the first time you saw them.. none of that goodness is available outside the live experience.

The McAnuff family & the Ligerians โ€“

This was an astounding headline set from an incredibly accomplished band, The only UK date so it would appear on this tour.

An incredible ensemble of Jamaican singers, and a French band. Taking to the internet the following day we learned Winston McAnuff visited a session recording of his daughter, Nadia and the Ligerians, who she had been working with, from a spontaneous experience that day. A family tour was envisaged, bringing his son Kush alongside them all to form something truly special from some of the leading lights of Jamaican reggae.

The band are incredible, a tightness you can readily recognise in any good band who have toured together, the experience and confidence in musicianship was evident, we were completely blown away, danced through much of this set too, and bought CDโ€™s which have barely been off the hi-fi this week!

Whilst we learn more about reggae, this will be a baseline experience.. this is the sort of reggae we could listen to all the time, itโ€™s so relaxing, the positivity and calmness of the overall sound is amazing.

So, thereโ€™s the verdict, music is good for you, live music is even better, live music in a field near home is a valuable and exciting addition to regular gigs in permanent venues, and get out there support the amazing humans and try new things, you will likely find if you trust your instinct you will open doors to new things and good people.

We spoke to and danced with people all over the place, with a common appreciation.

This week The Baa posted a general open statement inviting enquiries from bands, and who people who follow them and attend festivals want to see, inviting us to drop top picks to consider for next year.

They were inundated, many of us attendees were finding ourselves returning with more comments excited to see bands we love that would be a good fit for the venue considered; thatโ€™s what a community building momentum looks like, isnโ€™t it?! Itโ€™s a big part of what makes the local scenes what they are, that respect, support, and adulation for the artists and the promoters who work so bloody hard to make our chances to make memories happen.

I covered my general favourable and appreciative thoughts on The Baa as a place and team well in my recent piece for the Hillbilly Hootenanny, but all the same I would like to say a huge thanks to all of them; you are all hard-working, but appeared very happy! You certainly know how to run a great event, we didnโ€™t come last year, but it seems clear that the Baa has built a solid community, which is growing and we will be back next year.

When dates and details are available, we will be plotting to see some part of all three events with luck.

Apart from the one souvenir shot of the authors, all of the amazing pictures of this weekend are used with kind permission from Alice Rose Photography, check her out, the pics from all this yearโ€™s events at the Baa are next level, and as they say โ€˜a picture paints a thousand words.โ€™

Thank you and โ€˜Happy Giggingโ€™ from Ben & Victoria!

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Whatโ€™s on at the Wharf Theatre in October?

OCTOBER at The Wharf Theatre, Devizes arrives with a burst of creativity, variety and irresistible entertainment. This monthโ€™s programme showcases everything that makes the Wharfโ€ฆ

What to Do? September in Wiltshire

Nearly September, time to sew those name tags onto school uniforms. Still, loads to entertain you throughout the month. Iโ€™ve exhausted our ever-updating event calendar, do please check it out. I promise you, youโ€™ll have never seen so much information on things to do within a reasonable drive from Devizes, all collated and into one place!

Hereโ€™s some highlights and recommendations. Not this is conclusive, please refer to the calendar for much more!

Week 1: 1st – 6th

Step into a glittering royal world with Lucy Worsley at the Forum in Bath on Tuesday 1st, or get jazzy with Linley Hamilton & Eddie Gripper Trio at Jazz Knights, Royal Oak, Swindon (every Tuesday that one.)

End of the Road Festival starts on Thursday 3rd. Punk powerhouse Boss Cass are at the Ruze in Chippenham, or try Ribble at The Castle, Swindon, with Tamsin Quin in support.

Friday 3rd: The Strange Days Festival starts over at The Barge on HoneyStreet with Henge and Dom Jolly headlining, preview HERE. GoatFest also kicks off in Goatacre, and the Ley Lines Festival, nr Stonehenge.

Triple header at The Pump in Trowbridge with Lucky Number 7, Intrusive and Battery Acid. Saint Six at The Ruze. Neil Young โ€˜Harvestโ€™ Celebration Show at Chapel Arts, Bath. Salisburyโ€™s Fayre on the Square has The Tipsy Gypsies. And, The Leveller play Salisbury City Hall; wowzers!!

Saturday 5th: is Devizes Carnival. Midnight Hour at The Three Crowns and the new season at Long Street Blues Club opens with Lightninโ€™ Willie and the Poorboys: Preview HERE.

Motorbike ride-in at Wiltshire & Bath Air Ambulance Airbase. Car Park Fiesta at Wiltshire Music Centre, Bradford-on-Avon, Ashton Barn Festival near Trowbridge too.

Blue Water Giants at The Old Town Hall, Trowbridge. The Pump has Regal Cheer & Mulch & Pebble Daisy. Thereโ€™s a Charity Ball in aid of Breast Cancer Live at The Ruze in Chippenham. The Chippenham Record and Art Fair at the King Alfred Hall.

Fundraiser Base Connection at Salisbury Arts Centre with Salisbury Live City Stereo, Tides, Things Behind The Sun, Mossy Depths, Love Is Enough, CharmType, Five Nights At Adyans and Rosie Jay playing for the Thomas Thelk Fund.

Sunday 6th: erm, Kula Shaker at The Cheese & Grain, or The Amazing Bubble Man at PoundArts!

Week 2: 7th- 13th 

Two words: Swindon Shuffle. Running from Monday until Sunday the 13th, the best time you will have in Swindon, ever! And helping Prospect Hospice too, we wish The Shuffle a happy 20th Birthday.

Chippenham Film Festival 2026 runs from Tuesday 8th to Sunday 13th.

Wednesday 9th, and youโ€™ll find Devizes new town crier Capability Charlotte reading & social, Make Way for Lucia at The Churchill, West Lavington. An amateur production of Pink Mist, presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals at The Mission Theatre Bath, opens and runs until Saturday 12th.

Thursday 10th: Trowbridge Comedy Club has Milton Jones at The Civic. Swindonโ€™s Wyvern brings you an evening with one of the worldโ€™s top rugby referees, Nigel Owens MBE, and for a complete contrast the Cheese & Grain in Frome presents Elvana, an Elvis Fronted Nirvana! But hey, Iโ€™d recommend the Bob Marley tribute Legend at Salisbury City Hall. Itโ€™s the Mucky Weekender near Winchester too.

Friday 11th: Icons of the Sky opens at Longleat, running until 13th. The Jane Austin Festival in Bath. Langford Beer Festival. The Haunting of Hill House opens at Salisbury Playhouse, running until 3rd October.

Gigs; Steve Knightley at St Peterโ€™s Marlborough. Old Baby Mackerel at Pound Arts. Talk In Code at The Ruze, Chippenham. 

Saturday 12th is Devizes Heritage Day, lots of open days across the town; until, the dinosaurs come! Jurassic Park open air cinema at Hillworth Park. Also, Devizes Bike Fest.

Minety Beer & Cider Festival, continues on Sunday. The Hammervilles are at Tuckers in Faulkland.

Sunday 13th, donโ€™t miss Rachel Sinnetta & Jolyon Dixon at The Three Crowns, Devizes, Proms in Hilworth Park from 2pm with Devizes Town Band, and a charity football match at Devizes FC Vs Lacock FC.

Wiltshire & Bath Air Ambulance Paws Charity Dog Show, in Oare: preview HERE. Ramsbury Silver Band at Queens Park, Swindon from 15:00-16:30.ย 

Week 3: 14th- 20th

Monday 14th, Oexmann Art Award Competition and Exhibition at Wiltshire Museum, Devizes. Tuesday and David Coulthard & Mika Hรคkkinen talk at The Forum, Bath; vrooom!

125 Years Of Jazz Piano at The Wyvern Theatre, Balls at The Mission Theatre, Bath, and David Essex at The Forum; options!

Thursday 17th and here we go, Pewsey! The Wheel-beero race!

Deadlight Dance & Flowers of Sacrifice at The Tuppenny, Tim Holehouse & B-Sydes at The Castle, and George Montague at The Vic, all in Swindon.

Friday 18th: Rich Hallโ€™s Chin Music at Melksham Assembly Hall. Grassroots Band Night at The Ruze. Sam Grassie at The Old Town Hall in Trowbridge, Pityspeed, Steatopygous, Byford Dolphin Incident and Kride at The Pump. Slagerij at The Vic, Swindon, and Days in the Sun Festival opens in Gloucestershire.

Saturday 19th sees The Devizes Food & Drink Festival begin, with the free Artisan Producerโ€™s Market at the Market Place. The festival runs until the 27th, all events are listed on our calendar. Itโ€™s also the legendary Pewsey Carnival.

Ska night with Ya Freshness & the Big Boss Band at The Lamb, Trowbridge, with Luke De-Sciscio & In Silver playing the Pump. The Koolkatz at Melksham Rock n Roll Club, a 

Celestial Night at The Ruze, and The Reflections, Oscars & Golddiggers Reunion at Venom in Westbury; tidy!

Simon Brodkin at the Wyvern, Swindon, Hamlet: The Musical at The Mission Theatre, Bath. 

Sunday 20th and Jazz Deloren is at The Barge, Honeystreet. Highworth Silver Band at Town Gardens, Swindon from 15:00-16:30.

Week 4: 21st- 30th

Howard Barkerโ€™s Scenes from an Execution opens on Monday 21st at The Wharf Theatre, Devizes, and runs until September 26th. An exploration of  art clashing with politics and religion set in 16th-century Venice.

Wicked comedian Mike Rice brings his Cruel Little Man tour to Komedia, Bath on Monday and Swindon Arts Centre on Tuesday. While Tuesdayโ€™s offering at Jazz Knights, Royal Oak, Swindon is Brass Band Bychan, a Sousaphone. 

Find internationally acclaimed cellist Steven Isserlis CBE at Wiltshire Music Centre, Bradford on Avon on Wednesday 23rd. Joe McCorriston at The Pulpit, Swindon, comedianย Josh Pugh at The Wyvern, Swindon, but over in Bath, Eric Idle talks at Komedia, and Alan Davies is at The Forum.ย 

Thursday 24th and itโ€™s the opening of Marlborough Literature Festival, with lots going on for bookworms and creatives, until Sunday 27th. 

Now You See Me, Now You Donโ€™t! at The Mission Theatre, Bath, and Amรฉlie at The Rondo opens on Thursday, running until Saturday. Join two-time Olivier Award-winning actor Trevor Eve in conversation at Salisbury Arts Centre, Thursday, and Cloudbusting, the Kate Bush tribute is at Salisbury City Hall.

Friday 25th September, Virgil & The Accelerators return to Long Street Blues Club, Devizes after twelve years since they played there. Supported by Devizes-own Burn the Midnight Oil.

Sketchbook Records presents Fightmilk, Hark! A Shark! Spiderhoney and Shutterspeed at The Pump in Trowbridge. The Lost Trades & Ruby Darbyshire are at The Ruze in Chippenham. Martin Kempโ€™s โ€œBack To The 80s Partyโ€ at King George V Playing Fields, and thereโ€™s comedy at Melksham Assembly Hall with Marcus Brigstocke, Zoe Lyons and Matt Bragg.

Saturday 26th, is the Colour Rush and Confetti Battle in Devizes, and a Thrive Sustainability Day at St Andrews. 3 Daft Monkeys are at The Barge, Honeystreet. Award-winning folk band from Quebec, Le Vent Du Nord at Wiltshire Music Centre.

Raving at The Vic in Swindon with  Diversify 26, Swindonโ€™s Multi Genre Dance Event, while rock legends Magnum play Fromeโ€™s Cheese & Grain.

Sunday 27th sees the ending of The Devizes Food & Drink Festival with the free World Food Day at the Corn Exchange. But thats also the end of our highlights for September, at least on a full stomach!

But this is just a smidgen of the stuff already listed on our event calendar, so bookmark it and check in, because more is being added all the time, well, nearly all the time!!

Lightnin’ Willie and the Poorboys Opens New Season at Long Street Blues Club

September is a week away; parents will be brushing off school uniforms, but Devizes blues fans wonโ€™t be dusting their brooms, because Long Steet Blues Club opens for the autumn/winter season on the first Saturday, the 5th with Lightnin’ Willie and the Poorboysโ€ฆ..ย ย ย 

After a long absence the club welcome back one of the club favourites from California, Lightning Willie and his backing band The Poorboys. Lightninโ€™ Willie has a very distinctive approach to his music. He is a songwriter, singer and guitarist in that order. The sound is an irresistible blend of tradition and spontaneous creativity, with a deliciously insidious emphasis on the groove. It is a compelling, hard swinging brand of blues that, whenever he performs, packs the floor.

He has gone from the low down beer joints to become a staple on the international circuit, with wild stops along the way, from Londonโ€™s Royal Albert Hall Igniter Series to Willie Nelsonโ€™s infamous 4th of July Picnic, where he appeared alongside Paula Nelson, Willie, Bob Dylan, and Leon Russell.

Touring the United States and Europe for over twenty years has given him the relaxed, confident and sometimes humorous quality of a seasoned performer. These attributes have won him stacks of enthusiastic praise from the press while landing his original tunes on numerous film and television soundtracks.

Lightninโ€™ Willie has the unique knack of bringing his audience into his โ€˜living roomโ€™ and making everyone comfortable while forgetting their problems for a couple of hours. At a recent show with legendary blues man Robert Cray they played to a packed house receiving a well deserved standing ovation. 2018 will find Willie on tour supporting his latest album No Black No White Just Blues.

Willie is backed by his superb band, The Poorboys – Giles King on harmonica, bassist Aaron McRobbie and drummer Paul ‘Nobby’ Birch. Support for the evening comes from Gordon Wood.

ON SALE NOW Advance Tickets are ยฃ18.00 from usual outlets or book online (online booking fee applies) Tickets ยฃ20.00 on the door.

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Henge Frontman Matthew C. Whitaker Solo Tour Comes to Frome

Featured Image: Antony Barkworth-Knight

Despite intentionally making his tricks go wrong, Tommy Cooper was actually a skilled magician and member of The Magic Circle. SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenburg was a marine biologist, and Benny Hill really was a milkman. In order to deride an art effectively you must first master it. It therefore stands to reason Matthew C. Whitaker, frontman of the cosplay prog-rave outfit HENGE, also has some highly acclaimed solo materialโ€ฆ.

Matthew takes his February album Songs for the Weary on the road solo this October, opening in Belgium and the Netherlands before touring across the UK, including Fromeโ€™s Cheese & Grainโ€™s sister venue The Tree House on Wednesday 21st October.

The one and only time Iโ€™ve seen Henge was at the Cheese, making haste for the county border after fondly reviewing their album Journey to Voltus B last year, and it was a gig Iโ€™d need to be abducted and lobotomised to forget. Matthewโ€™s solo material can be equally as cosmic, as it drifts through gentle pieces for classical guitar, lush string arrangements, and subtle electronics, but it also contrasts vastly, and is a particularly mellower experience than Henge.

Thereโ€™s cool jazz sax, whistles, fingerpicked guitar and delicate yet quirky observations in these hushed and patient patterns, taking you along with it as it drifts through space. Songs for the Weary has found a home on BBC Radio 6 Music, with singles Lucid Dreamer and Chestnut Tree championed by Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie, Craig Charles, and Deb Grant.

The run follows a widely praised set of UK and European dates earlier this year, when Whitaker was joined on stage by the album’s producer and multi-instrumentalist Alan Keary. This time, he takes to the stage completely solo.

Manchester-based musician and composer Matthew sings about losing a train of thought, which is apt, it twinkles through you like Bowie at his most exquisite or Paulโ€™s later work with The Beatles, backed by Peter, Paul and Mary, for an episode of Button Moon.

And before you say it, milkman is an art; it can take years to master the three-bottle-grip whilst being chased by an enraged Yorkshire terrier up a garden path.

More info on Matthew C. Whitaker

The UK tour dates look like this:

11/10/26 – Lancaster Music Festival, Lancaster

13/10/26 – Nice N Sleazy, Glasgow

14/10/26 – Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh

18/10/26 – Storyhouse, Chester

19/10/26 – The Bullingdon, Oxford

20/10/26 – Colchester Arts Centre, Colchester

21/10/26 – The Tree House, Frome

24/10/26 – The Grand, Clitheroe

26/10/26 – The Hare And Hounds, Birmingham

27/10/26 – Signature Brew, London

29/10/26 – Amped, Huddersfield

Trending….

DOCA Awarded National Lottery Grant

Congratulations to Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts, who announced yesterday that they’ve been awarded a substantial National Lottery Project Grant from Arts Council Englandโ€ฆ. This isโ€ฆ

Keep reading

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Ruby Darbyshire: God is Offline

Wiltshire singer-songwriter Ruby Darbyshire, youโ€™re most likely familiar with, unless you joined Devizine family readerโ€™s circle today, has a new song on YouTube, one sheโ€™s been playing at recent gigs. Here the track has a subtle piano added, and those wonderful brush drum strokes texturing it with that smooth jazzy ambience, yet with poignant narrative too. Give God is Offline a quick whirl, and bless your earsโ€ฆ

Ruby mentioned working on this song when we talked in May. โ€œIt was inspired by our recent trip to Egypt,โ€ Ruby explained, โ€œwhere we narrowly escaped Dubaiโ€™s missile attack by a few hours. When we got to our apartment, we could see down on the street. There were loads of prayer mats, because the mosque was so filled, people had to spill out onto the road. And so that inspired it.โ€

Its deeper meaning, I presumed, was not to seek faith online, but to look either spiritually or in the real world. Ruby elucidated, โ€œmore just the fact that everyone is the same, whether they believe in a different God or they are from a different part of the world, theyโ€™re all the same. Weโ€™re all just trying to live our lives..โ€

Find Ruby’s LinkTree HERE

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For A Lifetime, Luke Gittins

Newlywed, what lengths would you want your partner to go to with their wedding speech and gift? A six track EP of the most beautifullyโ€ฆ

We Were Ready for Some Flocksteady Beats!

By Ben Romain. Images: ยฉAlice Rose Photography Following a stand out long weekend of blues and americana at the Hillbilly Hootenanny, Victoria and I managedโ€ฆ

What to Do? September in Wiltshire

Nearly September, time to sew those name tags onto school uniforms. Still, loads to entertain you throughout the month. Iโ€™ve exhausted our ever-updating event calendar,โ€ฆ

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Blood, Sweat and Tears; Burn the Midnight Oilโ€™s New Single

Pleasantly surprised in July when an awesome new single from Devizesโ€™ rootsy Americana with a gothic twist collective, Burn the Midnight Oil revealed a more carefree and commercially viable style to their previously darker themed and rawer material. It was enough for James Threlfall to pick it up for BBC Introducing. With a new single out on Friday 28th August called Blood, Sweat & Tears you might be fooled into assuming by the title theyโ€™ve turned back to the sombre moods of before. Think againโ€ฆ..

Though frontgirl Chrissy mightโ€™ve elucidated, least hinted something darker might be in the pipeline, for now Blood, Sweat & Tears follows neatly on from Slow Burn with an incredible upbeat driving vibe, verging on Shania Twain sassy, yet retaining the cool rock riff of Fleetwood Mac. Itโ€™s immediately compulsive, with a danceable and anthemic combo. I find myself contemplating if itโ€™s better than Slow Burn, or not, but with a hook razor-sharpened, itโ€™s undoubtedly on par, and proves it wasnโ€™t pot luck in July.

With this divine product of Potterne’s Badger Set blessing my ears I also find myself reflecting back to an interview we did with the band last November. Guitarist John Lane spoke of achieving such a hook as these last two singles, and expressed the importance of the sound. โ€œFirst thing people take in is rhythm,โ€ he suggested, โ€œthen melody, last of all, lyrics. So if you hook the first bit, you donโ€™t get the second one, then they come back for the lyrics.โ€

In this I sensed a healthy division between John and Chrissyโ€™s perspectives. Knowing how much thought and creativity Chrissy loads into her writing, drawing inspiration from personal and often emotional experiences, and exporting them into relatable and poignant lyrics, there was a non-confrontational difference. I supposed of this stalemate at the time, โ€œa good blend of opinion is surely necessary to compose the elements of a song professionally.โ€ And that is precisely what they put in, making this song work; the dynamics of pop, a conscious composition where both arguments meet in harmony.

Chrissy taglines the song thus; โ€œsome dreams begin as little more than a whisper, an idea that refuses to let go, a vision that quietly demands more of you until ignoring it is no longer an option.โ€ Ah, yes, I can reflect the notion; any inventive mind will tell, thatโ€™s the creative juices flowing and the desire to express them. Blood, Sweat & Tears concerns itself with the acceptance of that call, and the feeling of unlocking your potential. As Chrissy says, โ€œbreaking through self-imposed limitations and pursuing a future worth fighting for.โ€

An expressive tenet full of contemplation and self-analysis, it remains positively angled, like Jimmy Cliff on his hard road to travel, but with steadfast faith he canโ€™t turn back because his mind is set. Chrissy views her theme similarly, as a meaningful journey of courage and determination against odds stacked not in your favour. Such concepts are not so uncommon in music, and an acoustic singer-songwriter will expose similar thoughts abound. But here, with Burn the Midnight Oil the prose is perfectly packaged by the sound of her exceptionally accomplished and unified band, complementing her natural vocal balance, and that harmoniousness is what makes Blood Sweat & Tears so complete and engaging.

Hereโ€™s their LinkTree, new single is out next Friday 28th August 2026, but you can pre-save it and listen to the last one. I suggest you do. Perks of the job; this one is stuck in my head already!

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Hot Juice Project at The Three Crowns

Whoa! What happened last night at the trusty Three Crowns?! What happened last night at the Three Crowns has clearly happened before, and happens mostโ€ฆ

Ruby Darbyshire: God is Offline

Wiltshire singer-songwriter Ruby Darbyshire, youโ€™re most likely familiar with, unless you joined Devizine family readerโ€™s circle today, has a new song on YouTube, one sheโ€™sโ€ฆ

Large It Norm, in Trowbridge!

Yes, we’ve got to praise Trowbridgeโ€™s Old Town Hall like we should, because Fatboy Slim is going to be right there, but not right now;โ€ฆ

Emergency Alert: Wessex Water Hosepipe Ban!

Surprised your mobile didn’t sound the apocalyptic alarm to notify you about Wessex Water’s hosepipe ban?! Then, you’re a gullible idiot! But being 22,239 votersโ€ฆ

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Stray Chords of Salisbury; How Jolyon Dixon was Reunited with Childhood Guitar

Turned around in just a day, a team of guitar โ€œheir huntersโ€ from Macclesfield called The Stray Chord have reunited Salisburyโ€™s musician Jolyon Dixon with his childhood guitar, with a truly fascinating storyโ€ฆ..

Jordan, Sarah, and Damian are a family team behind Stray Chord, whoโ€™ve spent years rescuing lost guitars from auctions, marketplace listings, trades and house clearances, in order to restore and rehome them. This has developed into a project reuniting the guitars with their original owners, and discovering the histories behind them.

They hope to create a music hub built around this unique idea, creating a space for people to connect through music and creativity. โ€œOnce weโ€™ve raised enough, we would love to open a community-minded space with rehearsal rooms, a workshop, and a coffee and comics area,โ€ Sarah explained. Sarah does aesthetic restoration, her husband Jordan handles technical restoration, and their son Damian runs their social media and is the โ€œMini Moshersโ€ ambassador.

Stray Chord team; Sarah, Damian and Jordan

โ€œWe only started up six weeks ago, so itโ€™s early days! In that time though, weโ€™ve rehomed over twenty restored stray guitars, and weโ€™re on our second Mini Moshers Promise giveaway, which is where we restore and set up a guitar and equipment bundle that we give to a child that may not otherwise be able to start their musical journey.โ€

On Thursday the team posted a picture on their Facebook page, of a rescued 1979 Hondo II HDLP-2WI custom-style guitar, dressed in a wine red finish, hereafter called Merlot! โ€œWhile dismantling Merlot for his rehabilitation,โ€ they revealed, โ€œwe discovered a little address label. Then another. Then another. Then a fourth. A label in every cavity!โ€

With a redundant Salisbury telephone number, their hunt began with just a name, and they requested for information, purely for the love of discovering the story behind the instrument. The following day they received a message from Jolyon, who recognised the guitar. His parents bought him the guitar second-hand in Salisbury in 1985, when he was 11. It was his second guitar, but loved and cherished it, and used it with his first band with school friends. He passed the guitar onto his bandmate, Jamie.

โ€œIt has been a really fun few weeks so far,โ€ Sarah said, โ€œand very rewarding. Weโ€™re looking forward to seeing what we can do in the next six months, but being able to find Jolyon, and the history of an almost 50 year old guitar has genuinely been a real highlight.โ€

John and Jolyon as Illingworth

Jolyon is the most modest local music legend Iโ€™ve met. You might have seen him backing singer Rachel Sinnetta, as part of the Illingworth duo with John Smith, at the control tower of CrownFest and other Stone Circle festivals, and he produces for the likes of George Wilding. He sent them a photograph of himself, his bandmates, and the same guitar sitting dismantled on the Stray Chord’s workbench. โ€œAt this point,โ€ they expressed, โ€œwe were already emotional because weโ€™re hugely sentimental people. Itโ€™s a large part of why The Stray Chord exists in the first place.โ€

Jolyon relayed his story to the team, from this school band to his professional career, in which he played in numerous bands and recordings, including The Whoโ€™s Endless Wire album. He told us he was quite emotional about the discovery, and explained how Jamie put the address labels in when he passed it to him. โ€œJamie has had a great music career,โ€ he told us, โ€œpartly out in Australia, and is a brilliant guitarist.โ€

The other guitarist in the photo is John Wakefield, of whom Jolyon is still in touch with, and still owns his guitar! โ€œJohn and I stayed band mates all the way through secondary school,โ€ Jolyon told us, โ€œand on through playing with Toyah Willcox, and then as backing for girl duo Scarlet in 1995, so we did get to do Top of the Pops together a few times, which was great!โ€

The story caused the Stray Chord to consider their Mini Moshers project, โ€œbecause this photograph could almost have been taken to explain why we started it. Someone put a second-hand guitar into the hands of an 11-year-old. That kid formed a band. He kept playing, and more than four decades later, heโ€™s still making music professionally and touring the world. Weโ€™re not suggesting that every Mini Mosher we give a guitar to is going to end up playing with The Who, thatโ€™s not the point! But, maybe theyโ€™ll become a professional musician, maybe theyโ€™ll form a clumsy teenage garage band with their best friends.โ€

Jolyon was โ€œflabbergastedโ€ to see his old guitar, and told the Stray Chord he often thought of the guitar and where it might have gone. Though he plans a trip up to Macclesfield to visit it, and the Stray Chord gang, he feels, โ€œit’d be best for someone new to take the guitar into its next chapter; I’ve got too many now!!โ€

โ€œIโ€™m really happy to see that the guitar is still alive and well,โ€ Jolyon stated, โ€œand I hope the next owner enjoys it as much as 11 year old me did!โ€

As for the Stray Chord’s Mini Moshers, the promise is โ€œif thereโ€™s a young person in your life who dreams about playing guitar, please go and nominate them. We rescue guitars because weโ€™re sentimental. We restore them because we think their stories are worth continuing. We rehome them because somewhere out there is another pair of hands ready to write their next chapter.โ€

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JAZZ โ€“ Our Local Guide

Andy Fawthrop All That Jazz โ€“ Nice! D-Town certainly punches above its weight when it comes to providing a vibrant and varied music scene.ย  Itโ€ฆ

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Trowbridgeโ€™s Old Town Hall Introduces Youth Open Mic

Are you a budding musician aged between 13 and 18? Well, I tick neither box, but, as Trowbridgeโ€™s Old Town Hall is to introduce youth open mic sessions, I reckon it’s a brilliant incentiveโ€ฆ.

Of course, most open mics have no age restrictions, but you know how it can go sometimes, when there’s an aging hippy who wants to recite Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety, or slots for the youngest are shoved onto the graveyard shift!ย 

Open mics are about networking, and making like-minded friends, where age groups tend to pair off better. Plus, the nervousness of starting off could be greatly increased if you’re in a room full of more experienced musicians.

So Oli & Stan present their first Youth Open Mic Night at The Old Town Hall on Wednesday 26th August, from 7:00 to 9:30pm. 

It’s free entry, and if youโ€™d like to perform, please contact Oli at revilomagician@outlook.com

Both ticket holders and performers must be aged 13 to 18. Performers can add an accompanying adult to their guest list. Please speak to Oli when booking your performance slot to find out more.

Hats off to The Old Town Hall, a charity run multi-purpose venue in the heart of Trowbridge, not linked to the town council. It’s become a community arts centre, with lots of regular clubs and events.ย 

There’s lots of stuff for youngsters, especially during school holidays. They include graffiti, animation, acting and samba workshops, Lego building club, story times, even a recycling fashion workshop. While adults can enjoy family clubbercise, zumba, yoga and there’s singing groups for all ages.

With film screenings, art exhibitions, live music, and open deck nights, Trowbridge Old Town Hall has got something for everyoneโ€ฆ except meโ€ฆ hold on though, there’s a Pipe & Slippers rave on the 12th September; I’d better dust off my white gloves and whistle!

Oh The Deep; Sarah Tarryโ€™s EP Launch at The Cellar Bar, Devizes

Spent Friday evening at The Cellar Bar in Devizes, doing what Devizine should be about; discovering talented people new to us and near to us. Sarah Tarry has been off the music scene for the best part of twelve years, raising a family I gathered by the gig. Being Devizine has only been around for nearly ten might explain why we’d yet to have touched base. But her EP launch gig told me all I needed to know, and I’m glad we now haveโ€ฆ.

Though the music was exceptionally accomplished with a full setup of cajon percussion, acoustic guitar, double bass, fiddle and piano, this revival was an intimate gig, with what appeared to be a majority of friends and family, and without any of the live music aficionados I usually rub shoulders with gigging in Devizes. Now I’ve heard Sarah and her band I’m of the opinion that should change; hence why I’m writing this!ย 

Through the choice of the sprinkling of covers Sarah and her band delivered with precision and their own stamp, youโ€™ll be able to interpret the mood and style. Vance Joy’s Riptide, perhaps being the questionable wildcard, the others were aptly selected. Such is the EP, Oh The Deep, released on Friday. While it opens with an upbeat indie riff praise, Florence and the Machine on fire fashion, He is on the Throne is the exception. The remaining three tracks take the downtempo ambient mood. 

For Sarah’s natural euphoria, U2’s Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For was breathtaking, like Where Can I Go from the EP. Where Can I Go sounds more akin to Morcheeba, and in this soulful element brings subtle gospel into the making of the themes; something U2 would use to their advantage.

Ropes is the absolute peak of the EP, it encompasses all Sarahโ€™s influences in a wonderful package, the folk, the ambience edge, and likened to the start of the second half, when they covered Pure Shores; William Orbit elevating girl band, All Saints. This suggested Sarahโ€™s interest in nu-cool ambience, even if this quartet on the night were strictly analogue. 

But the most aligned cover was undoubtedly a sublime version of Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now, for Sarah knows how to weave an emotive mood and poignant sentiment with timeless folk goodness. This reflects the title track of the EP, a gorgeous, melodious salvation to Christ, with booming theatrical drums to enforce the notion. Thereโ€™s a slight return of joyous euphoria on the EP too, an epilogue which was presented at the gig as a fuller song. 

With affections for cloud formations and CS Lewis’s Narnia, Sarah presented songs influenced by them and her Christian roots, but this aforesaid mood and sentiment came to its summit through original odes to her children, who were present at the gig.

Passionately describing her inner thoughts, through and after birth, was so utterly beautiful, though her young son could only subtly blush and giggle, her husband was driven to tears with the recollections evoked. That’s the power of music, and Sarah possesses that certain something, that when a subject relates to the listener it touches them, and on such a commonly occurring topic, Sarah could evoke any parent’s oxytocin levels to maximum.

If, in rock music fandom, thereโ€™s a misconception where a person needs that rawness verging on the absence of belief in the existence of God, you might take Sarahโ€™s inspiration and the religious connotations with a pinch of salt. Even if I might question it too, I would respond with the notion, you are therefore missing out. This was a wonderful gig, to launch an EP which might yet change your viewpoint. Itโ€™s rich and embellished in goodness and adroit compositions, which chill and inspire; take a listen, see for yourself!

Devizes Food & Drink Festival Announce 2026 Program

Devizes Food & Drink Festival announced their program of events last week, and the box office opens at 9am on Monday 10th August. Letโ€™s fill up with whatโ€™s onโ€ฆ.

As usual the festival opens with a free event, the Street Food & Artisan Market at Devizes Market Place on Saturday 19th September from 10am until 4pm. Lots of street food to snack on, and produce to take home, a Wadworth pop-up pub, and live music from Strungout Ukuleles and Painted by Numbers.

In the evening, itโ€™s Tales and Food of the Caribbean at The Wyvern Club, Church Walk; 7.00pm. Brunch with a View at Wellington Barn on the Sunday, 20th September; a generous Wiltshire-inspired brunch, including mini filled croissants, warm frittata and lardy cake. Sunday also offers Lunch with the Afghan Ladies at The Cheese Hall, Devizes. Wiltshire has a thriving Afghan community, who love to share their cuisine. Enjoy tasty home cooking, including delicately spiced vegetarian or chicken karahi, with kabuli pilau and salad.

Or perhaps a Teddy Bearsโ€™ Picnic sounds nicer, at Hillworth Park also on Sunday 20th September at 3pm. Itโ€™s only ยฃ4 for ten years and under, and boasts games, a storyteller, colouring, songs and a delicious teddy-themed picnic. All children need an accompanying adult and a teddy!

From Monday 21st, thereโ€™s Scandinavian inspired food and drink. A Hyggee Lunch; luxurious smorgasbord style lunch in the unique and truly spectacular eco Hyggee House overlooking a beautiful lake near Wellington Barn. And the Great Foodie Quiz at The Literary and Scientific Institute.ย 

Bonjour Bread! At the Cheese Hall, on Tuesday 22nd September at 12.30pm; exploring the realm of French artisan baking with Gaรซl Nicolle, Devizesโ€™s own boulanger from Papaโ€™s Bakery. Or Beer and Brownies at The Pour House, matching beer with chocolate, is that wise?! Ah, but brownies are coming from the Gourmet Brownie Kitchen; say no more.

Dining somewhere different begins on Wednesday 23rd September, one at the National Grid offices on Hopton! A presentation over a two course lunch, explaining the decommissioning of the pylons from Rowde to Bishops Cannings. The second, at Erlestoke Prison. A three-course dinner, with choices at each course, cooked and served in HMP Erlestoke by offenders and the prison catering team.ย 

Or, Everything Stops for Tea, at West Lavington Village Hall, offering traditional afternoon tea, sandwiches, scones and cake in a village hall setting, and big band music, featuring Glenn Miller and the Pasadena Roof Orchestra. And Call My Wine Bluff at the Cheese Hall, finishes off Wednesdayโ€™s events.

Fresh produce legend Ken Mortimer of Heritage Fine Foods is joining forces with chef Peter Vaughan to share the truth behind your daily veg, plus tips on how to make the most of it, on Thursday 24th September at Vaughanโ€™s Cookery School. Murder on the Dancefloor in the evening, at the Corn Exchange. The DJ is dead, the dancers are dodgy, and the alibis are weak. Spot the clues, count the hidden song titles, decide whodunnit, and win a prize.

Ready, Steady, Cook at Opendoors on Friday 25th September, at 12. Devizes Opendoors provides food and support for homeless and vulnerable people using ingredients that are usually donated or obtained at bargain price. Learn all about the charity and enjoy the dish of the day main course made by one of the Opendoors volunteer cooks, followed by a dessert YOU make in a scratch team from a stock of surprise ingredients.

Wadworth Brewery Tour, at their new Hopton site, also on Friday, the main sponsors of the event. Guests will receive special presentations from the Head Brewer and Chief Engineer.ย  Naturally there will be a beer tasting, and there will be cake! The exclusive Come Dine with Us at homes in and around Devizes is the icing on Friday;s cake, so be quick booking this one.ย 

Saturday 26th September, thereโ€™s a Lovely Lunch at St Andrewโ€™s Church from 12pm. Two children from ages 2-12 are free with a paying adult for this collaboration lunch with St Andrewโ€™s Church and Sustainable Devizes. A two-course vegetarian meal, homemade by volunteers, showcasing locally sourced ingredients. Cook Book Writer Joe Woodhouse will be at The Assembly Rooms. Quizzine, also at the Assembly Room; the last word in food quizzes.

And my personal favourite, The World Food Day at the Corn Exchange will be on Sunday 27th September at 12.30. Free entry, ยฃ1 per taster. Cooks from Taiwan and Lebanon & Syriaย  will be there for the first time this year, as well as old favourites, many with new dishes.

Find our more, feast your eyes and b0ok tickets, HERE.

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Jurassic Hillworth Park!

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New single from Swindonโ€™s finest Americana singer-songwriter Jol Rose, the kind of artist whoโ€™ll finish a song and leave a jammed pub in such aweโ€ฆ

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Oh The Deep; Sarah Tarryโ€™s New EP & Launch in Devizes

After near-on ten years at this, I assume Devizine has pretty much discovered all the local talent, when suddenly someone off our radar pops up to say hi! Devizes-based Sarah Tarry, is new to me, but Iโ€™ve had a sneaky peak at her new euphoric EP, Oh, The Deep, which is released on Friday 7th August and has a launch gig at the Devizes Cellar Barโ€ฆ..

โ€œIt’s kind of a comeback EP,โ€ Sarah explained, โ€œmy last one was around 2013.โ€ The five-track EP of smooth and rootsy melodic acoustics over ambient soundscapes and backing vocals, is a collection of songs which Sarah has been working for some years on, and the time spent clearly shows. The third song, Ropes, concerns human frailty and hope, and is a good example, as Sarah wrote it over fourteen years ago.

The title tune homages sacred places, and with the delicate sounds of a coastline, breathes a rapture of blissful summery vibes. Sarah explains Where Can I Go is a โ€œwrestle with a love that is so deep and unconditional that it just wonโ€™t let go,โ€ leaving me in awe at the poignancy enveloped in this EP. 

It comes with a sketchy cover illustration of wintery country walks, by Imogen Hobbs, causing the whole project to feel wholesome and endearing. Yeah, sounds nice to me! Plenty to encourage me to check out the Bearโ€™s Cellar Bar on Friday 7th August; you coming?!

Pre-save it here, LinkTree here, Bandcamp

An Impressive and Fantastic Park Farm Music Festival

Images: Jess Worrow

Well my friends the time has come; Park Farm Music Festival sure went from zero to hero in one swift and fantastic Saturdayโ€ฆโ€ฆ

Nestled between Fulltone and the Scooter Rally, two established events on the calendar at the same Devizes site, Park Farm, the self-titled music festival’s inaugural outing last year deserved more attention. Perhaps with Nirvana and AC/DC tributes its lineup greatly directed towards rock, but more so because it takes time for the worth of any new festival to become realised.

If I’ve waffled about how, despite it being a new venture in Devizes, the organisers have twenty-five plus years of experience hosting Mantonfest, a gorgeous family event adored in Marlborough, I could only hope folk took heed. The organisers this year went with more universal appeal for its lineup. For whatever reason, it worked, and I was delighted by the announcement that Park Farm Music Festival sold out this year.

Those who had cottoned on left impressed. I’m not here to flatter anyone, I say it like it is, you know this. But proof the organisers aimed to impress, particularly Devizes folk, use the example of the town’s most beloved blues legend Jon Amor and his drum and bass section Tom and Gerry, rocking the stage while I could still taste toothpaste. A brilliant beginning to what will be a mighty fine day.

The other Devizes favourite present, Ben Borrill and Pat Ward’s Matchbox Mutiny took twice to a side stage towards the end, and with their fun but proficiently delivered covers they absolutely rinsed any expectations the side stage was merely an interim whilst tribute acts soundchecked. 

Knowing how amazing they are, I expected this much of Ben and Pat. My pleasant surprise on the alternative โ€œMoonrakersโ€ stage was a young Hungerford-based trio called Station. Theyโ€™ve gone from gigging Marlborough’s Green Dragon to national tours, and it was easy to see why.

Feelgood and carefree songs of oceans, driving away and how fake gold jewellery makes your finger turn green, were joyfully delivered with zest in a unique eighties mod-Two Tone punkish come subtle Levellers-esque mesh. Though I love what Iโ€™ve heard of them, Iโ€™m not completely informed, but would liken Station to the Coral, and believe itโ€™s an apt and deserved comparison. I went straight for the Instagram follow, because they delighted the crowd with natural flair.

Mantonfest wouldnโ€™t be Mantonfest without veterans Barrelhouse, and equally they bring their vintage blues with a groove to its baby sister Park Farm. If itโ€™s standard issue, itโ€™s a deserved badge of honour. Following Jon Amor wasnโ€™t going to be easy, being this is Devizes, and Devizes loves Jon. Yet, Barrelhouseโ€™s show is so insatiable itโ€™s catching on here, via memorable gigs at The Southgate and hey, didnโ€™t I book them at Rowdefest for this very reason?! Ah, they did it, as they do each time, an explosion of jump blues mixing covers with originals which no one bothers to untangle, because it so absolutely rocks. 

The remaining day at this brilliant communal and genial festival was vetted tributes. In chronological order, too hot for mirror-disc top hats, Slade tribute Slyde wonderfully homaged the seventies glam era, got elders worked into an early frenzy and younger onlookers mesmerised by the catchiness of those ostentatious anthems. I knew they would, Iโ€™ve seen them before, albeit it was a Mantonfest Christmas party, still, yeah, they had to encore with the unseasonal classic Slade yell, and with exceptional expertise.

The stage was ready for the second tribute to seventies/eighties pop, and undoubtedly the most invariably treasured, Abba. Abba Inferno hail from Swindon rather than Sweden and with Scandinavian accents intended to jest about this. The general banter and party-dance crowd encouragement of Inferno was second-to-none, and if Abba tributes are two-to-a-penny, with apt costumes and their dedication to the defining sound, this was the best one Iโ€™ve bore witness to.

With the evening still young I could criticise we peeked too soon with tribute acts, but with the crowds roused now, I remained confident the organisers know better, and know exactly what buttons to press. The penultimate act was ultimate for my personal tastes and seemingly the majority at Park Farm too. Self-styled Badness attributes Madness, Bad Manners and merges other Two-Tone acts into one of the most entertaining, lively and Northern humoured amusing tribute acts Iโ€™ve ever seen. Itโ€™s one of those who will force anyone younger and unaware of the music of the period into some dedicated after-study, while thoroughly skanking those in the know.

Fulltone may have had a great and energetic Madness tribute, but I wished those at Lower Park Farm last weekend were here once again, because Badness would have banged them to rights. This was the peak of the evening, not forgoing Matchbox Mutiny filled in the gap with another astounding second half.

While talking about badness, bad was my research for our preview of Park Farm, as the Queen tribute I had seen at a previous Mantonfest wasnโ€™t the same one as here. They were The Boheniems, and they were the best Queen tribute Iโ€™ve ever seen, but, apologies for the assumption, that mistake; this Queen tribute was called One Vision, and unfortunately, while satisfactory, failed to deliver quite the same impact. Nevertheless, it was late, folk had had so much fun, and with sufficient alcohol in their system, it did not matter. One Vision was enjoyable, and a great end to an absolutely fantastic festival at Park Farm.

Just like glorious Mantonfests of yore, this festival was so carefree and friendly. With an adequate scattering of food and drink options, there may need to be more to entertain the kids, and we look forward to side-attractions blossoming here, but for the music lovers this is one mighty fine event, and one you should mark on next yearโ€™s calendar if youโ€™ve not already. If Iโ€™m singing Abba songs all week, please excuse me!! 

Trowbridgeโ€™s New Music Venue The Birdhouse Opens Tonight

If both Claire and Chloe Grist jest their working and marital relationships are of โ€œleftโ€ and โ€œright tit,โ€ respectively, it might explain the reason for their chosen species of bird on the logo of their popular music promotion Facebook page, Bird is the Word!

However, in order to incorporate the letter B on the logo of their latest adventure, a new music venue for Trowbridge town centre which opens tonight, Friday 17th July, the bird this time more resembles a chubby pigeon! After poking my nose into the new gaff at a private invite opening party last night, Iโ€™d favour comparing The Birdhouse to a phoenix, rising from the ashes of political ballyhoo surrounding property in the area, and hopefully proving hospitality will better save the High Street over retail.

Swindonโ€™s Old Town is an already established example, where bars, restaurants and music venues co-exist within walking distance. With The Pump a stone’s throw away, already bucking the unfortunate trend of venues closing, and The Old Town Hall, just next door to this new venue breathing life back into entertainment and community-driven events in Trowbridge, seems the time is nigh for the Birdhouse, a comfy but lively and friendly free music venue, with bar and a menu of sharing platters.

It was a popular โ€œsoftโ€ opening, and great fun, as guests gathered to celebrate the coming of The Birdhouse. To dot the few remaining i’s and cross the t’s I expect the team will be busy today, for the mayor arrives at 6pm to officially open the venue. Then it starts as it means to go on, with Trowbridge punkers Brakelight being the first official band to grace The Birdhouse stage at 8:30pm. Entrance is free, please support it, because, from what we’ve seen of it so far, it looks fantastic!

The Sir Issac Pitman building on Trowbridgeโ€™s Silver Street is a listed building from 1976, and architecturally many of its grand features are retained. Nine years after Wetherspoons relocated, Claire and Chloe have teamed with the former operator of The Boathouse and director of SD Hospitality Management Ltd, Sam Dean, to see this glorious reformation as a music venue, The Birdhouse.

Aesthetically itโ€™s also comfy, with lots of sofas and soft chairs, and functionally it serves its purpose aptly, with a lengthy bar reaching across the back, a convertible stage area, and ground floor spacious enough for a dancefloor. And you just know, with that Cracking Pairโ€™s dedication to the local music scene, itโ€™s going to get a lot of use!

Soloist and one half of The Hot Juice Project duo, Jake Lockhart was actually and unofficially the first person to grace the new stage at The Birdhouse, entertaining the guests, as nibbles were handed out and Sam, Claire and Chloe gave an improv speech declaring their gratitude from their supporters and of dreams coming true. We wish them all the very best with their new project, and look forward to the prospect of partying with them as soon as possible!

Wiltshire Music Awards Nominations Coming In

Not all of them yet, but some of the top five nominations for this coming Wiltshire Music Awards are being released. Letโ€™s take a look at them, shall we?!

Best Desk DJ nominations go to: DJ Paul Alex, DJ Dion, Sound Image Roadshow, Rock the Boat, and James Threlfall.

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

For Best Venue: The Victoria, Swindon. Salisbury Arts Centre. The Pump, Trowbridge. The Three Crowns, Devizes. The Ruze, Chippenham.

The Pump, Trowbridge

For the Contribution to Music in the Community award: Swindon 105.5FM. Dave Wright at The Southgate, Devizes. Jemma Brown & Fulltone Festival. Peggy-Sue Ford of Donโ€™t Stop the Music radio show, and us, Devizine and myself! Thanks to everyone who thought of me!

The Southgate, Devizes

And finally, for now, The Best Band award:

The top 5 nominations are Burn The Midnight Oil, Talk in Code, 5 Nights at Adyans, Butane Skies and Ednostic.

Talk in Code at CrownFest

While thereโ€™s more to come, organiser Eddie Prestidge congratulated the top 5 finalists, and said โ€œbeing shortlisted is a fantastic achievement, especially considering the high standard of nominations we received this year. We would also like to extend a huge thank you to everyone who was nominated. The support shown by the Wiltshire music community has been incredible, and every nomination is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our nominees.โ€

The winners will remain a closely guarded secret until the Awards Ceremony on Saturday 14th November at Melksham Assembly Hall. Book your tickets now and be there when the winners are revealed!

Wiltshire Music Awards is looking for sponsors of the various categories. For sponsorship enquiries: hello@stonecirclemusicevents.uk

Matchbox Mutiny at Wiltshire Music Awards 2025 Image: Helen Polapix

Jamsters Festival at The Southgate

January last year, The Southgate Inn Devizes announced Jamsters, a monthly Friday night platform for loose groupings and associations created at their regular jam sessions each Wednesday. On Sunday 2nd August they’ll be celebrating by bringing some of them together for the first Jamsters free festival, aptly, at the Southgateโ€ฆ

A spokesperson for the inn said, โ€œevery great music community needs somewhere to begin. For countless musicians across Wiltshire, that place has been The Southgate.โ€

The Southgate’s Wednesday night jam sessions have been running regularly since Dave & Deborah took over the pub in 2018. It offered a secure space where people of all ages and abilities can come to play and sing.

โ€œThese weekly sessions have become far more than an acoustic jam,โ€ they say, โ€œthey’ve birthed enduring friendships, inspired songwriting partnerships and helped musicians find the confidence to take their music beyond the pubโ€™s walls to perform full-length gigs, either as soloists or in bands.โ€ 

And I know this to be true. I’ve been to a few, though being unable to hold a note, I reject and quiver in fear of any offers of so much as a tambourine! I just love the comradeship, the communal feeling, and the way they take turns to lead, and the improv singalong becomes something magical. 

From 12pm onwards on Sunday 2nd August The Southgate presents a lineup of local talent, solo artists who cut their teeth at these sessions, and groups which formed through it.

Pat Ward and Ben Borrillโ€™s celebrated covers duo Matchbox Mutiny and Gordon Thompson and Tim French’s duo Painted by Numbers, both play, along with soloists like the incredible Vince Bell, one third Lost Trade and local legend Jamie R Hawkins, this year’s wonderful breakthrough singer-songwriter Sammi Evans, the lovable Tom Harris, and Byran Davis, a new name to me, but when I get there I predict I’ll say something like, โ€œoh, hey, I do know you,โ€ because that’s the way things roll around here!!

Worthy to note, the lineup is far from the be-all-and-end-all of musicians who’ve been helped by these sessions, but it’s certainly an incentive to get down the Gate, if not just on Sunday 2nd August but anytime for their non-stop musical programme. As if we needed an incentive!!

โ€œIt’s about celebrating the pub that quietly made so much of it possible,โ€ they say. โ€œIt’s about recognising the importance of grassroots venues at a time when so many are disappearing.โ€

Yeah, I’m down with that. Particularly when I pause to reminisce on all the brilliant nights we’ve had there, dancing around George the pub dog as he naps front and centre of the performers! Long live The Southgate and those jammy Jamsters; I wish I could hold a note, I canโ€™t even grip fully onto a tenner before the kids swipe it from my hands!!ย 

Donovan or Donoless, Fulltone Festival is a Cake Tray!

Images by Gail Foster

Regretfully I must report that due to a personal issue Jason Donovan is unable to sing at Devizes’ Fulltone Festival this afternoon. But all in attendance yesterday will be aware, if Jason was a cherry on the cake, Fulltone is not one big cake. Fulltone is an industrial sized tray of cherry bakewells and each individual cake has its own cherryโ€ฆ..

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

If a tray of bakewells required one chief cherry, it would be the fellow with the most familiar parietal lobe in Devizes, Anthony Brown, conductor of the FullTone Orchestra, delicately or furiously waving his baton around for hours, as the mood of the music requires! Or it could also be his wife, Jemma, who miraculously finds time off from promoting and marketing this grand show to sing at it too. But a tray of bakewells does not have a chief cherry, each individual cherried cake must be credited and praised for what is one of the most magnificent shows this side of Barnard’s Star.ย 

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

There’s one violinist who reminds me of Chris Kamara, but unfamiliar with all the names of this seventy-piece orchestra, each and everyone of them are cherries! And their combined efforts is what makes Fulltone so tasty. To them, and every volunteer, well done and thank you, for, from start to finish, Saturday was totally and unequivocally magical. 

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

Social media posting expected today, or thoughtless clickbait headlines, casting opinions on Fulltone whether or not they attended! The move to Park Farm I suspect will be under scrutiny, particularly by those who once makeshift their own free party by pitching up by the exterior fence. Transport issues with the times of the shuttle bus might rightfully be criticised, and for an event dedicated to its town, its regularity might need evaluating for future years; teething troubles. But with the campsite option, the Fulltone Festival 26 is more accessible to a wider audience, and folk from afar communally rubbed shoulders with dedicated Devizons for a series of showstoppers back-to-back, heralding a new chapter for Fulltone.

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

Social media can be toxic, Park Farm is where you must be to assess this. And should you require an example, let’s take the grand finale of Saturday night. That iconic stage, like a giant sky-reaching gothic church window, barely shaded partygoers from the heatwave, as Two-Tone tribute Mostly Madness did what it said on their tin. With emphasis on the trombone player rather than the singer, it was an incredibly lively show of second gen ska, and went down a treat. Then the orchestra came out, glittered up, with a rendition of Fatboy Slim’s Right Here, Right Now, but rather than the repetitive sample which mightโ€™ve been acceptable in the nineties, a young guy, conveniently called Guy I believe, interpreted a rap over it; and it was sublime.

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

The stage was set for a number of club classics, each with a different singer, as Devizes-own smiley BBC legend James Threlfall prepared his decks for a “large” mix continuing the club classic theme. What was earlier a stage wonderfully reciting the classical themes of John Williamsโ€™ Star Wars was now a pumping house festival, where the exhausted orchestra took a hydration break. But this was not the grand finale, only near to it in timings.

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

Now the orchestra came back out. James remained on the decks providing the beat, the orchestra played the melodies over it, Rozella came out too, glittering, and they did a few more vocal club classics, using Guy to rap Snapโ€™s Rhythm is a Dancer. Then, a singer from the orchestra backed her with her most memorable hit Everybodyโ€™s Free. This was my personal favourite thing ever to happen at a FullTone Festival, as sparks of the fondest memories flooded my neurons, aided by a Muck & Dunder Bajan rum punch, and we danced like there was no tomorrow, even though there was and FullTone continues today!

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

For an Uncle Albert perspective, back in the day, โ€œwhen I was in the rave,โ€ house, jungle, techno and all other subgenres were virtually the same shebang, or at least their roots were bundled together. The only divide was songs for cheesy clubbers, aching for the commercialisation of rave culture, and those for the โ€œhardcoreโ€ free party people illegally raving in some field or other. Then there were those songs which transcended that boundary, that appeased whatever side of the fence you sat on, and in 1991, Rozellaโ€™s uplifting piano-breaking anthem was โ€œthe one.โ€

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

But, looking at the faces of those dancing to it last night, my personal significance mattered not a stitch, as for many 1991 is a page in a history book. Still, I couldnโ€™t have imagined this โ€œthrowaway musicโ€ would ever become classed as โ€œclassics,โ€ as they relished every second of it as much as me, and the few other matured ravers!

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

For those younger, 1991 was not a live music era, it was governed by DJ culture. I didn’t know (much care) what Rozalla looked like, but as she sang on that stage, she looked and performed as beautifully as I could’ve ever imagined. In some vague similarity, The Wurzels seemingly did too!

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

Imagine, if you will, the most unlikely break between sections of the Proms, but, as we’re West Country, the glove fitted with danceable jollity. Professionally accomplished, where age didn’t seem to come into it, and I am a Cider Drinker encouraged a bra to be thrown in their general direction, the Wurzels were expectantly brilliant!

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

The Kaiser Chief’s Ruby Ruby perhaps not as apt as other pop hits they’ve covered, and the encore Combined Harvester had the techno remix backing, which would’ve been acceptable in 1992, but I take into consideration their ages and if it had to be the last song, they were likely completely knackered by the end of it. They put in the shift, with hilarious banter and skilled scrumpy & western, as those bumpkin legends were the making of it. 

Saturday at Fulltone ’26

There were parts I regret I missed, such as the orchestra playing a Queen set; it sounded smashing though, as I rushed carefully back across the dual carriageway, assuming the last thing folk want to see driving home is a milkman as roadkill. Too conveniently located to home, I nipped back for my dinner and a spray of Lynx!

But, John Williams, the whole Star Wars catalogue, made me remember why we were there, for the grandness of this orchestra, for the experience of this conglomerative of excellence, for the acoustics of ye gods running through you, and for the institution the FullTone Festival has become; and Iโ€™m not even a cherry bakewell kinda guy, Iโ€™m more brownie!!

Strange Days Indeed, at The Barge on HoneyStreet

Earthlings and all other organic lifeforms with a taste for the occult, fortean and generalย  weirdness are heading to The Barge at HoneyStreet the first weekend of September for the return of Strange Days Festival. You risk spontaneous combustion if you donโ€™t tooโ€ฆ.

If you felt an alien autopsy, some alpine shape-shifters or the neohermetic order of Kyballic philosophy were unfortunately missing from your usual festival haunts, this might just be for you and your spirit guide.ย ย ย 

A wildly Wyrd weekend specially crafted for fans of forteana and unexplained phenomena, Strange Days covers the entire weekend with weirdness, esteemed speakers, cosmic cabaret, and some mindblowing music. As of last year, the most powerful tractorbeam musically arrives from intergalactic visitors Henge, with their jazzy psychedelic space-rock rave everyone wants to be abducted by.

Star of the hidden camera prank show Trigger Happy TV, the man with the giant phone Dom Jolly also headlines, and thereโ€™s an array of speakers, and other bands, including Calneโ€™s own masters of comedic metal, the chelonaphobic Real Cheesemakers, who might/might not play from inside the belly of a sperm whale.

Indie experimentalists Quatermass III are also playing, known for blending glam-tinged experimentalism, “folk-horror” themes, and electronic textures. And Novum Wo, an experimental electronic artist blending distorted glitch, IDM, and sample-based sounds with Medieval, Arthurian, and contemporary industrial aesthetics.

Thereโ€™s the unmistakable band Dogshow, on a voyage to explore how music can be experienced differently, by traversing genre-fluid astral planes whilst dressed as poodles. The Quantum Mechanicsโ€™ paranormal podcasters go live, Bob Fischer and Stephen Brotherstone resurrect all your disturbed childhood TV memories simultaneously, while Jonathan Downes goes on the trail of Mexican Vampires, and past president of the British UFO Research Association Lionel Fanthorpe talks about close encounters.

Iโ€™d like to say Iโ€™m only dipping my little toe into the dark waters of Strange Days, as thereโ€™s so much more to discover, but the minds of the followers of the event might meander onto the argument itโ€™s a vestigial structure, leftover from our tree-dwelling ancestors, while podiatrists interject, maintaining the little toe is still functional and significantly aids in balance and weight-bearing, and weโ€™ll have a battle of medical curiosities on our multi-fingered, prehensile organs.

Strange Days is on the weekend of the 4th-6th September, when the nights draw in, and we get closer to the spirit world. Itโ€™s at the Barge at HoneyStreet so itโ€™d be rude not to camp, which is included in the ticket. Tickets are a 130 of your Earth coins, with discounted rates for kids. From HERE and beyondโ€ฆโ€ฆ

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Bird is The Word Caged! Trowbridge’s New Music Venue Coming Soon

It looks like fowlers have finally caught them! I mean, wildly flying around, daytime clubbing, karaoke cavorting, supporting and promoting local live music, who does that?!ย 

Cracking Pair Claire and Chloe Grist do. They set up the Facebook page, Bird is the Word to promote the local music scene. May last year saw them putting gigs on at Bradford-on-Avon’s Boathouse and running a daytime clubbing experience at The Exchange in Devizes.

But it’s been more a case of โ€œmum’s the wordโ€ since May, when they first flashed their phones at me, showing off the shiny new logo for an even more exciting project, The Birdhouse.ย 

If I’ve been a good boy and kept my cakehole schtum, now I can reveal that they’ve only gone and teamed up with the former operator of The Boathouse and director of SD Hospitality Management Ltd, Sam Dean, nabbed the vacant Sir Issac Pitman building on Trowbridgeโ€™s Market Street and plan to open The Birdhouse, a new music venue; ding dong!

Passed it this morning and took a snap, being the logo is up there, looking rather catching. There’s a private ‘soft’ launch on Thursday 16th July, andย  the Mayor officially opens the new venue at 6pm on Friday 17th, with all guns blazing by 8:30 when Trowbridge punkers Brakelight will be the first band to grace The Birdhouse stage.

We hope itโ€™ll be a historic moment and wish Sam, Claire and Chloe all the best for the venture. Wiltshire is bucking the unfortunate reality of music venue closures, and Trowbridge is at the heart of it. 

You might remember the building being used as a Wetherspoons until it closed nine years ago; small mercies! We think it’s fantastic to see an independent establishment going into its place, and can not wait to party with Bird is The Word!

Brian on FullTone Festival

Our regular historian and Visiting Research Fellow of The Regional History Centre, UWE Bristol, Brian Edwards takes some time to sketch the FullTone Orchestra ahead of next weekend’s festival….

I was blown away when attending one of the Fulltone Orchestra’s practice sessions today. We know the music is fantastic, we know the line up is pretty cool; but I wasn’t remotely ready for the thrill of being in the practice room when the music started.….

I wasย supposedlyย there to sketch, but it was ridiculously difficult to focus on the task in hand.ย 

Attending the two days of the Fulltone Festival is the most fun you can have in Devizes with your clothes on – said someone that won’t now admit saying it. Come to think of it, it probably rivals some of those other times as well.

Order your tickets now – Fulltone 26 is next weekend!

Fulltone 26

The Grand Return of CrownFest

The first week into July, and two local festivals of five ticked off! CrownFest went down a hit with those who attended this fantastic reputation repair jobโ€ฆ.

CrownFest at The Crown in Bishops Cannings spawned in 2022, providing landlords sustainability and was a lesson into how to run a lively, community-driven village pub. A majority of the village turned out with a sprinkling of townsfolk, but there was always a handful of killjoy villagers frowning upon it.

Once its reputation preceded itself, the following year saw much greater attendance, particularly from outside the village. Little did we know, due to the vocal minority’s protest, its pinnacle would be its demise. After a furious and often ludicrous campaign, including claiming proprietors stole a gorilla statue from Scotland, didn’t get permission to paint their outside bar, and other petty, police time-wasting falsehoods, with pitchforks at dawn they drove the landlords out and replaced them with another determined to shut out villagers with paid parking and convert the premises into an overpriced Conservative gastro restaurant.

As prime real estate, if it was an unstable era for The Crown, it was short-lived. The proceeding landlady knowingly committed election fraud in a bid for a seat on the council and, once exposed, waddled off with her tail between her legs. The thing is, you couldn’t have imagined this political ballyhoo backstory at the sun shiny CrownFest 2026, much less cared about it.

Undertaking the task of repairing the Crown’s former communal reputation, CrownFest was the icing on the new landlord’s cake. Organiser Eddie Prestidge of Stone Circle marched proudly past me, suggesting I quoted him on โ€œthey said I’d never squeeze twelve bands into one day!โ€ But he did, and still it was quality over quantity.

I rocked up to see the end of The Publicans, a vigorously adroit Irish folk collective, and things looked healthy and happy at CrownFest already. A trailer stage with a control tower breathed top class technical production, with a second stage, campervans and tents to the rear of the site, and nestled in-between, a generous helping of attendees.

Again, in this saturated market, this festival could’ve and should’ve attracted more. They’re building back from the vacant years, but all the ingredients to a great festival were present here; note, for next year.

Fundraising for the Wiltshire Hope & Harmony charity, who create dementia choirs, the surroundings of CrownFest are beautiful, the pub is alive once again, and friendly faces came to enjoy themselves. Even the outdoor gents were proper posh and clean!

Time to check the second stage while Welsh tribute Ant Trouble tuned on the main. Two’s Company stood in at the last moment for Lucas Hardy. As the name might suggest an accomplished duo with John E Wright on bass, wonderfully performing folk-rock singalongs.

Ruby Darbyshire followed, once again holding the crowd spellbound with the perfect balance of covers and originals. After this sublime performance it was time for some ant music!

Perhaps it was niche and retrospective, but I and most others enjoyed it. Iโ€™ve been looking forward to seeing Ant Trouble again since they rinsed Swindon’s Vic three years ago, especially since the band wishes to end this tribute in order to concentrate on their original electro art-punk outfit, Head Noise. They came out firing on all cylinders with their tribute to Adam and the Ants; elders who understood (the family) and even the kids loved its lively punk-fantasy vibes.

Everything from then on was a Stone Circle showcase; the best acts you’ll find them putting onto pub and club gigs. Out of all our local festivals this undoubtedly supports local acts most and this, to me, is a very important point.

Starter, George Wilding. The real prince charming, the friendliest local human jukebox you’re ever likely to meet, with that golden voice raised the roof appeasing punters who yell out their requests and join him in chorus; legend in his own shirt!

A kindly talented fellow of George’s calibre rounding off with Three Lions on a Shirt, when we were still in doubt of Monday’s outcome, and Bohemian Rhapsody, wasn’t going to make the stage easy for anyone following with a policy of originals only, but it wouldn’t deter Wiltshire’s finest indie-pop darlings Talk in Code. I never tire from watching their dynamic show.

I do wish, though, this shallow trend of wetting knickers over some covers rather than supporting local acts writing and producing their own material would lessen. Talk in Code came out on fire and did the thing we love them doing; an electric set of timeless indie-pop anthems. It doesn’t take more than a few clicks to follow a band online, and familiarise yourself with their songs, and pretty soon, I guarantee, you’ll be creating the atmosphere akin to how you would if they covered Mr Bright Skies.

In this, I thought the rota could’ve worked better if Ant Trouble followed Talk in Code, and George filled in while Kinisha was preparing, then again if I’m to nickpick judging on what I caught of The Publicans, they could’ve suitably been pushed up the lineup too. As I said, CrownFest saw a plethora of great music, all of which needs to slot in someplace.

Sure, Kinisha stole the show, the headline Tina Turner tribute is called and is Simply the Best. But, sunhats off to the team for a brilliant festival of variety in acts, and communal vibes, which none faltered from toppermost quality. All round, CrownFest absolutely rocked Bishopโ€™s Cannings and put The Crown firmly back on the top spot it deserves to reclaim.

The temperature and L-shaped site didn’t fare so well in coaxing attendees to move from stage to stage, many, in conversation and self-made merriment favoured to pick one and stick to it. But hey, that’s the shape the garden is and, seemingly the motivation of overheated Bishops Cannings residents not to stray too far from the shade, bar or barbecue! As long as they had fun, that’s what matters, and CrownFest certainly provided that.

For myself, I am delighted to see CrownFest return this year, and hope it will be an annual feature on our local festival event calendar once again.

Slowly Burning the Midnight Oil with a New Single

Midnight oil has been burning at Potterneโ€™s Badger Set studio as Devizesโ€™ most impressive and talked about upcoming band, Burn The Midnight Oil takes it to a whole other level with a new single, Slow Burn, and itโ€™s out tomorrowโ€ฆ..

In a relatively short time Burn the Midnight Oil has become an unmissable live show, and last yearโ€™s trip to the studio for the three-track EP Werewolf was blossoming with promise of a developing band heading in the right direction.

Whilst Slow Burn retains the swagger of a gunslinger at dawn, as does the previous songs, it also feels to me like the checkpoint to something far greater. Rootsy Americania with gypsy undertones and sombre leitmotifs being their guise, this one doesnโ€™t waiver in poignant wording and powerful delivery, yet it captures something more carefree, wild and commercially viable in its midst too; a punch, a hook, and a sinker.

Thereโ€™s an enchanting string intro, and it builds to a danceable peak; all the elements are combined here, it requires and thoroughly deserves radio play. In good time, I foresee and hope this tune being the one fans will wait an entire set in anticipation for, and will sing back to them. It’s Florence and the Machine sitting on a toadstool wishing they were more like Fleetwood Mac, itโ€™s girl power Dire Straits melodic, itโ€™s Springteenโ€™s wild romantic gesture calling across a stadium.ย ย 

In subject we see a turn away from the often dejected and tortured feminine soul of past songs, and a pragmatic idealism more faithful to the sanguinity of relationships developing.ย 

If pop demands a song about the gifts of taking romance slowly should be a ballad, this runs more fiery than Niall Horanโ€™s Slow Hands, and far less saccharine than Janet Jacksonโ€™s Let’s Wait Awhile.ย 

Then, if we ask for upbeat, of course, we have one hit wonder Jermaine Stewart not wanting to take his clothes off to consider! Thankfully weโ€™re heading far more subtly here; why does this theme have to be cringeworthy or so overly sentimental when itโ€™s a perfectly viable concept?! Slow Burn, I think addresses this, and exhausts with a genuine angle through personal reflection. Thatโ€™s what it does for me, itโ€™s tender-hearted legitimately, and the chorus blows the cobwebs off any concerns the ideal might be wrong.

What else do you need to know about this song? Itโ€™s solid, out tomorrow, for Bandcamp Friday, pre-save it now HERE, and youโ€™ll hopefully see where Iโ€™m coming from!

Mantonfest Magic Multiplies

Mantonfest, the longstanding gem on Marlborough’s event calendar, finalised for another fantastic year last night, with metal-driven mayhem, as the sounds of AC/DC ripped across Treacle Brollyโ€ฆ.

Tribute act AC/DC UK had a challenge, to top Dan Budd, who unleashed a burning effigy of everything Robbie Williams used to be and thoroughly entertained in manner and style so akin to who he was attributing, he might as well be Robbie Williams. Debatably they did, it’s a highway to hell of a show, using eighties amps and tech, the schoolboy uniform costumes and feisty skill to breathe authenticity into it, like coal fuelling a fire.

I’m not heavy metal’s biggest fanboy, but view them in light of what’s popular, or at least was, in Marlborough; and via this pov, they rocked the show. Though, I’m impartial to Robbie Williams too, being a product of the nineties boyband fad I raved underground throughout, and by his peak in the noughties I washed out! No, I was most looking forward to the Duran Duran Experience, that’s my era.

That’s my time when I couldn’t go to gigs, but idolised pop stars, making me the ideal candidate for a Duran Duran tribute; you had to like Duran Duran if you wanted to snog girls at school discos, fact! Hailing from the Midlands with fifteen years under their belts, Duran Duran Experience were great. They delighted my retrospection for songs I anticipated and excited my reminiscences for some I’d forgotten, and until today, that was my formula for a perfect tribute act.

But if the Duran Duran Experience were plodding, didn’t engage the audience on the same level as Dan Budd, then I need to rethink said formula. Robbie Williams may not be my bag, though it was the best tribute there by far, heading towards one of my all time bests. His band were incredibly tight, his engagement tiptop, the banter and the delivery were all on par with the cheeky yet lovable bravado of the real McCoy; he even looked like him and hails from Stoke-on-Trent, just like Robbie, so even the regional accent was genuine.

I don’t make a habit of suggesting a tribute was โ€˜like the real thing,โ€™ though it’s a common assessment vocally in a crowd. In fact, I believe I’ve never said such cringe, but in this case, it truly was. Dan was Robbie with the full kit; impersonation, performance and persona.

Dan even made me contemplate there was something I missed about the talent of Robbie Williams, casting him off as manufactured โ€˜pop mushโ€™ at the time, and perhaps the ability to change the minds of those who didn’t care much for the attributed’s work beforehand is a mega bonus ball to the perfect tribute act. For the standard wide age demographic of Mantonfest, gen z, millennials, all danced in awe alongside gen x, who were still recovering from the Duran Duran Experience!

Tributes aside, despite being the finale of Mantonfest’s โ€˜if it’s not brokenโ€™ formula, I unfortunately couldn’t make the festival from its off. I missed Barrelhouse, Humdinger, Jamie Williams and others, though safe in the knowledge of their refined abilities. I arrived in time to catch Emelia Houchin finishing her sublime set with You’ve Got The Love on an additional stage set adjacent to the main stage, which provided continuous music while acts on the main stage tuned. I’ve seenย Emelia Houchin as part of the St John’s school showcase at Mantonfest some years ago; she was ambitiously striving then, but now she’s confidently brilliant.

The second stage idea was the only thing different about Mantonfest, as I said, if it’s not brokenโ€ฆ. Mantonfest is such a lovely, communal festival, perfectly scaled and reflects the certain charm of Marlborough as a town, only under a sea of gazebos. The other highlight of the second stage I bore witness to was Hangfire; one Marlborough resident, the remaining matured gents from Highworth, covering a selection of sixties to eighties classics with such passion and proficiency it would be impossible to find fault with them.

But the second stage isn’t the be-all-and-end-all to the meaning behind the term multiplication in my headline. The tried and tested winning formula of Mantonfest expands into Devizes as in the incarnation of little sister festival Park Farm for its second year on Saturday 18th July.

The lineup there uses acts loved at Mantonfest, with a finely selected Devizes ingredient added, The Jon Amor Trio. That’s the reasoning I must cast to Devizes residents; yes, Park Farm is the newbie on the block, but is fuelled by the experience of 25+ years of Mantonfest, and Mantonfest again this year, reinforced my conviction that they’ve the ability and motivation to present an outstanding mini festival with a big, passionate and highly entertaining heart.

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George Wilding Feeding His Head

Featured Image: Helen Polarpix

As if itโ€™s not hot enough, Aveburyโ€™s finest musical export George Wilding is bounding back with another new single, Feed Your Head, out next Friday, the 3rd July…and he’s on fire…..

If the last few singles have come in harder rock than the melancholic, psychedelic swirls of his earlier years, while Feed Your Head doesnโ€™t waiver from this progression, his natural talent for abstract wordplay and emotive face-slaps, in this one in particular, bears all the hallmarks of a George Wilding rocking out classic, and is an instant like….

Previous tunes of recent, like Isnโ€™t She Lonely surprised me with whimsical experimentations akin to doo-wop, and Monday Morningโ€™s Bitch nodded towards a Cure early eighties-alt vibe, but if George triumphs  any challenge, and producer Jolyon Dixon engages it, Feed Your Head offers no such diversion, it simply rolls on a hard-hitting timeless indie-rock sound, comfortably.

Fans should think upbeat, like Terrible Little Secret rather than My Backward Head, yet playfully on a subject, like Tchaikovsky on the Tambourine. Feed Your Head bounds in, drums and guitars glaring upfront, on a โ€˜convincing yourself everythingโ€™s fine after a breakupโ€™ theme, as if Katrina And The Waves recorded Positively 4th Street!

Itโ€™s a punchy electric three-minute hero without drift. Thereโ€™s no reason why fans shouldnโ€™t love it, unless they want meandering layers of pensiveness back, Iโ€™d argue with them it remains contemplative, just lively!

Make it your mission to look out for it next Friday, 3rd July, along with some ice pops, perhaps. And he’ll; be playing Melksham’s Stealth Brewery Tap Room Friday evening, or see him at CrownFest on 4th July.

Bandcamp | George Wilding

MantonFest This Weekend. Failing That, Park Farm Next Month!

What do mean itโ€™s a bit short notice for me to tell you about a festival happening this weekend? Iโ€™ve been banging on about it since winter and itโ€™s all there on the event calendar, you know?! My first MantonFest experience was in 2021 when I labelled it โ€œMarlboroughโ€™s Festival Gem.โ€ Five years on I stand by that tagโ€ฆ..

MantonFest this year is on Saturday 27th June, thereโ€™s still a few tickets up for grabs. Thereโ€™s something delightfully โ€œMarlboroughโ€ about this festival. Itโ€™s a safe family-vibe without the need of mountains of restrictions. Set in the natural bowel of Treacle Brolly, itโ€™s walkable from the town, and worthwhile. It takes campervans payable on entry and doesnโ€™t fuss, provided you take back home the joy of the Mantonfest experience.

And that is, a grand stage, this year with a second stage dedicated to local acts, a horseshoe shaped maze of gazebos around a dancefloor where families pitch for the day, and picnic. Thereโ€™s plenty of food and drink stalls, but the trend seems to be picnic, and the organisers welcome this. 

The thing is, if I have sprung this on you too late, do not fear, especially if youโ€™re in the Devizes area, because Park Farm Festival is on 18th July and it is run by the same experts as MantonFest. While newer, this little sister festival is set to grow, and, bringing the same family vibe to Devizes with that of Mantonfest, you can pick, or better, do both!

Mantonfest firstly, then, has AC/DC tribute AC/DC UK, who brought their very real show to Park Farm last year. In stark contrast Dan Budd is Robbie Williams, and The Duran Duran Experience finishes off the tribute headliners.

Jamie Williams & The Roots Collective should be no strangers to Devizine readers by now, neither Barrelhouse or Humdinger, who are all playing. Last Train Smokinโ€™ are an old Mantonfest favourite, and the second stage has Skedaddle, Dorain, Mills and Hangfire.

Park Farm Festival switches acts too, with some Mantonfestโ€™s favourites. The Queen tribute One Vision is the best Queen tribute Iโ€™ve seen, and Iโ€™ve seen a few!! Likewise with Slade tribute Sylde, they were great at a previous Mantonfest Christmas special.

Theyโ€™ve also got Badness, which is one of my favourite tributes, not quite Madness not quite Bad Manners, but their own inspired outfit. And an Abba tribute Iโ€™m unaware of, but hey, itโ€™s an Abba tribute, guaranteed to get old and young dancing together!

Mantonfest regulars Barrelhouse go side by side with Devizes own Jon Amor Trio, which should be interesting, and Last Train Smokinโ€™ also play this one; I told you they were a favourite! With duo Too Complicated finishing off Park Farmโ€™s main stage, also look out for the first time second stage here too, with Matchbox Mutiny, Station, Dorian and Bustards.

If Park Farm brings a taste of Mantonfest to Devizes, and thatโ€™s brilliant, it doesnโ€™t mean you canโ€™t check out the mothership this Saturday in Marlborough, and then youโ€™ll really know, Park Farm is also worthy of your festival budget!ย Best of both worlds!

Using Fulltone as a Proper Noun

To most, โ€œfullโ€ and โ€œtoneโ€ are two separate words, but around here it’s been a portmanteau and a proper noun since 2019, conveying a unique musical experience where orchestral meets pop, thanks to The Fulltone Orchestraโ€ฆ.

Yeah, they may play elaborate concerts around the South West from Exeter Cathedral and Bath Abbey to Londonโ€™s Cadogan Hall and Birmingham Symphony Hall, but it is here, in Devizes where they proper job zip up their boots and return to their roots for a festival like no other.

To put it in dictionary form, it might look something like this AI invention:

Fulltone / หˆfสŠlหŒtoสŠn /proper noun

1- The Fulltone Orchestra: A large, independent British symphony orchestra based in the South West of England. Founded in 2017 by musical director Anthony Brown, the ensemble consists of roughly 50 to 65 musicians and is celebrated for performing diverse, cross-genre arrangementsโ€”ranging from classical masterpieces and movie scores to rock, Motown, and electronic dance music.

2- The Fulltone Music Festival: A prominent annual multi-day outdoor music festival organized by the orchestra in Devizes, Wiltshire. The event showcases the orchestra alongside headline artists and guest vocalists performing large-scale symphonic concerts across a single weekend.

Origin: Formed in Devizes, Wiltshire, as a compound of full (complete, maximum) and tone (a sound of distinct pitch and quality), reflecting the expansive and powerful sound of a complete live orchestra.

Example usage: โ€œWe are buying weekend camping passes to Fulltone at Park Farm this summer.โ€

Editorโ€™s additional note: โ€œfor the love of Jason Donovan, make sure you do!โ€ 

If you know me and my grammar, youโ€™ll have come to the correct assumption Iโ€™m not one for dictionaries anyway! Iโ€™m no scholar in the classics either. I just know what I like, and through all the bobsy-die and Tempest in a teapot online skullduggery, the bottom line is, I promise you from past experience: when you get into that dome-shaped stage, almost iconic now in Devizes, and allow the sublime acoustics of a full orchestra to flow through you, it is magnificent.

And you’re not going to find anything like it hanging around Sidmouth Street waiting for your chicken sandwich to be cooked, or staying in watching a show hosted by Ant and Dec.

Fulltone Festival 2023 – Day One Image: Gail Foster

โ€œWeโ€™re bringing Jason Donovan to a field in Potterne,โ€ organiser Jemma Brown told me. โ€œWhy would you not get behind that and see what two local people are trying to achieve?!โ€

Jason, Wurzels. Rozella, and all other gubbing or not, are only added bonuses. I was of the generation to reject pop crime manufacturers Stock Aitken Waterman, being honest, and Jason was used as a pawn, a male equivalent of Kylie, and I can’t give you the key to my combined harvester, because I haven’t got one, have I? But hey ho, a shuttle bus pulls in at the Pelican, even I have to admit, Jason Donovan coming to Devizes IS a BIG deal.

The Wurzels may be too far east for their liking, and quipped about Devizes in a song, but aren’t they the only band who made a greater success with a parody song than the original?! And I wouldnโ€™t mind if I do; time is healer, and thereโ€™s too many broken hearts in the world, anyway. Jason was right, dammit!!

Donโ€™t be that subject; communal love to be found at FullTone, but only if you’re there, looking gorgeous! Iโ€™m not out to repeat myself, weโ€™ve done a preview for this extravaganza already.  I can lead a horse to water, but  Iโ€™m not prophesying that I can make it drink. But I think youโ€™d be seriously missing out if you donโ€™t buy a ticket, and one for your other half, maybe one for Auntie Doris too, to this one, at a new venue, with new horizons. Put her in the deckchair, let her rave.

The biggest mistake you could make is that Fulltone is a massive commercial enterprise, and that youโ€™re going to be ripped off by a professional consortium, stuffing your dollar in their ears and laughing at you. โ€œThe reality of it is,โ€ Jemma explained, โ€œwe are a husband and wife team running an independent orchestra and event, with no financial backing other than ticket sales – which is a massive risk for anyone to take.โ€

Slap me down and call me Madge Bishop if it ain’t true. Jemma’s been all over that book of face again, interrupting your constant stream of political propaganda, overkilling the advertising. Sโ€™ only cos she gets jittery, worrying no one is going to show their face. Everyone who organises any event gets this. Please believe me, it’s perfectly natural.

Don’t we all get a bit Nelson Muntz, and on our high horses when we mount that poisonous social media platform?! Just a tad?! I’m a bloody nightmare, right?! Just ignore me, I do.

Fulltone Festival 2023 Day Two Image: Gail Foster

Bottom line; it’s not about any singular person, not even Jason, or The Wurzels, risking their safety crossing the county border. It’s about the show, and how it MUST go on. It’s about showcasing all those talented artists, all those musicians, singers, all of them, invited to bravely take to the stage.

We could walk up the canal, remembering the Boto-X, and its sad demise. Wander into town; first met the wife at that pub, now derelict. And who remembers the arcade where you hid away school lunch hours? Shame it’s gone, like the pie shop, Woolworths, Street Festival, the comfy sofa at The Four Seasons. Yeah, Fulltone has become a proper noun here, but let’s not allow it to be only used in past tenseโ€ฆ..

Get a ticket here, enjoy yourself, and know we’ll be back together, together, because I really want to show you my heart is oh so true, and that all the love I have is, especially for you…..and everyone else going to Fulltone!

Devizes’ Sammi Evans Features on Innereyefull Dub

If I was pleased to hear the vocals of Devizes singer-songwriter Sammi Evans would feature on a single, I was even more delighted when I asked Sammi if it was an electronic dance track, and she replied โ€œitโ€™s reggae!โ€ Well now, this is really pushing my buttonsโ€ฆ..

West London producer Andy Kent founded Innereyefull in 2005. Fusing breakbeat with jazz-funk and dub, the solo project then signed to Dusted Wax Kingdom three years later. By 2014 he started his own label, Inner-I Records, to self-release his music.

A prolific artist who received airplay on The Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show, took his debut album Playground on tour with a collective of musicians. This though, Andy says heโ€™s โ€œexcitedโ€ about, and he โ€œcan’t wait for you all to hear the new single, which means a lot to me,โ€ explaining because itโ€™s the first Innereyefull music in six years.

Sammi is a Devizes-based singer-songwriter, often seen gigging locally accompanying Matchbox Mutiny, and attending open mics. She released her debut solo single in January.

The Thinking Tree is a rootsy, rolling heavyweight dub, and I must say, fits Sammiโ€™s wistful and evocative chanting vocals perfectly. Thereโ€™s the rockers one-drop to it, reflecting dub classics of Prince Jammy. Yet with contemporary echoing phrasing elements, subtler on the vocals than traditionally used at Tubbyโ€™s dub origins, reminding me more of Zion Trainโ€™s nineties outpourings, appeasing the alt-reggae crusty scene.ย 

In theme too it blends, The Thinking Tree being a metaphoric place of solitude and reflection, itโ€™s mellow, plodding and uplifting; all the right ingredients flow. With Robert Livseyโ€™s  percussion, guitarist James McMahon and mastered by Doc Paul Colin Moody, Sammi corrects my vocal accompaniment, telling me itโ€™s a 50-50 collaboration with more in the pipeline. The single is from a forthcoming album, Return of The Inner Eye, due in 2027.

If this tune is solid, and up my street pounding on my front door, Iโ€™m over the moon at the prospect of Sammi becoming a vocalist for this rebirth, because Iโ€™m hoping sheโ€™ll encourage some local live shows, and as much as I love our local music scene, it needs more reggaeโ€ฆ.much more reggae, in my honest opinion! 

As it happens, this new Innereyefull band plays the Trowbridge Festival this month and is supporting Dub Catalyst at The Pump in October. But for now, try this taster for size, out now on Bandcamp. On streaming platforms from 30th June.

Looking Back At Devizes Arts Festival 2026

Featured Image: Gail Foster.

Features extracts from reviews by Andy Fawthrop, Ian Diddams and Madelaine Blake.

Does it ever stop?! The weekend is upon us again. I think I might need to skip this one, not getting any younger, and besides I did enough laughing, dancing and meeting interesting people over the past fortnight, thanks to Devizes Arts Festivalโ€ฆ..

Celebrating its fortieth anniversary The Devizes Arts Festival really was amazeballs this year, and between our dedicated team of writers we managed to cover a fair chunk of it. Which we will now look back on with a cheap shot clipshow style article, like a nineteen-seventies TV Christmas Special!

So it leaves me to thank all the volunteers at Devizes Arts Festival for such a brilliant job, and making us feel welcome. And our writers, Andy, Ian and our new writer, Madelaine Blake. Thanks also to photographer Gail Foster for her use of the NRWO gig images.

Devizes Arts Festival kicked off like dancing shoes on Friday 31st May with Londonโ€™s premier salsa orchestra, Salseology. Sacha Denchโ€™ Journeys of the Human Swan and Beatrice Nicholas was showcasing African American classical composers on the following Saturday. Unfortunately we arrived fashionably late, I was busy with Rowdefest, so apologies for missing the opening.

By Monday, Andy is first out of the starting traps, and bangs out three-in-one reviews, all writing related. The first was a new feature at Devizes Arts Festival, the Have-A-Go Workshops, this one by Bath Spaโ€™s Steve Tuffin, of whom Andy reported, โ€œled a very practical class on how to go about writing a personal memoir, or indeed how to approach any form of creative writing. In what could have been a dry, dusty and boring subject, Steve presented a very lively, interesting and, yes, absorbing couple of hours.โ€

Anthony Horowitzโ€™s โ€œA Life In Murderโ€ came next, to which Andy raved. โ€œHorowitz proved to be a loquacious and captivating raconteur. He had plenty of anecdotes and examples to give, peppering his replies with humour and witty asides.โ€

And Becky Greyโ€™s โ€œHow I Became A Ghost Writerโ€ finished the trio, which Andy called a โ€œsandwich of literary delights.โ€ I couldnโ€™t convince any of our writing team into covering some Sunday walks, and Jemma Brownโ€™s singing country workshop. Not the most energetic bunch, and if youโ€™d hear them sing youโ€™d be thankful!ย ย ย 

By Tuesday I thought Iโ€™d better get on the act, and attended a lunchtime recital with Fรกbio Fernandes. Being honest I didnโ€™t expect much, I mean, itโ€™s just a lunchtime recital, right? How wrong was I?! St Andrews was packed, and Fรกbio, well I called him โ€œa virtuoso. He came to Devizes to educate as well as entertain, and he did both delightfully.โ€

Thursday, Andy covered photographer Nick Uptonโ€™s Behind The Lens; My Life in Wildlife Film-Making & Photography, saying, โ€œthis talk was a great sweep across Nickโ€™s career over 40 years, and covering over 30 countries, but it illustrated not only the manโ€™s undoubted technical and related skills, but also his obvious passion for nature, especially those projects closer to home in the UK.ย  These included working with hedgehogs, harvest mice, dormice and the re-introduction programmes of cranes, great bustards, otters and beavers.โ€

While weโ€™re talking beaversโ€ฆ. ermm, I went to see the Scummy Mummies show on that very same Thursday, reporting back that โ€œyouโ€™ve never heard so many Prosecco corks popping from the Corn Exchange. It sounded like machine-gun fire in there, aimed directly at testosterone.โ€

Obviously I had pre-gig reservations, but by the end, I wrote, โ€œas a geezer, youโ€™d be forgiven for assuming this sounds excruciating, and this was certainly my pre-concern too. For if such a format was performed by anyone other than comedy geniuses, Iโ€™d still be of that opinion, but it wasnโ€™t. This duo have the timing of The Greenwich Time Ball, are improv masters, and unless you were a subject on Louis Therouxโ€™s Manosphere, wherever your testosterone balance lies, you cannot escape the simple fact that the Scummy Mummies are absolutely and undeniably hilarious.โ€

If Andy went for the more calming option, Clare Durham and Paul Martinโ€™s โ€œCollecting; An Art, A Hobby Or A Compulsion?โ€ at Wiltshire Museum, reporting it as โ€œa very entertaining session, and another of those little gems that keep the festival running,โ€ he soon donned his gladrags for Robert Vincent, and besides being unaware of his music, Andy called it: โ€œThe vocals were soulful, insistent, yearning. The musicianship was spot-on. The songs were meaningful, well-constructed and simply wonderful. Itโ€™s been a while since I was this impressed by a band Iโ€™d never even heard before, but I was well won over. I was already on 9/10 by half time, and a no-questions 10/10 by the time we got round to the encore.โ€

They let me out on Saturday, for London-based Celtic folk-punker five-piece Man the Lifeboats. At a gig unlike their usual they mightโ€™ve misjudged the crowd. I said, โ€œMan the Lifeboats realised not to judge a book by the cover, the reward for an accomplished and lively band at Devizes Arts Festival, will be these matured attendees rising from their seated positions and gyrating to their irresistible beats like middle-age never happened; and many did, because Man the Lifeboats were stompingly outstanding!โ€ And they were, a great night that one.

Late out to bat, Ian strode confidently to the stumps with Howzat? The Six Sixes Ball Mysteryโ€ by Graham Lloyd at Town Hall, calling it โ€œa fascinating talk about _that_ ball, the alleged lies and repeated falsehoods, and the litany of names surrounding it all.โ€ Glad he did that one, Iโ€™m not out for cricket.

Andy hit back with a great ball, Bob Holmanโ€™s Have A Go: Phone Photography workshop, which was โ€œanother one of those little DAF gems which gave our good citizens a chance to actually โ€œhave a goโ€, rather than just sit back passively and be entertained.ย  And this was definitely not entertainment, much more instructional in nature.โ€

Ian delivered on former world champion poetry slammer Harry Baker, one poem of which โ€œbrought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat as it echoed feelings of my own for over thirty years now.โ€

Andy went to Swing From Paris, only to find they were actually from Gloucester and Worcester, but still, he said, โ€œwe got two highly entertaining sets of jazz, swing, waltz and gypsy rhythms mostly from the 1930s through to the 1950s, but also featuring tunes from as far back in the 1890s and forward into the 1980s.ย  There was plenty of humour and self-deprecation throughout as Fenner talked us through the provenance of each number.โ€

Next, though it was my turn again, on the comedy….

โ€œMilton neurotically fumbles with the microphone stand, but not his wordplay. As is his bed hair, any emotional instability or self-doubt is part of the act; he has us under his spell from the off. You couldnโ€™t help but laugh out loud at the absurdity of his thought-process. Iโ€™m now of the opinion his manipulation of language and layered humour is second to none currently in comedy. He has nearly as many relatives as jokes, each one with their own punchline funnier than the next.โ€ That was me, I said that. I took all the prestigious gigs, and this one was utterly hilarious, Milton Jones, and Adele Cliff were so, so funny!

Just when Andy, Ian and myselfย  thought we had this under the thumb, in comes our new writer Maddie Blake to, not only drastically lower the age demographic of our dedicated team, but also provide us with a brilliant review of Bath artist Karen Georgeโ€™s sketching workshop at The White Chalk Gallery.

“What made this workshop so special,โ€ Maddie wrote, โ€œwasnโ€™t just the chance to improve my drawing skills, but the atmosphere that was created within this group. Everyone appeared so eager and inviting, it was such a wonderful experience to create new friendships and share stories with those with similar interests in the arts. Despite varying levels of experience, the workshop felt accessible to everyone, and no one felt out of place. This workshop didnโ€™t pressure you to create something โ€˜perfect,โ€™ but something that captivates your enjoyment and experience of the workshop.โ€

Thank you, Maddie, and welcome to our exclusive and sometimes elusive writers team! So good was this review, I invited Maddie to come to the finale, Nothing Rhymes with Orange, but being I had a personal angle on this one, reporting on this finest Devizes musical output since the Hoax, I really wanted to write it myself. What a great finish to one of the best Devizes Arts Festivals yet.

โ€œLast night proved Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the top of their game, as they switched old with new seamlessly, and strived to become the universal name we locally knew they could from the very beginning.โ€

Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange Image: Gail Foster

I also said, rather a lot, about the future of the Arts Festival. With a matured demographic in attendance, generally, I try to illustrate how diverse and accepting it is for all ages. The Gen Z fanbase turned out for NRWO, the elder Arts Festival regulars did too, and everyone was kind and courteous to everyone else. That is the magic of the festival, and I hope those younger took home the notion that the festival isnโ€™t a Saga Holiday, and welcomes all!

There were obviously a few events we couldnโ€™t cover, and I apologise to those involved for this, but we tried to capture as much as possible. It was a wonderful year at the Arts Festival, and we look forward to seeing how they might top this one!

If writing these was a competition, though itโ€™s not, for the record, the highest hitting review was Andyโ€™s one on Robert Vincent, followed by Andyโ€™s three-in-one writing workshops, I made level pegging for the third best for the NRWO review, with Maddieโ€™s sketching workshop review, then my review of Scummy Mummies pipped Milton Jones to the post for the fourth highest hitting article.

But we donโ€™t worry about hits here; I couldnโ€™t pick a personal favourite, oh, okay, go on then! It had to be between Milton Jones and Nothing Rhymes With Orange, of course. For Andy, who, letโ€™s face it, did most of the hard work, picked Robert Vincent and Swing From Paris. โ€œBut I also thought the various have-a-go events were pretty good. Oh. That’s three!โ€ 

Thatโ€™s okay Andy, have three, or more. Interesting though; Arts Festival team, the workshops did prove to be a welcomed addition. Same again next year?!ย 

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 ยฃ32.50, 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 โ€œflashโ€โ€ฆor 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.

Nothing Seems as Sweet as the Start; NRWO as Devizes Arts Festival’s Finale

All Images: ยฉGail Foster

If last Saturday’s Celtic punk band quipped if the Devizes Corn Exchange was a bingo hall, and Milton Jones jested โ€œit’s great to be here, in the past,โ€ it took a band with roots to the town to introduce Devizes Arts Festival to a next generation, and, predictably, Nothing Rhymes with Orange smashed it, with zestโ€ฆ.

It’s been a fantastic year for Devizes Arts Festival, their 40th anniversary, though it continues to attract a majority of older residents. It’s understandable, with the Devizes age demographic and the cost of living crisis particularly affecting our youngest. Not for the want of trying, chief organiser Vince told me of a โ€œBattle of the Bandsโ€ of yore, which has the blueprint of a young Kieran Mooreโ€™s past input, but the vicious circle comes down to economics; a certain style of event not selling has the potential to financially ruin the festival, and has to go. Wanton to attract a younger generation being the reason why the price to this particular event was reduced; it worked.

Highlighting the diversity of their program is something I’ve preached for the years we’ve extensively covered it, and upon receiving a whisper they’d booked Nothing Rhymes With Orange at the end of last year’s festivities, I kept schtum, but secretly I excitedly prayed this might be key to crashing the invisible boundaries of the festival’s age demographic. Not blowing my own trumpet, but I was right!

Prayers answered by Bristol’s Nothing Rhymes with Orange, as our oldest and youngest gathered; the latter only slightly outnumbering, but both tolerant and respectful of the other. The most age-diverse Arts Festival event I’ve witnessed was one of the happiest, and deffo, liveliest! And also, one element to the gig’s success.

Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange

The other, of course, was the band formed at Devizes School, quickly became the local Gen Z phenomenon I’d refer to as โ€œBeatlemania in Devizes,โ€ and departed to Bristol Uni. If that usually spells an end to school bands, Nothing Rhymes with Orange made the adjustment together, and I will continue to vow this tightness and comradeship is the secret to their success, as, through their dedicated motivation and raw talent, they went on to replicate the local phenomenon into a national one.

Last night, they returned to their roots, and though they collectively confessed it felt โ€œstrangeโ€ to be back, to me, many of their original homemade fanbase waited in anticipation for those early singles, which they can sing back to the band; thatโ€™s as vital to Gen Z as recording it all on TikTok!

It was an obligatory pressure for Elio, Fin, Sam and Lui, who wish to retire their earliest songs in favour of progressive newer ones, and they announced this would be the last time they would play them. Fittingly here in Devizes, but not without subtle apprehension from the band; understandable. I get this; if I had to replicate my teenage creative output in my twenties Iโ€™d have cringed.

Never say never, I expressed, for nostalgia builds through aging. While the early songs were welcomed by the younger crowds, what was most impressive for all in attendance, was surely the new ones.

Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange

If the indie punk pop genre has come of age, and thrashing out three-minute rages is clichรฉ, Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the pinnacle to a progressive evolution of the sound, with matured experimentation akin to prog rock. And therein lies their contemporary universal magic.

Through superior technical ability, mood-setting bridges and intros, and paced melodies, while still maintaining the professionalism, tightness and adroitness they showed from the start, their new songs have so much more body and strength. They are a pleasure to hear, and appeased the entire crowd rather than those here to sing back the early works.

The merger was a shrewd move, beginning with the classics and moving onto newer ones, with a finale of Manipulation, one of their earliest crowd-pleasers. They may not have played them for a while, and itโ€™s not like riding a bike, but now theyโ€™ve ticked that box of reunification with their original fanbase off, and can put those old tunes to bed, itโ€™s time to move on.

Last night proved Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the top of their game, as they switched old with new seamlessly, and strived to become the universal name we locally knew they could from the very beginning.

Their synergy reverberated, as it ever did, but with a newfound level of proficiency and competence, leaving those who knew them before in awe. With one eye I scanned them as those kids singing to a handful of teenagers in West Lavington village hall, but with the other, as if we were watching The Pretenders or the Stranglers on stage. It was as plot twisting and refreshing as Luke Skywalker returning as a Jedi!

Supported by a brilliant Cheltenham five-piece called Underscore, all guitars, drums, overspilling and confident originals, made for an amazing gig, and a particularly different Devizes Arts Festival event.

Underscore @ The Corn Exchange, Devizes

Nothing Rhymes with Orange couldโ€™ve just come out and nonchalantly played Brotherhood of Man covers and Iโ€™d still have been happy to see them all again! But, they didnโ€™t, I mean they wouldnโ€™t, would they?! They knocked it out of the Corn Exchange.

A journalist once told me, you write on a subject, publish and move on. That’s why I’m not a journalist, as I hug the frontman’s mum and tell her I’m proud, and can’t imagine how she must feel.ย 

Nothing Rhymes With Orange was never just a subject for me, it was a model, of everything Devizine means to me personally, to summarise a journey of a local youth band, and now, through sheer dedication and motivation, to see them never taking a step backwards, only forwards, to a world stage, fills me with great respect for them, hope and delight.

Brian on FullTone Festival

Our regular historian and Visiting Research Fellow of The Regional History Centre, UWE Bristol, Brian Edwards takes some time to sketch the FullTone Orchestra aheadโ€ฆ

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REVIEW โ€“ Devizes Arts Festivalโ€“ Swing From Paris @ Corn Exchange (Thursday 11th June 2026)

A Little Bit Of French Polish

Andy Fawthrop

As the Devizes Arts Festival rolls majestically towards its final weekend, thereโ€™s no chance that the bus is anywhere near running out of fuel.ย  There was plenty of gas left in the tank last night to bring us into the streets of Paris to hearโ€ฆ. but whatโ€™s that? โ€“ itโ€™s some lively street music!ย  Yet another beltingly-good music act had come to town to keep the DAF party going.ย  Not only that, but there were signs of a bit of a runaway success – not only had Swing From Paris sold out the Merchantsโ€™ Suite venue downstairs, but theyโ€™d sold a lot more tickets too, so the gig had to be moved upstairs into the main Ceres Hall…..

To be honest the place didnโ€™t look much like a Paris bistro โ€“ the high-ceilinged, air-conditioned, space of the hall would never allow that โ€“ but at least we were greeted with a more cafรฉ-style layout, featuring a casual smattering of tables and chairs.ย  It meant that we had some space to spread out for a change, whilst still feeling crowded together enough to create some atmosphere.

Swing From Paris breezed on to the stage and, after a little tuning, confided (to plenty of laughter and applause) that they werenโ€™t actually from Paris at all!ย  The shock! – weโ€™d never have guessed! Still, Gloucester and Worcesterโ€™s Finest came to give us a good eveningโ€™s entertainment, and they sure succeeded in doing that.

Consisting of Tomasz Williams on upright bass, Sam Hughes on acoustic guitar, Andy Bowen on electric guitar, and Fenner Curtis on violin, who acted as the bandโ€™s spokesman throughout, we got two highly entertaining sets of jazz, swing, waltz and gypsy rhythms mostly from the 1930s through to the 1950s, but also featuring tunes from as far back in the 1890s and forward into the 1980s.  There was plenty of humour and self-deprecation throughout as Fenner talked us through the provenance of each number.

The instrumental tunes were bright, lively, and often short, occasionally well-known and recognisable, delivered through some really tight arrangements, but giving just enough room for the occasional solo. Many tunes derived from Broadway shows, the movies, musical theatre, and the Great American Songbook, but there were a couple whose roots were more from classical music or folk traditions.  Fenner humorously compared classical works to jazz works, in that nobody knew for sure exactly when to applaud, and then gave Tomasz a bass solo in the middle of the next number, just to prove the point. 

And there were plenty of famous names being bandied around during the evening โ€“ Claude Debussey, Fats Waller, Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli, Duke Ellington, Artie Shaw, George Shearing, George & Ira Gershwin to name but a few.

I particularly loved Fennerโ€™s minor tirade against streaming sources when he exhorted folks to purchase an actual physical CD or vinyl copy of their albums. The difference, apart from the revenue stream to the artist, was so much better for the punter too โ€“ higher quality sound reproduction, the feeling of ownership of an artefact and its associated artwork, the programme and background notes, and the knowledge that it was much more financially supportive of the artist.  I have to say I agree with him.  Seems like other folks did too, as there was plenty of business going on at the merch desk during the interval and after the show.

Two fine forty-five minute sets breezed by in absolutely no time, capped off by the well-signalled and, ahem, totally unexpected encore.  Job done!  Artists very happy with their first visit to D-Town, DAF very happy with a larger than expected number of bums on seats, and an audience very happy with what theyโ€™d just heard.

So another โ€œhats offโ€ moment for DAF โ€“ well done for bringing these guys to town.

Anyway, thereโ€™s just a few more sessions to go from this Friday through to Sunday, and itโ€™ll be all over for another year.  So, if you havenโ€™t done so yet, get yourself along to something before itโ€™s too late!

The Devizes Arts Festival continues until the night of Sunday 14th June at various venues around the town.ย  Tickets can be booked at Devizes Books or online at www.devizesartsfestival.org.uk

Trending…..

Mantonfest Magic Multiplies

Mantonfest, the longstanding gem on Marlborough’s event calendar, finalised for another fantastic year last night, with metal-driven mayhem, as the sounds of AC/DC ripped acrossโ€ฆ

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Folding backโ€ฆ J.P. Oldfield & Gaz Brookfield, The Fold, Devizes, Friday 5th June 2026

by Ian Diddams
images by Sarah Bec and The Fold

About a million years ago, before covid and lockdown, when the thought of Liz Truss as a P.M. was a laughable idea [Ed. โ€“ nothing has changed] and when a Post Office scandal was when the sub post mistress was found to be having an affair with the vicar, there was a magical place hidden away in the roof space of a former stables [Ed. โ€“ needs more research] where performers would entertain the thronged masses of Devizes [Ed. โ€“ itโ€™s not that big] on Friday and Saturday nights

โ€œThe Foldโ€.

Just the name conjures up distant, hazy memories of wonderful acts like โ€œJasper in the Company of Othersโ€, Dan Allen of โ€œDucking Punchesโ€, โ€œLonely Touristโ€ and so many more. In that roll-call of greatness as one looks back through the history of โ€œThe Foldโ€ there is one of several names that crops up time and time againโ€ฆ Gaz Brookfield, or as one listing shows, Gareth Brookfield! Then โ€œThe Foldโ€ was no more for several years after October 2018, but has reopened its doors this year under the maestro-ship of J.P. Oldfield, or Josh if you need a vape, where already its hallowed newly painted walls have seen a โ€œLost Tradesโ€ reunited trio, Meg & Siren, โ€œBluebeard and the Desperate Hoursโ€, and an open mic already.And thence to last Friday when previously Fold regular Gareth Brookfield returned to one of his old stomping grounds. If you donโ€™t already know Gaz is a solo acoustic guy (occasionally cobbling his Company of Thieves together) from the West Country, who through Trial and Error has built a solid following round these parts and further afield, with two number one albums to his name. Modest as ever he claims he only plays Four chords and the Truth, but the reality is his lyrical penmanship is second to none, even if he insists his two chums, Messrs Turner and Faulkner i.e., Frank and Sam, are better. [Ed. โ€“ They arenโ€™t. Just equally talented]. His Career Moves saw him based in Bristol and London, but eventually the draw of SN1 was too strong and he is returned now to the Shire.[Ed. โ€“ Thatโ€™s enough song title dropping!]

Gaz has recently completed his โ€œVillage Hallsโ€ tour, literally booking and playing at village halls across the country in his self-managed, one-man band set-up, where audiences were treated to two sets the first of which were tracks that he rarely plays at gigs. Last year his tour comprised two songs from each of his ten albums. This Fold gig was in a similar vein of both, with an hour and quarter or so of songs he rarely, if ever plays live, from each of his albums in reverse chronology. Setlist as follows and many of the linked videos below are from Friday’s gig – credit and thanks to @waitingforwinter !


SN1
Trial and error
Death Bed
Four Chords and the Truth
Frank and Sam
Oaleago
Cornish fishing town
Solo Acoustic Guy
Towns
LW3
Career Moves (Loudon Wainwright III cover)
Nuggets
Aborglyph
Pantomime
RIP Inner Me
Caravan Bingo
West Country song (what else to finish on?)

Gaz was engaging and lovely as he ever is, with interesting stories regarding each of his songs. I was personally delighted to hear โ€œNuggetsโ€ and โ€œAborglyphโ€ as I thought Iโ€™d never get to hear โ€œNuggetsโ€ again, if only because of its progeny and Gazโ€™s relationship with his friend, and โ€œAborglyphโ€ is simply a beautiful song. The seventy strong sold-out crowd sang and danced in the Foldโ€™s confines in what was quite a โ€œwarmโ€ and โ€œstickyโ€ atmosphere ๐Ÿ˜Š

The gig had been promoted by J.P. Oldfield, who, no slouch with a guitar himself, had opened the show with a nine song, forty-five-minute set of his blues based, Johnny Cash style, deep voiced magic. Setlist below and for your very delectation, another wonderful video from Friday night from @waitingforthewinter with “Further from Heaven”.

St. James Infirmary
Heavy was the rain
Satanโ€™s bar and grill
The Preacherโ€™s Noose
House of the Rising Sun
Song 2
The Best I Can
Further from Heaven
No rest

He claimed credit for writing โ€œRising Sunโ€ but I felt he was just jokingโ€ฆ but most of that list are all his own work, and are to appear on his new EP, due for release on September 26th this year โ€“ a full six track EP. Devizine covers that release in this articleโ€ฆ

Five tracks from that new EP plus โ€œSatanโ€™s bar and grillโ€ and โ€œPreacherโ€™s Nooseโ€ gave us an excellent review of JPโ€™s own work. There were also a couple of covers โ€“ โ€œSt. James Infirmaryโ€ and โ€œHouse of the Rising Sunโ€ โ€“ but rendered in a very JP Oldfield manner very much making them his own โ€“ and that is not faint praise.

The Fold is very much making a welcome return and with gigs of this quality to look forward to its future is hopefully bright โ€“ so follow its Facebook page and book the September 26th for an EP release party at โ€“ where else โ€“ โ€œThe Foldโ€!

Manning Lifeboats, In Devizes!

Manning the lifeboats with Devizes Arts Festival in landlocked Devizes last night, and I didnโ€™t even get a sticker. I did shake a tailfeather out of my system, more importantly. For if all-originals London-based Celtic folk-punker five-piece Man the Lifeboats seemed to have no visible relevance to their marine namesake, they certainly knew how to rock a boatโ€ฆ.

A few people asked me for the relevance in the name, as if I would know, or remember to inquire! Two years ago, when Jolly Roger played, there was piratey-themed cosplay and shanties, but Man The Lifeboatsโ€™ subjects were self-confessed to be more about death, apocalypse, certain brands of beer, and pubs they like. There was also a fair shout of anti-fascism and left-wing political suggestion, which, given the direction the country seems to be heading, may connote the metaphoric desertion of a sinking ship. Bravely or at least unperturbed, bellowing said righteousness from the lookout tower of the Corn Exchangeโ€™s high stage, to a scattering of matured Devizes Arts Festival attendees was their risk I savoured; fairplay!ย 

However, if they took it in jest at the beginning, asking if they were at the right event, and if this was a bingo hall, as this dynamic banjo, fiddle, piano accordion complete collective got the ball rolling, their shock of the gig mustโ€™ve transformed to pleasant surprise. Man the Lifeboats realised not to judge a book by the cover, the reward for an accomplished and lively band at Devizes Arts Festival, will be these matured attendees rising from their seated positions and gyrating to their irresistible beats like middle-age never happened; and many did, because Man the Lifeboats were stompingly outstanding!

And, letโ€™s make no mistake, while this isnโ€™t the sticky-floored cider-fuelled pub backroom or hedonistic crusty festival they might be used to and arguably more aptly fit, supporting Ferocious Dog and the like, Man The Lifeboats absolutely nailed it. They play the Grass Roots Grazin’ festival at Salisburyโ€™s Music Baa later this month, and will undoubtedly receive the same expected acclaim there as they would crossing our southerly wurzel county border, with their scrumpy & western, Boot Hill and 3 Daft Monkeys similarities to Celtic punk, but their reception at Devizes Arts Festival might be a true test of their excellence, and it culminated with a surprise fairytale ending.

At least, thatโ€™s how I believe the band should view it! For them, they should note, Devizes youngsters up for a party flocked to nearby boozer, the Three Crowns, as is the norm, for the free familiarity of covers from Pat and Ben of Matchbox Mutiny, of which I dropped in afterwards, to confirm they were having it.

For us, itโ€™s been a mission to express this wonky stereotype of Devizes Arts Festival being a Saga Holiday at home shouldnโ€™t carry the assumption it is not lively. That Gen Zโ€™s parents and grandparents partied harder, faster and more often than TikTok might convince them otherwise, if it is not otherwise and understandably sadly governed by finance. Devizes Arts Festival has been fantastic this year, as ever, worthy of your coinage, but then I sigh, Iโ€™m not getting any younger myself!ย 

The true test of this will be next Saturday, when Devizes Arts Festival hosts homegrown Gen Z pop-punkers Nothing Rhymes With Orange, and I hope younger residents flock, not only for the sake of reunion, but for the future of Devizes Arts Festival. But, for now, we were locked into the tremendous vibe of Man The Lifeboats, as they did their thing loud and proud. It was professional, but they looked like they were loving it, with a mutual feeling from the crowd; cracking toast, Gromit. Or should I say, WALL-E, whom the frontman compared to Citizen Kane?! Ah, banter was lightly welcomed.

To liken any Celtic punk band to The Pogues might be cliche and a pedestal. Save for their London take rather than Irish, Man the Lifeboats certainly had similarities, their last tune before the interval was decidedly akin to Dirty Old Town, and they were fiery with poignant messages to provide, but in a nice way, delivered in a far more respectable light than the outrageousness of the subgenre’s origins. But, this is common stipulation with any music genre, I’d argue, where it is the aficionados age too, and this is the era we live in. This said, as towards the finale I saw them bashing out skillfully raw, decided I love these guys no less than Flogging Molly, or The Dropkick Murphys, and they were certainly on that level of excellence.

A great night was had, it seemed. If gigs like this at Devizes Arts Festival can provide the townโ€™s resident live music lovers with a taster of such bands, knowingly left wondering for something to do at a grassy outdoor festival with them on the line up, or stuck in London in range of one of the pubs they fondly mentioned, Iโ€™d make a beeline. Yet, it is of importance, being our readership is largely made up of our live music fans, that Devizes Arts Festivalโ€™s higher points directed at music should not be taken with a pinch of salt, that they vet quality acts with variety, including such must-sees as Man The Lifeboats; a perfect example.

And so, it continues, thereโ€™s another week of Devizes Arts Festival to come, which ends on Sunday 14th June with two free fringe events, a poetry and prose open mic at The Black Swan from 4pm, and a unique take on the blues with The Rigmarollers at The Cellar Bar, of the Bear Hotel at 7pm.ย 

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George Wilding Feeding His Head

Featured Image: Helen Polarpix As if itโ€™s not hot enough, Aveburyโ€™s finest musical export George Wilding is bounding back with another new single, Feed Yourโ€ฆ

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REVIEW โ€“ Devizes Arts Festivalโ€“ Robert Vincent @ Corn Exchange (Friday 5th June 2026)

My Show Of The Festival

Andy Fawthrop

Another headliner from the Devizes Arts Festival hit town last night….

Robert Vincent came to the Corn Exchange, bringing his heady mix of folk, country, blues and Americana. Normally performing acoustic in solo or duo format, this time he had a full band in tow. Heโ€™s an English singer-songwriter hailing from the north-west. Iโ€™ll admit, full disclosure, that Iโ€™d never run into him or his music before, but after last night Iโ€™m really happy to say Iโ€™ve now made the connection.  Although there were a few empty seats at the back, the Corn Exchange was largely full with 200+ people there to cheer him on โ€“ and cheer they did.  I soon realised that there were plenty of folks there whoโ€™d seen him before, so there was plenty of love in the room.

Fronting up with acoustic guitar and harmonica, Robert took us through two excellent one-hour sets, show-casing many songs from his back catalogue, including his last album โ€œBarriersโ€ (and, yes thereโ€™s now a copy of that firmly in my collection), together with plenty of new songs from his forthcoming new album.

Straight from the off I was struck by his voice โ€“ heโ€™s a clear, but emotional singer โ€“ and the harmonies that his band members threw in.  The sound was full, rich and multi-layered with plenty of texture and variety to the songs.  Early on we had some of his Country & Western influences coming through on โ€œThis Townโ€.  The easy changing up and down through the gears, from solo acoustic, through to full-on rocking, from stripped-back to hard and insistent guitar licks, was an absolute pleasure to listen to.

Robert had an easy style, chatting to the audience with humour and self-deprecation, explaining the background to the songs, but never getting tempted to waffle on.  I was particularly struck by such songs as โ€œHurt Today, But Alright Nowโ€, inspired by childhood memories, which he described as โ€œmiserable but hopefulโ€, as well as โ€œLove Never Endingโ€ (a piece of personal therapy) and โ€œEverythingโ€™s Gonna Be Alrightโ€ (calm, unflustered and very laid back).

The band behind him were excellent โ€“ Jim Kimberley on drums, Thomas Bibb on electric guitars (some superb solos), Danny Williams (who flipped effortlessly from upright bass to electric bass) and Anna Corcoran on keyboards, also providing some absolutely stunning backing vocals and haunting harmonies. Individually they were superb, but as a cohesive backing unit for Robertโ€™s wonderful songs, they absolutely nailed it. And these guys were also the core of the band on โ€œBarriersโ€.

The second half continued in the same vein โ€“ lovely clean and unfussy sound, no showing-off, just simple great musicianship.  At times I was hearing Jackson Browne, at times there were shades of Deacon Blue, but it would be a disservice to the band to claim they were in any way just a soundalike to those folks.  This was category-defying stuff.  More superb songs followed โ€“ โ€œTake Away Your Burdenโ€, โ€œKeeper Of My Heartโ€ (an absolute belter in my opinion), โ€œShine A Light In The Darknessโ€ and โ€œSeparating The Fiction From The Factโ€.  Again there were lots of textures, changes of mood and tempo, some chat, some nice segueing from one song straight into the next.  There was light and shade, there was hard and soft.

The vocals were soulful, insistent, yearning.  The musicianship was spot-on. The songs were meaningful, well-constructed and simply wonderful. Itโ€™s been a while since I was this impressed by a band Iโ€™d never even heard before, but I was well won over. I was already on 9/10 by half time, and a no questions 10/10 by the time we got round to the encore.

The sound and lighting by Serenity Audio was absolutely spot on.

Anyways, thereโ€™s still plenty of great stuff to come over the next few days, both ticketed and free.  The Devizes Arts Festival continues until the night of Sunday 14th June at various venues around the town.  Tickets can be booked at Devizes Books or online at www.devizesartsfestival.org.uk

โ€œBullshot Crummondโ€ at the Rondo Theatre, Larkhall, Bath June 17thย โ€“ 20th 2026

by Ian Diddamsimages by Ian Diddams & Lisa Hounsome A few weeks ago I scribbled a preview of this production โ€“ Bullshot Crummond. I extolled its virtues of daftness, craziness, car chases, sword fights, stage punches, raised eyebrows, lingerie, and deadly tarantulas. Not forgetting the high dangerous converse forcefield! Read that preview for further descriptionsโ€ฆ

Devizine's avatar by Devizine

Award-Winning Circus Cortex BizZzar Comes to Devizes This July

Get ready for an unforgettable family day out as Circus Cortex BizZzar brings its award-winning Big Top spectacular to Devizes from 9โ€“12 July 2026….. Performing at The Green, Southbroom Road, Devizes, SN10 1LL, this thrilling production promises four days of world-class live entertainment for all ages. Featuring an exceptional cast of international performers, Circus Cortexโ€ฆ

Darren Worrow's avatar by Darren Worrow

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 gotโ€ฆ

Darren Worrow's avatar by Darren Worrow

Local performer Grace Sheridan to Share Stage With Jason Donovan at Fulltone Festival

A talented local performer from Devizes is set to share the stage with international star Jason Donovan this summer as part of Fulltone Festival โ€™26. ….

Grace Sheridan, who will appear alongside Jason Donovan during his headline performance with Theย Fulltoneย Orchestra, first began performing in local productions in Devizes as a child. Those early experiences inspired her to pursue a career in the performing arts, leading her to drama school where she trained in Musical Theatre.ย 

Since graduating, Grace has enjoyed a growing professional career, appearing in a West End pantomime and touring productions across the UK and internationally. 

Alongside her theatre work, Grace regularly performs with Lewes Music Group, taking on featured roles in a variety of live shows celebrating artists and genres including Fleetwood Mac, ABBA, disco classics, acoustic favourites and country music. Her portrayal of Stevie Nicks has become a particular audience favourite. 

Jemma and Anthony Brown with Jason Donovan

Grace is also a familiar face to Fulltone audiences, having performed at the festival for several years. 

Speaking ahead of this yearโ€™s event, Grace said, “Fulltone Festival has always been such a special event to be part of, and I’ve loved performing there over the years. To now have the opportunity to sing alongside Jason Donovan is incredibly exciting. He’s such an iconic performer, and I can’t wait to be part of what is going to be an amazing weekend.”

Fulltone Festival โ€™26 takes place on 11-12 July at Park Farm, Devizes, bringing together orchestral spectaculars, iconic guest artists, tribute acts and live music spanning classical, rock, pop, Motown, dance and more. 

Jason Donovan headlines this year’s festival alongside a packed line-up including The Wurzels, Rozalla, Ricardo Afonso, Mark Shaw of Then Jerico, Seriously Collins, Mainly Madness and The Fulltone Orchestra. 

Festival Director Jemma Brown said, “Grace is a wonderful example of local talent flourishing on a professional stage. We’ve watched her develop as a performer over the years, and we’re absolutely delighted that she’ll be joining Jason Donovan this summer. It’s fantastic to be able to showcase someone who began performing right here in Devizes and is now building an exciting professional career.” 

Fulltone โ€™26 returns to Park Farm, Devizes on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 July 2026. 

Weekend and day tickets are on sale now, with under-14s attending free when accompanied by a paying adult. Weekend passes offer the best value. Onsite camping and parking available (Friday to Monday). 

Full details and tickets: www.fto.org.uk/events 

A Devizes Arts Festival Lunchtime Recital with Fรกbio Fernandes

Andyโ€™s topping the leaderboard for Devizes Arts Festival reviews; if I pull my socks up and attend a lunchtime recital at least Iโ€™ve chalked my name on it. Classical guitar at St Andrews Church, how bad could it be? Just a handful of tea drinkers coughing over some amateur strumming?! I should know the Devizes Arts Festival better than that by nowโ€ฆโ€ฆ

What I, and a full house got was precisely the opposite. London-based Portuguese classical guitar and lutenist scholar and tutor, Fรกbio Fernandes is a virtuoso. He came to Devizes to educate as well as entertain, and he did both delightfully. 

His penultimate of seven was by Frank Ridge, and the finale, a sunny-side-of-the-street piece, one of many his fellow classical guitar enthusiast David Russell wrote for him for the album he was promoting. But, like Doctor Who with an acoustic guitar, both of these contemporary compositions were inspired by the centuries of English guitar music we had joyfully trekked through in the past hour, to which Fรกbio held the crowd spellbound.

Coming clean, what I know about English Baroque composers can be written on the back of a matchbox, but if I attend lots of gigs where the guitar is a given, thanks to Fรกbio Iโ€™m enlightened with a genre of yore which introduced our country to the instrument by Europeans. Fรกbio provided a medley of four 17th century Henry Purcell transcriptions as an opening, and wowed the audience with his intricate skill. From the tragic opera Dido and Aeneas, to an eloquent dance and my particular favourite section, a Shakespearean underscore called The Fairy Queen, these pieces were short, but in them you could hear the influence of everything which followed.

I found myself contemplating waltz, nineteenth century English folk dances, or twangs of bluegrass in this music, predating 1940โ€™s Appalachia by a country mile. Even playful notes on the offbeat, which, as a reggae fanatic, shocked me, and so many experimental elements pop has caused us to take for granted now. From the romantic delicacies of 19th century salon music to the militantacy of William Walton in the following era, and onto scores by Benjamin Britten, we moved through time with the grace of the gods, and each chapter with a full and fascinating explanation. 

Iโ€™m forever impressed with the quality at Devizes Arts Festival, but generally Iโ€™m nocturnal, and due to work commitments I rely on, and am grateful for, Andy and Ian to provide our feedback on daytime events. Please forgive me for so wrongly assuming during the daytime this level of quality lessens off. Quite clearly it doesnโ€™t, and neither does the attraction or diversity on offer. Fรกbio Fernandes was as impressive and entertaining as something more contemporary, and being it had a little history lesson thrown in for good measure, it was inspiring too.

The Devizes Arts Festival runs until Saturday 13th June, with lots more going on.

I loved this, and was surprised I did. It was only a lunchtime recital, dammit! Someone look after my cucumber and haslet sandwiches, I’m going for more of this!

After Ruby, Barrelhouse and RowdeFest 26

Images by Jess Worrow

A busy late spring weekend across the county, with major events from Bradford-on-Avon to Swindon, but I’m bringing quality acts I find elsewhere on my adventures into my village. Rowdefest was, again, a great success, if I do say so myselfโ€ฆ..

Being close to Devizes, where the Arts Festival kicked off this weekend too, Rowde might not gain the traction of events in villages further away from a town, such as The Urchfont Scarecrow Festival. I believe this makes the case for a village fete even greater.

In part we’ve modernised a fete with music, but with community spirit in mind, we retain traditional elements of village fete within Rowdefest. And the fruits of our committee and volunteersโ€™ labour paid off; this year proved it wasnโ€™t beginnersโ€™ luck, it’s become a beloved and tremendous annual occasion.

As social media posts gather many aim at my already overinflated ego, claiming I’m the responsible adult of this baby. I confess I played a part, from organising the music to poster design, and, 6:45am found me partially resembling Wurzel Gummidge, as I lugged fifteen hay-bales from the gate to the middle of the field. Thanks for coming, if you did, but you must’ve looked around?!

From our youngest volunteer stringing up bunting to our eldest guiding traffic in and coordinating stalls. From the Parish Council helping erect the tent, and Simon, our sound engineer, going above and beyond his job, to our wonderful committee sorting red tape, legalities and other boring musts, like every event, Rowdefest takes colossal amounts of hard work from many volunteers, and the ones undertaking the most unseen tasks usually don’t receive the credit they deserve. I just attend the odd meeting to ease their biscuit quota.

Yet, aside from my biscuit munching, it was all these elements from so many which made the day. For the first year we had a sheep shearing show, alongside rides and stalls children were catered for, and at St Matthews we had tea and cake for our eldest attendees. With a raffle, tombola, and teenagers raising funds for Camp International adventures, The Mind Tree Cafe ran an affordable bar, along with Woodland Pizza and Boigers dishing out the tucker. What we find now is an annually returning audience, whoโ€™ve felt safe in the knowledge this will be a memorable day for everyone in the family.

Last year I crammed music acts in, appreciative of the many offers to play Rowdefest. This time I reduced the slight changeover chaos it caused with lesser acts. On reflection, with gaps to fill, I think, if budget allows, we should push for three acts next year. But once our wonderful Devizes Jubilee Morris Dancers had done their thing, back by popular demand, and our councillor and chair of Wiltshire Council Laura Mayes kindly opened our event in glorious sunshine, Ruby Darbyshire walked out playing her bagpipes, and I was comforted by the notion, while lesser in quantity, the quality was assured.

If thereโ€™s any similarity between Ruby and our headline band, Barrelhouse, itโ€™s that no matter how many times I see them perform, (which I have,) I remain in awe of them. Ruby held another crowd spellbound here in Rowde, MP Brian Matthew was among many who came to me to acknowledge his amazement at how talented this young singer-songwriter is, and after an absolutely sublime two-hour show, Ruby left to do it all again in Bradford. Just wow, Ruby, you were truly perfection.

If the landscape of MantonFest abruptly populating when Barrelhouse appears has become a tradition in Marlborough, the institutionโ€™s baby sister festival Park Farm and heady nights at our Southgate are securing a similar pattern in Devizes. And this makes sense to me, for Barrelhouse are all about the blues, Devizes loves the blues, but aside those aficionados, Barrelhouse deliver blues with lively universal appeal. And that was my pitch to the committee, way back in the winter months.

Understandable was their initial concern, blues is perceived as melancholic, and they wanted lively. Grateful I therefore remain, that they took my word for it, and the proof was in the pudding, as the wide demographic ignored the temperature and got up and danced in much the same fashion as is the Mantonfest “tradition,” to Barrelhouseโ€™s infectious sound.

A grand finale by an excellent local band, firing on all cylinders, and mirroring last yearโ€™s epic hoedown by Burn the Midnight Oil. I appreciate feedback on the chances of bands returning, Talk in Code was one, but I assure you, Iโ€™ve more tricks up my sleeve too! What 2027 will bring is undecided, but, with support from the community through the rocky road of maintaining a free event like this, this yearโ€™s fantastic and trouble-free event was so pleasant and positive, I hope Rowdefest will remain as it is, and I will continue to place my efforts into making it so, just like our wonderful committee.ย 

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โ€œWe Will Rock Youโ€ at St. Augustine’s, Trowbridge, May 27thโ€“30th, 2026

by Ian Diddams

images by Trevor Porter & Claire Borovac

Juke box musicals tend to be little more than a string of hits, loosely linked together by a fairly weak storyline, and it must be said โ€œWe Will Rock Youโ€ breaks no moulds in this regard. However, Queenโ€™s wonderful music provides a joyous couple of hours wrapped around a tale of a dystopian future where real music has been replaced by a totalitarian approach to manufactured music allied to an oppressive state a.k.a. Globalsoft, where a bunch of outcasts and renegades run a guerrilla style existence hunted by the security forces on a renamed earth โ€“ now iPlanet. A sort of melange of Ray Bradburyโ€™s โ€œFahrenheit 451โ€ meets โ€œ2112โ€ by Rush in a โ€œRobin Hoodโ€™s Merry menโ€ saga with Star Warsโ€™ vibes topped with a King Arthur reference, all vaguely linked by Freddie and friends. It must also be mentioned, and applauded, that the references and jokes have been kept contemporary since its initial scripting twenty-five years ago.

It’s a challenging show to undertake โ€“ firstly the iconic status of the music, and the unique styles of Mercuryโ€™s voice wrapped up in what is really a tribute act turned into a stage show. Secondly Ben Eltonโ€™s acerbic wit as the jokes, knob gags, and satire come thick and fast. And not to omit, in this glorious heatwave we are enjoying at the moment, thirdly the cast, band and crew sweltering away during the show! But Trowbridge Musical Theatre (TMT) with their typically large cast of almost forty members deliver the show at St. Augustineโ€™s this week with style, energy and smiles galore, directed by Petra Schofield and produced by Maria Matthews.

The set (โ€œBrightโ€) is simple but effective providing multiple height levels and stage depth; sound and lighting (Harry Sandford, Chris Sealy & Harry Weissenbruch, and Ryo Rosemann) provided top effects and follow spot, and the standard excellence of the back stage management and crew (Chris Isaacson, Nicky Runyeard-Hunt, Cameron Runyeard-Hunt, Bernice Hudson, Stewart Langford) kept everything smoothly ticking along; the sign of a good back stage crew is that you never know they are there โ€“ plaudits to them. Costumes, hair and make-up are an โ€œunseenโ€ team, although their input is critical to a showโ€™s success and Karen Grant, Sandra Tucker, Lucy Adeney and Lyn Taylor deserve kudos in this area.

As a jukebox musical of course the band are an all-important and integral part of the show, so step forward Musical Director (Helen Heaton), keyboards (Helen Heaton and Sian Noctor), guitars (David May and Ben Jones), bass (Owen Heaton), drums (Alex Kemp) and percussion (Helen Altoft) who delivered the Queen โ€œsoundโ€ โ€“ how marvellous to have a guitarist named May ย in the band too! All too often a bandโ€™s volume can overpower the voices especially as in this case when the band is between the stage and audience, but levels were delightfully placed to support but not drown out the singingโ€ฆย  though during the big instrumentals, the lead guitar and drums could have been louder to just give thatย OOOMPHย we have all come to love from Brian May and Roger Taylorย ๐Ÿ˜Šโ€ฆ But then again that may (ba doom tish!) just be me who likes his musicย LOUD!!!

No musical theatre show is ever complete without a wonderful ensemble and as ever with TMT shows, these ensembles were a highlight with tight choreography and slick background singing and stage presence. Its not realistic to mention the nigh on thirty ensemble members all individually, and its possibly unfair to just single one of them out, but I do have to say Yvonne Paulley shone throughout with her happy, smiling face, clearly enjoying herself to the maximum (and that is no slight on all the others either of course!). Regarding the choreography, Dani Fuke has clearly worked tirelessly with the entire cast, and especially the ensemble, to create such seamless excellence – bravo BRAVO!

Andrew Curtis plays the role of โ€œBuddyโ€ which for story purposes acts as a sort Greek chorus, providing the context and background to various key plot information. โ€œBuddyโ€ because his character is named after Buddy Holly though Andrew skilfully provides at times a Ben Elton lookalike as well as Buddy Holly during the show to provide an homage to the scriptwriter ๐Ÿ˜Š

Ryan Chown as Brit (Britney Spears) and the ever excellent Daisy Woodruffe as Oz (Ozzie Osbourne) combine with Buddy to set the scene and bring the early plot along as a loving couple intent on fulfilling their innate desires to rebel against Globalsoft, and Chris Howlett provides one half of the oppressive Globalsoft dictatorship  as Khashoggi, the head of secret police with distinct Gestapo overtones.


The other half of the evil empire, the supreme leader of iPlanet, Killer Queen, is superbly played by Keeley Guyan in her TMT debut. Her strong vocals and stage presence shine through and she totally makes her solos her own.

That just leaves us with Carisma Dolphin as Scaramouche and Noah Heard as Galileo; both are excellent in their characterisation and delivery, Carisma especially as her portrayal of the uber sassy, girl power confidence imbued heroine of this piece.  Their on-stage chemistry as a couple grows throughout the show in line with their charactersโ€™ relationship, quite wonderfully done, and their duets were simply perfect. Now โ€“ itโ€™s a tough call for anyone to take on songs by Freddie Mercury, and not even George Michael could fill those huge boots, but both Noah and Carisma had clearly worked hard to emulate some of Mercuryโ€™s intonations and delivery. Chapeau!

I began with a comment about jukebox musicals being just great songs and a weak storyline, but it is only fair to add that amongst this daft storyline, there are some real connections to historical and contemporary issuesโ€ฆย  dictatorships, rebellions, oppression, the struggles of minorities, bread-and-circuses state control and so on; maybe unsurprising given Ben Eltonโ€™s past as an irony heavy stand-up comic and satirical author. So, while this is a light hearted show nonetheless it does deal with some genuinely terrible concepts beneath its surface and it is worth a moment of reflection.

โ€œWe Will Rock Youโ€ is performed by Trowbridge Musical Theatre at St. Augustineโ€™s Catholic College, Trowbridge from May 27th until 30th, at 7.30pm with a Saturday matinee at 2.30pm.

Tickets are available fromย https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/trowbridge-musical-theatre

Phil, Jamie and Tamsin Return to The Fold

With duty calling in the wee hours of each Saturday, itโ€™s got to be something special to drag me off the sofa on a Friday evening, and whilst Iโ€™d rather not provide only half a gig review, this has to be said. Phil Cooper invited some friends along to The Fold in Devizes yesterday, a Canadian friend, multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter, arranger and producer called LG Breton, who would accompany Philโ€™s headline set, and two supporting acts, Jamie R Hawkins and Tamsin Quinโ€ฆ..

Something of a reunion and homing for the original trio of The Lost Trades. This backroom of The Lamb served as the foundation of Kieran Mooreโ€™s Sheer Music, where, by the end of the last decade it hosted ninety percent of their gigs. Both Tamsin and Jamie cut their teeth here, and Josh Oldfieldโ€™s project to receive the venue saw them both return to their roots, to play some new and some old songs, and tell a tale or two about it.

Jamie began. A remaining member of the Lost Trades, he suggested playing solo was rare for him these days, yet a wonderful outpouring of his sentimental muses exhausted from The Fold, like it had never faded. If acoustically singing self-penned songs is like riding a bike I wouldnโ€™t know, but it certainly felt this way when Jamie did his thing, as sublimely as he ever did.

If the narrative of his stage patter was reminiscent, with backstory, it reflected the reunification ambience, and there was always time for a reset, as the banter between all three of them developed over years of working together. In such, Jamie would play bass for following Tamsin, and Phil jumped in on cajรณn for her finale; just magical!

Though doubtlessly assured Phil would naturally see this through to a masterful conclusion, Iโ€™m sorry I couldnโ€™t stay; beauty sleep a stipulation prior to another symphony, the dawn chorus. Donโ€™t get me wrong, I love the dawn chorus entertaining me whilst I work, and it was a particularly spectacular one this morning. But hey, itโ€™s got a bit of a โ€˜Heart FMโ€™ about it, in so much as those birds repeat the same songs every morning! Tamsin Quin and Jamie R Hawkins (solo) on the other hand, Iโ€™ve not heard for what seems like an age, they had some new songs to sing, and the evening was of equal magnificence. 

Being separately these three were the backbone of subjects when Devizine started out nearly ten years ago, coupled with the notion itโ€™d been a while, I couldnโ€™t miss them, could I? Philโ€™s was the first album I reviewed, Tamsin fundraising for her debut album was the very first article, and Jamie bleeped on my radar shortly afterwards. And now, since Tamsin left the Lost Trades, and took a break from music, it was perhaps her in particular I was so enthralled to see again, performing like two years hadnโ€™t passed us by.

There were a few songs I knew, Tamsinโ€™s 2019 single Scandal, and Jamieโ€™s delightful solo rendition of Petrichor, the title track of the Tradesโ€™ second album though rarely played, but mostly, and more valuable was their new songs, which followed suit with their individual styles; Jamie with those sentimental looping narratives, and Tamsin with her barefoot timekeeping, hippy-chick odes to life and love.

The crowd was comfortably communal; better numbers than past trips to the Fold. I do hope it gains some traction, another good reason to attend was to check that progress, because we really need an honest grassroots venue supporting original live music in Devizes. Phil, Jamie and Tamsin in one shout, a trip down memory lane, a must and so wonderfully executed; I love โ€˜em, I love โ€˜em, I love โ€˜em. As for the dawn chorus though, yeah, those birds also perked me up about not staying until the end. Those bottles wonโ€™t deliver themselves you know!     

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Chatting with Ruby Darbyshire

There’s the story of one newfound fan who, after her performance, asked Ruby how many copies of her CDs she had, bought the lot and distributed them freely throughout the audience! Ruby Darbyshire has that effect, seemingly wherever she goesโ€ฆโ€ฆ

Iโ€™m thrilled Ruby is playing RowdeFest on 30th May. On 21st June she supports Chantel McGregor at Long Street Blues Club, a music appreciation society where attendees gaze upon acts in respectful silence. But, I’ve witnessed Ruby captivate regulars of the noisiest pubs into muted awe!

At Devizesโ€™ Three Crowns, number one pub for cover bands knocking decibels across a raucous crowd, Ruby crouches, packing away her bagpipes after a sublime Sunday set of mellowed and breezy originals and covers, professionally smiling, greeting either familiar faces or new fans desperate to express their delight and gratitude.

However long it takes for the crowd to wane, I’m determined to catch up with Ruby. Whilst I’ve known her gregariousness for a couple of years, she also maintains an enigmatic charm, rarely talking backstory, life and what inspires her. I wanted to discover Ruby’s motivations, solve riddles behind how she’s so mind-bogglingly talented at just nineteen. Oh, and if we’ve been heaven sent, or how it comes to be we have this remarkable singer-songwriter on our local circuit.

Icebreaker first. Ruby has two EPs, and a few separate songs, like Caller Unknown, a soulful debut single co-composed with Justin Haywood, and with help from Tim Burgess of the Charlatans. Produced by Freddie Cowan of The Vaccines, it was played on BBC6. But her forthcoming is called God is Offline, which Ruby recently posted a demo ofโ€ฆ.online!

I asked Ruby if she had a release date. โ€œNo date yet,โ€ she replied, โ€œbut weโ€™ve planned for the end of the summer.โ€

โ€œIt was inspired by our recent trip to Egypt,โ€ Ruby explained, โ€œwhere we narrowly escaped Dubai’s missile attack by a few hours. When we got to our apartment, we could see down on the street. There were loads of prayer mats, because the mosque was so filled people had to spill out onto the road. And so that inspired it.โ€

Itโ€™s deeper meaning, I presumed, was not to seek faith online, but to look either spiritually or in the real world. Ruby elucidated, โ€œmore just the fact that everyone is the same, whether they believe in a different God or they are from a different part of the world, they’re all the same. We’re all just trying to live our lives. To say, why are we bombing each other, then bowing to God? It’s just saying that God isn’t looking down on us, and he’s not actually looking after us. Or that you cannot connect with him.โ€

Thereโ€™s characters in her narratives lost or searching for a light, others dubious of their own answers or consequences. But, if thereโ€™s a sparkle in Rubyโ€™s eyes, they are not naรฏve stars. Rather theyโ€™re symbolic of precociousness, one who modestly acknowledges, and is confidently content with, their calling.

Ruby is well-travelled. Across the UK, into Egypt and over in India, she is adjoined to her music, therefore itโ€™s not just us who loves her performances, itโ€™s infectious wherever they trek. To discover why is surely to delve deeper into Rubyโ€™s background and roots.

โ€œMy mum’s Filipino,โ€ Ruby said, โ€œMy dad’s English, but lived in Scotland for a long time and I was born in Scotland.โ€ If youโ€™ve seen Ruby busking with bagpipes, or at a Burns Night, the latter part mightโ€™ve been obvious, but how and why has she settled on the Kennet & Avon?

โ€œI was homeschooled. So we moved down to Cambridge, which was said to be the best place to be homeschooled,โ€ Ruby continued. โ€œAnd then, during COVID, we needed a change. So we moved, because we had some friends here, we moved over with the boats from one side of the country to the other side. It took us about a year to move the boats.โ€

I know the reality differs, but I supposed life on the canal can behold a certain perception of idyllic tranquillity, so I asked Ruby if she felt that has an influence on her songwriting. โ€œSomeone said to me that I have a lot of songs which are connected to the sea and water, which I would say yes, I’ve got a few of them,โ€ she reacted. โ€œI don’t know. I guess it does. Everything influences songwriting, whether you live in a city or in the countryside. And I guess it does show up in my songwriting.โ€

A common question which somewhat stumbled Ruby, was particular artists she would cite as influences, because as she explained,  โ€œI get a lot of influence from different places. I think, lyrically, Mumford and Sons, made me fall in love with music, and their lyrics are beautiful. Artists I like, Nina Simone for her vocalsโ€ฆ. and you’ve put me on the spot!โ€ This though proves her natural professionalism, an understanding that most musicians could write an extensive essay on their influences, but the objective here is to be brief.

On cover choices for a live set though, Ruby mused, โ€œI hear a good song and think about what I can do with it rather than, oh, let’s play it exactly like them. I try and put my own slant on it.โ€

But, we really should focus on songwriting. Does Ruby have a template or system for writing, or do they more simply sporadically or randomly evolve? โ€œIt’s really difficult, songwriting,โ€ she confessed, but explained she โ€œwas inspired by the title, God Is Offline. Crowned Lightbringer, I was inspired by a riff. Insomnia, I was inspired by a metaphor I found online. It just comes, like there’s loads of ways of writing and I guess it just depends on each song, because each song is unique and individual.โ€

While her fanbase is perpetually expanding with each gig, I asked Ruby if she preferred to play to a majority aware of her, or to new audiences, particularly in a foreign country.

โ€œI think it’s nice to know that I have support,โ€ she expressed, but the preference  did not allow geographical boundaries. โ€œFor example,โ€ Ruby expanded, โ€œthere were so many people that knew me from other gigs here, and they’ve come back, which reflects on the quality. It shows me that I’m appreciated. We did some house parties in Egypt where all of our friends came and people that had come to loads of gigs, and they were the most supportive and most enjoyable parties or concerts that I’ve ever done, because it was all people who supported me.โ€ Which returns us neatly to our opening line: Ruby Darbyshire has that effect, seemingly wherever she goesโ€ฆ.

Future reflections seemed vaguer, for Rubyโ€™s proficiency is folk, self-disciplined, not scholarly, and I always felt she was comfortable there. Dabbling experiments with breakbeats over her piping, perhaps to modernise its perception, I omitted, but possibilities of forming a band I did mention. โ€œWas this like a year ago?โ€ Ruby causally inquired, but pondered โ€œit’s always a thought,โ€ noting some particular gigs where, โ€œit would be good to have some more musicians, to play and accompany me.โ€

The โ€˜what comes nextโ€™ section was dominated by her enrolment on an online music course. โ€œIโ€™ll do an undergrad starting September,โ€ she told me, and furthered proposals to continue writing and โ€œexperiencing different music,โ€  mostly through planned travelling back to Egypt โ€œnext winter, so, experience the Arabic music, beautiful stuff.โ€

My hopes for this broad-horizons, free spirited prodigy might be proficient backing and a renowned producer, and I often marvel at the possibilities when pondering this imagining. This led us onto talk about the music industry today. Ruby explained how the shift relied heavily now, not on schooled certification or headhunted raw talent, rather on an artistโ€™s ability to self-promote and build an online presence. From monumental beginnings like The Edinburgh Fringe Festival to opening for us at The Wiltshire Music Awards, if Rubyโ€™s journey would one day make as equally a fascinating biography as some musical legends, I envision a day people would be engrossed by it.

But while Rubyโ€™s roots, travelling, and gigs and festivals, to song-writing on her narrowboat, are all narratives in the natural progression of her skills as a multi-instrumental musician, thereโ€™s one defining, and perhaps incredulous element to solving the riddle behind how she’s so mind-bogglingly talented, which is that Ruby has been playing music since she was three and a half, and busking by four. Dammit! Thatโ€™s the kind of age Iโ€™d have considered acquiring the skillset to bite my own toenails an achievement!!

Ruby Darbyshire

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Sheer Music Announce Devizes Gig Frank Turner Bootleg Cassette

Itโ€™s 2006, and the charts are awash with what will become known as landfill indie. Somewhere in backwater Townsville UK, an already road worn veteran is making their furtive steps into a solo career that, unbeknown to them, will have a major and lasting impact on the UK music sceneโ€ฆ..ย ย 

Frank Turner is already famous for searing live performances that have put his band right in the front and centre of UK alternative music. Now he has to do it all again. Armed with only a guitar, many opinions and a reading list that would make your local library wince, he struck out, willing to perform anywhere that would have him.

Documented here is the genuine sound of a guy learning his craft. Nights like these are found across the UK every night of the week. Immortalized in lyrics that would appear later in his career, his โ€œbedrooms, bars and bunker squatsโ€ work ethic took him to unknown towns, like Devizes.

Devizes had a rich history in live music when it was primarily known as a military / squaddie town. Live performances from Status Quo, Ginger Baker’s Airforce, Curved Air (twice), Yes (twice), Van der Graaf Generator, Thin Lizzy, Fleetwood Mac, King Crimson, Rory Gallagher, Mott the Hoople, all in 1971 alone. But it wasnโ€™t until 2004 that its life was breathed back into its history, when Foals, LostAlone, Frank Turner, The Struts, The Computers, and more began performing here. Putting the town firmly back on the touring circuit.

This cassette documents, warts and all, the chaotic approach to small back room bar live shows. The rawness of the songs, the rowdiness of the audience. Included in the earnest set list are two covers. One from his peer Chris TT and a Sun Kil Moon cover too. Both showcase Frankโ€™s knowledge and passion for underground music. 

Frank recounts, โ€œremembering details of one show out of more than 3000, two decades on, is a challenge. Those early days were a blur of cigarettes, trains, whisky, sleeping on floors, panic and drive. My craft has evolved slowly over the years, so flipping back to an early document of a show can be a shocking thing in some ways; so much has changed. But enough has stayed the same. Kieran helped me out with shows in the early days and  remains a friend now. Somehow, shows like this led me to where I am now, and I wouldn’t change a thing.โ€

This release will only be available on cassette, direct from Sheer Music, or at 3 carefully selected independent record shops, Banquet Records in Kingston, Sound Knowledge in Marlborough and Mars Tapes in Manchester. The eight track cassette itself is a 2 tone olive and dusty pink affair, and clocks in at just over 30 minutes.

The artwork apes the style of 70s and 80s bootleg cassette releases. A down to earth, hand made/drawn approach, with an image that was lifted from a photograph of one of the Devizes gigs! The whole release is a charming, straight forward no frills release. The music does the talking, and we know it elevated an honest, hardworking musician to stadium heights. For more information, please visit the Sheer Music website, HERE.

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Pride Where Pride is Needed

Pride month finds me wondering if Pride events are actually needed more in our smaller market towns where awareness and acceptance is perhaps lesser thanโ€ฆ

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Can You Fill Your Music Festival Quota, in Devizes?

What was once counterculture hedonism is now as mainstream as a package holiday. In the UK music festivals are fashionable, approved and plentiful. Ten years ago I might have added โ€œprofitableโ€ to those observations, but with the market flooded, โ€œriskyโ€ might be a more suitable word. For the punter though, it means options, but if youโ€™re only annually able to budget for one or two, it means decisions and dilemmasโ€ฆ..

Across the country and wider you could trek, adding to your expenses. For complete and utter festival-heads and perhaps thrill-seeking younger generations itโ€™s a cost worth digesting to savour that certain experience. For those with passing interest, first timers, or older festival goers simply wanting convenience, looking for festivals closer to home is the desired option, and locally weโ€™ve our fair whack of quality choice. The trouble with so many on our doorstep is, which ones?

I really cannot make the decision for you. And Iโ€™m not about to suggest any of them are necessarily better than another, because, quite simply, they are not. I can only evaluate them in accordance to their individual style and ethos, and you must decide which ones sound more appealing to you personally, deal?!

A separate never-ending list I could publish of festivals within a relatively short radius of Devizes, and I endeavour to add as many as I can find on our event calendar. To lessen the task thereโ€™s fewer within the county Iโ€™d recommend. Minety and Mantonfest most, good allrounders with top headline acts and devotion to locally sourced acts. Bathโ€™s Party in the City, HoneyFest at The Barge on Honeystreet, and Ramsfest in Ramsbury, all this weekend alone.

From dance festival Shindig at Charlton Park to Chippenham Folk Festival, The Curcus Festival in Somerset and Old Town Festival in Swindon, May alone is jam-packed, ending with Bradford-on-Avon Music Festival and of course, free and local to us, I have to mention Rowdefest; although Iโ€™m hosting the entertainment there, donโ€™t let it put you off!

Of course it all depends on what you want out of your festival. During high season, June and July, if youโ€™re a hardcore raver The Existence Festival near Malmsbury will be up your street, whereas for the more commercial, Melkshamโ€™s Wiltshire Throwback Festival is poptastic. Trowbridge Festival for those seeking a wide range of original local music, and so many town festivals welcome this ethos too, such as Inspire Warminster.

Some are as established as Womad, and some blossoming. Going with what you know is a fair game, Marlborough folk return every year to Mantonfest through familiarity, similarly with Potterne Beer Fest, but you should consider the underdogs too; striving to gain reputation can often mean a team dedicated to really pulling off a show. 

The same rules apply if you are to stay in Devizes, and it’s fair shout. We punch above our weight. Aside from our wonderful curated arts festival operating multi-venue, and those memorable odd days like carnival, The British Lion’s Black Rat Monday, and the Lions on the Green, you have four main options for pay festivals. Unusually, while the two established events are niche, the upcoming ones have more general appeal. But the base of your dilemma of which to attend should rather be on personal preference, because, in their own unique ways, all of them are equally as good as the others. If that comes across crawling, it’s really not; go to them all and judge for yourself!!

Listed here with no priority, then, other to assist the flow of the article, are an overview of the big four of Devizes, which may/may not help your decision!

In a word; FullTone, on the weekend of 11th-12th July. It’s unique and magnificent. Spawned from a classical free party in the Market Place seven years ago, The FullTone Festival has become a beloved institution in Devizes, a pay orchestral dance music crossover, eclectic enough to incorporate upcoming local indie bands, stage shows and attract some big names to town.ย 

Image: Gail Foster

Licensing regulations reduced last year’s FullTone to concentrate almost entirely on their namesake in-house orchestra. This year, with a relocation from The Green to Lower Park Farm, things are quite the opposite. Not only camping onsite can be introduced, FullTone boasts Jason Donovan, The Wurzels and Rozalla, alongside eclectic tributes and from jazz to themed orchestra concerts.

Of course, Park Farm has been home to the Devizes Scooter Rally for the past six years, after its inaugural rally in Rowde, the same year as FullTone, 2019. 24th-26th July this year, Devizes Scooter Rally doesn’t hold a major headliner like FullTone. They tried this last year to great effect. The Beat headlining elevated the rally’s attendance and reputation within the nationwide scooterist scene.

There was a feeling the rally last year had obtained the maximum expansion for the organisersโ€™ preference and to retain a community feel, of which it excels in. And herein lies the most persuasive argument for attending. The Devizes Scooter Rally doesn’t require a big name, the reputation it has built, and its angle incorporating retrospective youth cultures is plenty to guarantee, even though you might not have a scooter or only a passing interest in ska and soul, if you go to Devizes Scooter Rally you’re in for one heck of a cracking party!

The other two festivals in Devizes, I’d call the underdogs for they’re new in comparison, but should be equally considered as FullTone and the Scooter Rally, especially if you’ve eclectic tastes and/or are looking for an amazing family experience.

If both aforementioned are on Park Farm, the site holds its own; The Park Farm Festival is on Saturday July 18th. In only its second year, and if last time things leant towards rock, this year sees a wider aiming family program, with tributes to Queen, Abba, Slade and Madness. Park Farm deserves your full consideration, because despite being new itโ€™s organised by the creators of MantonFest, a brilliant Marlborough festival with twenty-five years under its belt and a reputation for excellence.

Mantonfest 2023

Tributes, yeah, tried and tested at previous Mantonfests. Iโ€™ve seen Badness, One Vision, and Slyde, at MantonFest and guarantee theyโ€™re among the very best of tributes around. Park Farm has a full program, including our very own Jon Amor Trio, and just like the Rally and Fulltone, thereโ€™s a free shuttle bus running to and from the site to the town. It may need to find its feet, but last year was absolutely brilliant and loved by everyone who made the effort to go.

The only one not on Park Farm is last here but certainly not least. Crownfest returns to The Crown at Bishops Cannings on Saturday 4th July, after a few years break due to landlord changes. It is great to see it back on our calendar, as the years we did Crownfest it was one of most memorable local affairs, ever! The thing is with Crownfest, things are looking bigger and better than before. And itโ€™s undoubtedly the best for its focus on local acts. Some of the best are listed here, George Wilding, Ruby Darbyshire, Lucas Hardy, and none other than Talk in Code.

Crownfest is a landmark charity music festival, garnished with some of the finest local acts, highly recommended by us at Devizine, and supporting Wiltshire Hope and Harmony, a charity providing essential support to those with SEN needs and to families caring for loved ones living with conditions such as dementia and Parkinsonโ€™s, as well as those at end of life, offering compassion, dignity, and a true sense of hope. And, on our recommendation there will be ant music, supplied by one my all time favourite tributes, Ant Trouble; we are the family!

Iโ€™ve been waffling far too long about your blind date with a festival, itโ€™s time to be Cilla; โ€œhereโ€™s Graham with a quick reminder!โ€

Will it be number one, the glitter, Prosecco and everybody’s freeeee to feel good festival with a full orchestra behind Jason Donovan?!ย ย 

Will it be number two, the boots and braces moonstomping madness hairdryer extravaganza, with a seemingly never-ending supply of beer?!ย 

Will it be number three, the friendly, family, outside chance, with John Amor, Barrelhouse and magnificent tribute acts to rock you; cum feel the noise for the dancing queen!ย 

Or will it be number four, the grandest pub festival youโ€™ll likely to find, set in a beautiful beer garden under the magnificent spiral church of Bishops Cannings, and with Tina, Ant music and a real dedication to supporting local live music?

Or will it be all of them?! Do it, be a festival slapper! Date the lot, and the Devizes Arts Festival, Food & Drink Festival, Black Rat Monday, carnival, Lions on the Green, and if I see you at any, mineโ€™s a pint of cider, cheers mucker!

M3G, De-Anchored

At the end of last year Chippenham singer-songwriter M3G released the single Rooks. I felt it set her bar at a whole new higher level. Iโ€™m glad to report the follow up single, De-Anchored, is equally angelic, and was released todayโ€ฆ..

It might not raise the bar much from Rooks, but it maintains the same direction of excellence. Such is the unique and original direction of this drifting metaphoric shanty, Meg was delighted to hear it played on BBC Introducing in the West last evening, and we are equally thrilled for her! Thank you kindly, Mr Threlfall, they broke the mould when they made Meg.

For in this crazy world of fired up, laden rock n roll and floor rumbling dubstep, sometimes you need a timeout, a breeze of ambient goodness, and M3Gโ€™s acoustic take on melancholy is so beautifully presented with all-M3G loop vocals and sublimely unique expression. And arranged by Phil Cooper too, who knows the composition of a beautiful song like the back of his hand.

ย This time De-Anchored takes a shanty feeling, metaphorically a loose anchor canโ€™t save a sinking ship, relative to a relationship breakdown and the characterโ€™s empathy and sense of loss. It drifts, lost at sea, another delicate impression guaranteed to impress!

De-Anchored is out now, across all major streaming platforms.

โ€ŽDe-Anchored – Song by M3G – Apple Music

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The UKโ€™s Biggest Festivalโ€ฆ. at Trowbridgeโ€™s Pump?

Yes, you did read this correctly! As lovely as our premier grassroots venue, The Pump in Trowbridge is, you might be stretched to imagine it hosting the UKโ€™s biggest festival without at least someone squishing your toes! Without any appropriate safety footwear, allow me to explainโ€ฆ..ย ย 

The Music Venue Trust and The National Lottery have announced Everywhere At Once, the UKโ€™s biggest festival, a festival on your doorstep. Taking place on what would have been the Glastonbury Festival weekend of June 26th to 28th 2026, hundreds of grassroots music venues across the country will unite for Everywhere At Once, for one extraordinary weekend.

Venues from Inverness to Penzance will host hundreds of major artists, touring acts and theย most exciting emerging local talent in the spaces that have launched generationsย of musicians. This will enable audiences to experience a diverse, curatedย programme of live music in the intimate rooms that are the heartbeat of their communities.

This is not a festival in a field. Itโ€™s a festival on your doorstep, no tent required.ย Forget the trek, the traffic and the campsites. And this exciting live music experience is coming to Trowbridge, via the Pump. See? Put your Crocs back on the shoe-rack, I said all would be explained!

Everywhere At Once is more than a line-up of gigs. Itโ€™s a national moment to celebrate the grassroots music ecosystem. For three days, the artists play, the venues host, the nation listens, closer to the music, where local matters, where everyone belongs; The Pump ticks that box.

Everywhere At Once at the Pump will include a twee indie pop night with Sketchbook Records presenting on Friday 26th June. Includes a line up of Josie from Copenhagen, Clock Radio from a bit closer to home, Devizes, and Bathโ€™s Wisdom Teeth.

Saturday 27th June is the Nova Nights takeover with punk-indie-blues vibes from Fight Milk from London, Melkshamโ€™s finest The Sunnies, and The Hayden Lloyd Band from Trowbridge.

And thereโ€™s a Sunday matinee from 2pm on the 28th, when The Pump Acoustic Club presents a night of folk with Dan Sealey of Ocean Colour Scene and Fromeโ€™s KD Rivers. Check out the Pump Website for more details.

Ready for RowdeFest?

Not long now, for Rowdefest! Which, as the name suggests, is in Rowde, near Devizes, on Saturday 30th May, and is a free, community spirited family mini-festival with the ethos and atmosphere of a festival and village fete combined; what more could you possibly ask for?! Well, I’ve got some exciting details to reveal, some of which have been top secret until nowโ€ฆ..

That’s the beauty of being involved with Rowdefest, I have the lowdown, and I’m a blabber-mouth! I’ve been drinking tea and assisting with the organisation of this little extravaganza, mainly in charge of biscuit consumption during some painstaking meetings whereby a much greater dedicated team have been carefully plotting this year’s Rowdefest. Let me tell you now, you have no idea of the enormity of hard work which the committee have undertaken to stage this, and to keep it free and fundraising. Ergo, it’d be rude not to come, it’s a quick bus journey or healthy stroll/piggyback from Devizes!

We will be raising money for Rowde Village News & St Mathew’s Restoration, from 1-7pm at the Small Playing Field in Rowde, which is surprisingly bigger than it sounds. We will be entertaining ourselves at the main tent, until such a time the fantastic Devizes Jubilee Morris Dancers have belled-up for a returning show; so much fun last year, they’ve been warmly invited back.

Until then, I suggest we have a dance-off competition with prizes for the best dance moves, so bring your funky pants and your parents too, because extra points will be awarded for the bravery of dragging your parents along for this dad dancing dance off!

It is a family affair. We have a bar, and the Mind Tree Cafe. We have tea & cakes at the church and a plant sale, both of which people can bring on the day; plants and homemade cakes to the church please, and thanking you.

Talking tucker next. Woodland returns this year, with their delicious pizza, and new to Rowdefest, we welcome Boigers, for their smashing smashed burgers. I’m tempted to get one of them as a pizza topping!! And of course, it wouldn’t be Rowdefest, not even Rowde, if we didn’t invite The Rowdey Cow, and a selection of their scrumptious ice cream.

For something totally original, we welcome a live sheep shearing show, at regular intervals throughout the day; might nip over there for a trim. The rest of the time you’ll find me loitering at the main tent, with some guests who will be performing live.

Iโ€™m over the moon, to welcome the sublime Ruby Darbyshire, who will take the stage around 2:30pm. Many of you will know Ruby and those who have seen her before will understand why Iโ€™m so excited. Others will have to wait and see, but wherever Ruby travels around the world, people are left in awe.

At around 4:30 we will read the results of the raffle. Yes, we have a raffle, of course we do, and itโ€™s tombola-tastic, with three tombola stalls; adults, kids, and the school’s bottle tombola. We have fairground rides, face painting, and stalls from Bramblerose Designsโ€™ art inspired by the Wiltshire countryside and hand dyed clothing & fabrics, King’s Bakes, Merlin Glass, Kay’s Rugs & Stuff, Katie Robsonโ€™s craft stall, and the RSPB, and RNLI. We also have fundraising by local children for trips to Borneo and Peru, as well as our own books, bric-a-brac, children’s games, and plant stalls.

Pegden Contracting are supplying hay bales again this year, giving it a real village fete look. So, once youโ€™ve browsed our stalls, and grabbed a bite to eat and drink, meet me there, because not only have we Ruby playing for us, but Marlborough’s finest vintage blues with a groove collective Barrellhouse will be blasting out the songs as our grand finale. You are going to love them, pinky promise!

See the poster? It took me ages to design that, and the antiquated computer program I used caused Martin Barnes Creative a headache when he came to remix it and add the groovy graphics; still he returned to thankfully sponsor our event! But not as long, or headachey as it has taken our lovely committee to arrange this festival, and with the support of the Rowde Parish Council, we welcome you to RowdeFest 2026!

Now, local businesses, hereโ€™s how you can help. While we have already filled our field with side-stalls and attractions, would you like your banner displayed at RowdeFest on the 30th May? To display a banner we are only asking for the small amount of ยฃ15 for banners under 1.5 meters long. Anything bigger is ยฃ20. We are keeping it low as we want to promote local businesses. Get in touch if youโ€™re up for it, but I hope to see you all in Rowde on Saturday 30th May, by the order of Devizine!!

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M3G, De-Anchored

At the end of last year Chippenham singer-songwriter M3G released the single Rooks. I felt it set her bar at a whole new higher level.โ€ฆ

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Nothing Orange; Arts Festival Brings Home Devizes Phenomenon

Four years ago I witnessed a Gen Z phenomenon in Devizes. With a certain indie punk zest and intelligent songwriting, Devizes School band Nothing Rhymes With Orange built a local following I once compared to Beatlemania. Staging their own gigs and recording original songs, they harnessed appeal from a dedicated fanbase. By the summer of the following year I suggested to DOCA they should host them at the Devizes International Street Festival, and advised residents young and old, to come support this blossoming sensation; and they listenedโ€ฆ..

It will forever remain one of my most fondest memories as editor of Devizine; looking out from the stage across a sea of people stretching the entire Market Place and queuing down the Little Brittox. I announced them, it felt like the right thing to do after banging on so much about how good they were! And they absolutely rocked it, opening a wider age demographic to their brilliance, if still local. But Nothing Rhymes with Orange didnโ€™t stop there.

They would play our pub venues, from the Southgate to the Three Crowns, and they would even fit into FullTone, but they cast a net further, as other venues and festivals of other local areas headhunted them. The vibe was spreading, from Bradford-on-Avonโ€™s Roots Festival to Marlborough’s Lamb and The Barge on HoneyStreet, the lads fast becoming Devizes musical export of the century.

The only time I ever questioned their united successful future was at the end of their sixth form tunnel, when so many school bands demobilise to pursue separate universities, careers, or family obligations. It was 2024, they did a farewell gig at the Exchange in Devizes, and I set up an interview with them. It was more Chow for Now than breakup, as frontman Elijah Easton, guitarist Fin Anderson-Farquhar, drummer Lui Venables, and bassist Sam Briggs all planned to study music at Bristol uni, and even reside together; result!

For the interview I drew up some quirky questions, as usually a band of this age didnโ€™t take themselves overly serious, but what was revealed was evidently the most dedicated band with the most earnest sense of direction Iโ€™ve ever chatted with. It is this motivation to their development which drives the phenomenon to their international success. Nothing Rhymes with Orange have matured their sound, harnessed a style, but the audience response is equal to the Gen Z parties of home, just on a massive and international scale.

Bookings this year stretch from Exeter to a Brighton tour, onto Leeds, North Shields and  Sheffield. The CURCUS Festival in Dorset, Godney Gathering, Somerset, and back to their new residence with some of Bristolโ€™s biggest festivals. You can find our lads at Taunton, Plymouth, Rotherham, Leicestershire, Warwickshire, and Londonโ€™s premier venue The Dublin Castle. The end of July sees them in Gibraltar, and each and every date makes me proudly think, yeah, theyโ€™ve cracked this!

But for their original Devizes fans, there is one important gig on their list, for if itโ€™s one thing to see Springsteen play, itโ€™s another to see Springsteen in New Jersey. Devizes Arts Festival has brought many big names to town, over their forty years, some became bigger afterwards, others already A-list. This year is likely the first time they bring an act BACK to Devizes, as Saturday June the 13th sees Nothing Rhymes with Orange playing The Corn Exchange. The lads returning is going to be big, perhaps as big as the sacks of washing for their mums!!

Image: Kiesha Films

The Devizes Arts Festival put out, what I considered a slightly wonky perception of this in a social media post. Stating their generation didnโ€™t like paying for gigs, Iโ€™d argue it was more through financial reasoning than anything cultural. Besides, Gen Z have grown now, some with jobs, or at least with better parent persuasion techniques! While worth every penny, Devizes Arts Festival events come with a price, in order to stage them and cover the many free fringe events their program offers.

To attract a target audience rare for the Festival, tickets have been kept to a minimum, weighing in at just ยฃ12.94. I sincerely hope this works, because it is not just Gen Z this event should attract here in Devizes. In my honest opinion, the red carpet should be rolled out for these lads, whoโ€™ve put Devizes back on the musical map of England, since the success of The Hoax in the nineties. For the record, I recall standing by a younger Elijah, watching Jon Amor at his Southgate residency with a respectful eye.

The lads of Nothing Rhymes with Orange deserve to be shown a Devizes welcoming home party like no other, by all of this townโ€™s live music aficionados of all ages, not only for their international success, but for motivating a new generation here to pick up guitars and drums and start their own adventures. So, if your kid begs you for some money for a ticket, get one for them, and get one for yourself too!!

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Ready for RowdeFest?

Not long now, for Rowdefest! Which, as the name suggests, is in Rowde, near Devizes, on Saturday 30th May, and is a free, community spiritedโ€ฆ

Time to Be Thinking About CrownFest 2026

Not just a pretty spiral church, there’s plenty for Bishop’s Cannings to be proud about. Evidence with the personal touch recently defeated a brazen landgrab,โ€ฆ

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Voting Now Open for Wiltshire Music Awards

Your Vote, Your Voice, Your Future, goes the slogan to encourage the public to side with a particular political party based on lies they each cast, when all of them will probably make the country more of a mess than it already is, anyway. We’re not doing this now, not here, not todayโ€ฆ.

We’re here to let you know there’s an opportunity to share your love for particular local musicians and bands, rather than dancing around your handbag when they perform, or blasting them in the face with your phone torch!

Yes, We are talking about the Wiltshire Music Awards 2026, for the nominations process started today. Let the arguments commence!

I’m not here to sway your opinion, as many local artists will undoubtedly go begging for your favouritism, though I should remind you I’m a dab hand at the triangle! Please take a time out to place your nominations, it is more important than any other elections which might be going on.

This is your moment to shine a light on the artists, bands, DJs, venues, and local legends who are shaping the sound of our county right now. My opinion, for realz, is they all deserve a medal, and perhaps a Milky Barโ€ฆeach!

From grassroots talent to headline heroes, if theyโ€™re making any kind of noise other than flatulence in Wiltshire, they surely deserve to be recognised!

And there’s a lot of talented people out there, but while nominations opened today, the 1st of May, there’s time to ponder your options as the polls will close on the 10th June.

The Wiltshire Music Awards 2026 will be held at The Assembly Hall, Melksham on Saturday 14th November, but the time is nigh to cast your votes. I cannot recommend where, only urge you to do so. Supporting local live music is so important, I got smashed in the head by a guitar hosting last year’s awards, but, mentioning no names, the unfortunate incident won’t affect my judgements; I took one for the team, and rose above it!!

In all honesty, there’s not even a category for best triangle player. What is this conspiracy? Won’t someone think of the triangle players?!

Vote Here

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Radium on Liddington Hill

Swindon-based adrenaline pumping five-piece Liddington Hill released their first EP for three years, and Radium is highly radioactiveโ€ฆ.. For most on the North Wessex Downs,โ€ฆ

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REVIEW โ€“ Vince Bell @ The White Bear, Devizes โ€“ Sunday 26th April 2026

Local Hero Plays Home-town gig shock!

by Andy Fawthrop

After the cracking weather we had all week-end, what better way to round things off than with the best of all home-town gigs with one of our local heroes Vince Bell?ย  So, suitably attired in t-shirt, sun-hat and sunglasses, off we toddled to one of our favourite watering holes, The White Bear, for a much-needed dose of great original songs.ย  Good beer and good music are all that anybody needs.ย  Obviously other choices were available, notably up the road at The Southgate, but for us it was a very easy choice. ย Vince is, without doubt, one of our local heroes, and it had been a few months since weโ€™d last had the chance to hear him.….

Vinceโ€™s first-half set was full of his fine self-penned songs, the lyrics coming across clear and loud, accompanied by some fine guitar work. I sometimes make the mistake of slightly under-rating his great work on the strings, but not at all yesterday. He was on absolutely superb form, carefully explaining and introducing each song, but never dwelling for too long, allowing the material to speak for itself.ย  The subject matter was downbeat and extremely personal, each song striking home and eliciting warm and enthusiastic appreciation from the gathering audience.

Pub gigs can sometimes be a bit weird, with some folks inclined to compete with the singer by trying to talk over the top, and spoiling it for everyone else whoโ€™s there and actually wants to listen.ย  Not so yesterday โ€“ the conversations gradually died down and, at times, you could almost hear a pin drop.ย  Great to hear an artist as good as Vince being shown some well-deserved respect. And before we knew it 45 minutes had slipped by and it was time for a top-up pint.

Chatting to Vince at half-time revealed that there were personal reasons why Vinceโ€™s mood and demeanour seemed a little low with his particular choice of songs, which I wonโ€™t go into by discussing here.  But suffice to say that the Monty Python lyric โ€œLife’s a piece of shit, when you look at itโ€ was not an entirely inappropriate way of summarising certain feelings.  He promised us a slightly more upbeat second spasm, and so it proved to be.

Joined for most of the second set by his friend Chrissy Chapman (of Burn The Midnight Oil fame), there was some lighter material, mostly penned by her. They worked well together, both in guitar playing and in harmonising their vocals.  We were also offered a couple of covers, including (I suppose inevitably) The Stonesโ€™ โ€œPaint It Blackโ€, which brought a wry smile to many faces. But, yet again, another 45 minutes disappeared in no time. And then we were treated to the much demanded encore of one of Vinceโ€™s signature songs โ€œSpiderman Pyjamasโ€, and the gig was suitably wrapped.

Just time for another quick pint, a short chat, then a walk home in the still-glorious sunshine. I did get the chance before leaving to tell Vince that I genuinely thought that it had been one of his best-ever gigs.  There were a lot of friends in the room, and lots of love, but I do hope that such a fine performance helped to win over a few new fans to Vinceโ€™s corner. Heโ€™s a local hero โ€“ he deserves it!

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Live Music in Devizes, Anyone? Meg & Seren at The Fold

Friday afternoon at The Lamb, tucked away behind the Town Hall in our market town, with my aim to introduce two aspiring local singer-songwriters who haven’t played in Devizes before, and present them at The Fold, a venue once renowned and hopeful to recreate its former reputation. I was anxious about the prospect. Their magnificent soundchecks filled me with confidence, though their wonderful talents were never the questionable element to this ventureโ€ฆ..

From Chippenham, Megan Hoy, or M3G to the local music scene, is a breathtakingly unique singer-songwriter. At nineteen she has built the kind of reputation, in both live performances and recorded, which welcomes her to the South Westโ€™s best venues and festivals. Her music and autism blend to become one, and exhausts something so personal you take a little of her emotions away with you; a skill usually reserved for only rare, professional acoustic performers decades down their journey.

If M3Gโ€™s outpourings are translucent windows into the souls of contemporary youth emotions, anxieties, cogitations and reservations, and those on the spectrum, she unites with her Warminster match. Seren, the same age as Meg, bypassed my vetting process of only booking acts Iโ€™ve already seen live, based on Meg and otherโ€™s recommendations, and the videos she posts on social media. They were plentiful to confirm Seren had something special, still her performance came as a pleasant surprise compared to my readymade affections for Megโ€™s music, based upon the numerous times Iโ€™ve witnessed her magic.

If both define it as indie-folk, either fits nicely for a support set to an indie band, and allows scope for such bookings such as at The Pump, where they are welcomed by young punters awaiting a punky band. Yet I see it still as timeless folk, that rawness and unrivalled valour to open yourself up to an audience, stripped back instrumentally, just you and guitar, alone in the spotlight; that is courageous. And both Seren and Meg wowed. Just as folk was here, at The Fold, even before Kieran cut his teeth with Sheer Music within these very walls, it was again with a new generation. Everything about this gig fitted, in my opinion.

And it was a wonderful evening. As the sun fell to the moonlight through the high windows of the Fold, Seren opened with her original songs, sublimely. Though shy to talk, Seren commands an audience and holds them spellbound through her honest, ingenious songwriting and her talent to deliver them with soothing, evocative vocals.

A short break and Megโ€™s is complementary to Serenโ€™s set, matching with similar appeal but not rivalling; theyโ€™ve gigged together before and thereโ€™s a genuine mutual respect. This sweeping package of excellence was tied and united by a third set, where they joined forces, and this really was something to behold. Each complimenting each other’s original songs and perfectly balancing their vocal arrangements for some covers. 

Obviously this review is an encomium, as it was my doing! Still, I wouldnโ€™t say it so if it wasnโ€™t, Iโ€™d bury my head in the sand, pretend it never happened! If you question my honesty, read on. Iโ€™m left bewildered and somewhat frustrated, because those who witnessed this astounding gig were few, few enough for it to cause an issue and serious doubt about hosting more in Devizes.

Reintroduce The Fold they said, a gathering of support on social media welcomed it, but unfortunately, not in realityโ€ฆ yet. I heard the opening night with the fantastic Bluebeard was also poorly attended. Letโ€™s be honest with ourselves, I thank everyone who came, but poor attendance leaves me dubious as to why. Varied illogical reasons spring to mind, which could be debated until the cows come home. Maybe itโ€™s teething issues at The Fold, or the market is already flooded? There could’ve been any number of reasons, but it certainly wasn’t the quality of the music, nor was it the price when we state you โ€œpay what you can.โ€

Friday night isnโ€™t a Saturday, lots of folk work Saturday mornings, I could tell myself. Booze ainโ€™t cheap anywhere these days, but another event, ticketed with a hefty price-tag, sold out, understandably reducing footfall. Perhaps though, not through the want of trying, The Lamb has yet to regain the popularity it once held. It is a great watering hole, as it ever was, Iโ€™d be horrified should it go the same spiralling downward route of so many others.

Thatโ€™s our motivation behind putting gigs on at The Fold, relaunching this venue, for the sake of original live music and the upkeep of the pub. Easy to yodel โ€œsupport live music,โ€ or โ€œsupport your pubsโ€ on your Facebook page, it might be another to attend, but that is only where it will impact.

Here were two young aspiring artists, singing their hearts out beautifully, and producing something unlike anything else you will currently witness here in this traditional market town. Yet, a majority would rather ignore, to either stay at home kissing Netflix, or attend a tribute act to prog-rock hasbeens. This is saddening for local music. You. Missed. An. Outstanding Gig.

The Fold is not out to rival the cover-band ethos popular at The Three Crowns, despite this glory having its place equal to the blues at the Blues club and Southgate. The Fold doesnโ€™t intend to better any other event or venue happening in Devizes, only to add to the options we already have, and bring to town a variety of original grassroots music in an intimate setting. But the intimacy of the room has to have a minimum for it to be viable.

The first open mic at the Fold

This should NOT be a negative reflection on the acts or venue. I find myself paranoid, if it’s me, and youโ€™ve lost trust in my judgement to book acts? Yet I’ve been to other events which made no sense for their failings. I only got into event organisation to better understand what organisers undertake, being I was to appraise them, after our first birthday party left me completely unprepared for the tasks involved. It is still a learning curve, but everything previous has been successful for me; now I know the heartfelt emotions of an event organiser who worked tirelessly but whose event didn’t attract attention. So, if this comes off bitter, it is genuinely upsetting. 

Perhaps if I host tribute acts to Meg and Seren fifty years from now in Devizes weโ€™ll sell out! Or are we really this shallow? I prefer to hope we are willing to give upcoming local talent a chance to shine, to move between the little circuits carved by the fields dividing us.

But for now, do I continue, pick up the pieces and try, try, try again, and if so, at what cost? Phil Cooper arrives at The Fold on Friday 22nd May, with Jamie and Tamsin. Here is a gig from the gang very well known to Devizes, which, hopefully will attract some attention. l wait in hope, concerned for the future of local live music in Devizes.ย ย 

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Serenโ€™s New Single; Worm

Thereโ€™s a cold remote ambience of burrowing doubt in the opening of Westburyโ€™s singer-songwriter Serenโ€™s debut song, in which, as the title suggests, she usesโ€ฆ

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Vinyl Realm Settles Into New Home

A median haul of vinyl can weigh in, but thereโ€™s no longer a trek down Northgate Street for record collectors and musicians alike. Vinyl Realm has settled into their new location on Devizes High Street and shopping there is a much more spacious and airy experience โ€ฆ..

Much as I loved the idea of a record shop opening in Devizes, being just the way I remember and loved them in days of yore, eight years ago on that inception, I confess I put a time limit on the place. Even then the threat on High Street shopping was real, and the want for vinyl records in this digital era was questionable. But Vinyl Realm is not only bucking both trends, locally itโ€™s been a detrimental influence on them, proving well managed music shops are here to stay.

You can browse there, flip through those twelve-inch cardboard covers, remembering their look and feel, and the anticipation of taking one home and dropping your needle on that beauty. But then, perhaps, you consider the phone in your pocket, and the infinite digital stash of music it can provide with one click; sacrilegious here! Maybe you sold your hi-fi or record decks years ago. Streaming changed the music industry to a throwaway culture rather than the thrill of treasuring a physical disc, but one half of Vinyl Realm provides record decks and hi-fi, or fixes your old ones, effectively returning you to the retro game like Jon Bon Jovi in a newfound blaze of glory, should you require to.

Vinyl Realm remains one of the very few surviving secondhand record shops in the South West, and whilst Devizes loves tradition, visitors to the store will arrive here from destinations much further afield, for a range of vinyl too vast to fit into the shop, though the scope to display more is greater here at their new home.

More spacious too, allowing a freedom of movement somewhat previously restricted at their Northgate location. You might know how it goes; reunited with a long-lost record you once worshipped, just resting in that library of memories, praying for a new owner, and now nothing exists in the world other than you and the piece of vinyl youโ€™re jumping up and down with, waving enthusiastically in the air yelping, โ€œI found it! I found it! For the love of the almighty David Gilmour, I found it!โ€ not even the beatnik browsing dangerously nearby. The risk of bumping into him through your excitement, and him spilling his freshly boiled flask of vegan broth over you and your must-buy is greatly reduced with the space to move around The Realmโ€™s new shop!!

Tamsin Quin outside the original location of Vinyl Realm at Long Street, in 2018. Image: Hennessy

Bitching to a rising retrospective trend in vinyl, a brand new Taylor Swift long-player could pinch the best part of fifty quid from your purse. At Vinyl Realm youโ€™d return home with a substantial stash for that cost, as the prices here are nearly as retro as the records. For a want of more surprises, they flog CDโ€™s and cassettes too, owner Pete tells me โ€œtapesโ€ sell equally as well as records. I could suppose they were the post-internet music sharing format, after all, but Pete suggested Walkmans were back in, really? Whatever next? Etch A Sketch?!

And if youโ€™re one for creating music yourself, thereโ€™s a range of instruments and accessories like guitar strings, the odd display of merchandise, and related handmade crafts. Long live Vinyl Realm, where you can buy a record, chat music, grab the tools to make your own or purchase equipment to play them on. Even get that broken hi-fi repaired, as all repairs are done onsite and nothing is shipped off to a company; making this beloved Devizes shop sustainable and, by its very name, a realm for all things music. The move to the High Street and the fact itโ€™s not easy to grab a quote from Pete or Jackie as they busily attend a constant flow of customers, is evidence of its long-lived success.

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Harmony Asia Can Do This

Itโ€™s a question Iโ€™ve asked Chippenham singer-songwriter Harmony Asia on each rare occasion I catch her for a chat; if sheโ€™s planning to capture aโ€ฆ

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Radium on Liddington Hill

Swindon-based adrenaline pumping five-piece Liddington Hill released their first EP for three years, and Radium is highly radioactiveโ€ฆ..

For most on the North Wessex Downs, the clump of beech trees at 900 feet high atย Liddington Hill is a landmark to get your bearings. Without a carpark and a mile from the Ridgeway, its Iron Age hillfort isn’t nearly the tourist attraction as its neighbouring sites, Barbury and Uffington. But with fables of King Arthur and as Swindon’s World War 2 decoy control bunker, it overlooks the town with a safeguarding history of its own. For Swindon music aficionados its name doubles up as a contemporary local bandโ€ฆ.

Devizine first mentioned Liddington Hill when their front girl took to wearing a cow’s head in 2021, summarising their sound as Celtic punk. Two years later their second album, Edge of Insanity, carved a more unique angle we could best describe as โ€œCeltic grunge.โ€ Horrifically it expressed narratives of serial killers and inmates in sanitoriums, and gave plenty of the edge you expect from such morbid subjects. But often the merger between Celtic folk and grunge felt segmented; each track lent mostly towards one or the other. Liddington Hill returns to the studio after three years with an EP which better combines and merges the two fractions, and masterfully deploys them as one almighty blast.

Radium has five dynamite tracks, three with different historical narratives, and two more commonly concerning relationships. With nods to past punk styles, they swap between male and female vocals. With the latter thereโ€™s elements of riot grrrl, as in particular the opening track Peterloo. Not to be confused with anything by Abba, it kicks down the door with a heavy rolling electronic guitar riff and fiddles. The cavalry of the Yeomen charged into a crowd, gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation at Manchesterโ€™s St Peter’s Field in 1819, and with its unnerving driving chorus the song represents the fear of the charge.

But if Peterloo sits in England at the end of the Napoleonic Wars and the economic slump which it caused, Tarrare’s Stomach, third track in, rests earlier on the timeline, in France during the conflict. Tarrare was the real Mr Creosote from Monty Pythonโ€™s Meaning of Life, a gluttonous showman whose insatiable appetite was his act. He scoffed his way through the French Revolutionary Army rations, so General Beauharnais put him to military use, as a courier who would swallow documents, pass through enemy lines, and recover them from his poo when safely at his destination! Tarrareโ€™s fate could suggest Liddington Hill are implementing at least four of the Seven Deadly Sins, if Peterloo represents wrath. This track belts out grunge style, but again with those fiddles gives it the ambience for its historical context.

The fourth song moves forward in time to America at the beginning of the twentieth century, and serves as the ultimate health and safety in the workplace regulation. Luscious Radium concerns factory workers dubbed the โ€œRadium Girls,โ€ who were encouraged to lick their brushes when painting clock faces to maintain a fine tip, consequently ingesting radioactive material from the paint, and their landmark legal battles which established workers’ rights against corporate negligence; and you thought you were treated unfairly having your day off cancelled! 

Again, Lucious Radium is rich in this blend of ladened guitar and rolling drums, with the added Celtic instruments to provide this unique take on grunge and give it a sense of west country geography. Female fronted this one teases vocally, with deriding irony and the nonconformity of Siouxsie Sioux.

The other two songs deal more commonly with relationships; I could call lust from our deadly sins list. Pretty Boy, and Ever Shot a Gun Before both deal with suicidal tendenses due to romantic troubles, and both reference guns. With swapping vocals, Pretty Boy reeks with emotional outpour and should come with a government health warning. The finale is less three minute hero thrash than Pretty Boy, and more epic building grunge layers, with a memorable simple concept.  

The long-term effects of a relationship considered concrete by the character in the song, playfully chants on the ill-thought solutions and depicts the emotions of loss. Yet thereโ€™s a โ€œlittle help from my friendsโ€ epilogue, placing you concluded by the end and safely back in your armchair. Phew, radioactive factory women, a charging Yeoman army, a gluttoness cannibalistic French soldier, and your mate going to shoot himself because he broke up with his missus was all just a nightmare, evoked by this unique and intelligent grunge trip!

Radium is solid throughout, it never delves into ambient sympathy breaks. It may not be recommended by your history lecturer, but is an adventure in guitar crashing, drum rolling fiddle flashing with a historical reality. It takes no prisoners, and is the natural progression for Liddington Hill you need to take heed of. Thereโ€™s a strong grunge scene in Swindon, but perhaps no other band has this unique spin on it. Radium is exclusive.

The EP was released on 17th April, on streaming sites and is available for digital download on Bandcamp and CDbaby. Vinyl and CD versions are available through their website. www.liddingtonhill.comย 

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Chandra Likely To Go Boom!

Buzzwords, like โ€œturbo,โ€ or โ€œsonicโ€ are cliche, overused trends which gain popularity because they sound impressive, even if they are empty of meaning. I avoidโ€ฆ

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REVIEW โ€“ King King @ The Corn Exchange, Devizes โ€“ Tuesday 21st April 2026

Acoustic Tuesday

by Andy Fawthrop

Not my favourite night for going to a gig but, hey, sometimes you just have to roll with it.ย  On a night to fit in with their current short seven-date UK tour, Tuesday it just had to be, and King King rolled into town with their stripped-back โ€œacoustic setโ€.

First up, alone on stage, was support act Felix Rabin, a young man with plenty of talent. The Frenchman gave us a cracking first twenty-five minutes, and did an excellent job at paving the way for the main act to come.ย  Here was a man with a mic, a few loops and pedals, a stomp-box and a (gasp) electric guitar.ย  Over just six or seven songs, he easily won over the audience with a wide variety of songs, ranging from full-on loud, almost screaming anguish, through to some really thoughtful and tender material.ย  With an easy, comfortable, personality he fully engaged the audience.ย  The loud applause and the long queue at his merch desk at the end were both fully deserved.ย  A worthy support to the main act for the night.

After a somewhat over-long interval, during which we were able to โ€œenjoyโ€ the Corn Exchangeโ€™s excuse-for-a-bar, it was time for the main act.  With beer, cider and (cans of) Guinness at ยฃ6/ pint, served in plastic glasses by less-than-friendly staff, this is the venueโ€™s Achilles heel.  The offering is so limited, depressing and expensive.  Such a shame, when the overall surroundings of the hall are great, the entertainment was top-notch, and the sound quality delivered from stage was clear and crisp.  Pity they canโ€™t offer music fans something better.  However, I digress.

King King are a British blues rock group, formed in in Glasgow back in 2008 by Alan Nimmo and Lindsay Coulson, both formerly of The Nimmo Brothers. The band has released five studio albums and two live albums. The current line-up features Alan Nimmo (guitar and lead vocals), Stevie Nimmo (guitar and vocals), and Jonny Dyke (keyboards).  In this acoustic-only line-up, there was no room (or need) for bass and drums.  Back in 2014 British Blues Awards, the group won five awards including the Best Band and Best Album Awards.  Normally, in their full electric line-up, theyโ€™re widely praised as one of the UKโ€™s premier blues-rock bands, and known for their high-energy live performances.

Full disclosure: Iโ€™d never seen King King before, so Iโ€™d no idea what to expect.  However, I quickly gathered that the almost-full hall of the Corn Exchange was well packed with plenty of their fans.  By the time I took my seat Iโ€™d already had several fanboy conversations with folks I knew, and seen plenty of King King t-shirts.  The merch desk was also pretty busy.  So I was coming at this with a completely open mind and open ears.  โ€œCome on,โ€ I thought, โ€œshow me what you can do!โ€ Suffice to say, dear readers, I was not to be disappointed.

So not a full-on blues/ rock band then, but an acoustic  version of that band.  Last night, which Alan introduced as โ€œan experimentโ€, was all about keeping things much more stripped back, intimate (compared to their usual format), and with a strong focus on the quality of, and the stories behind, the songs themselves. 

For the next ninety minutes, through a flowing single set, they demonstrated very clearly their superb musicianship, vocal harmonies and song-writing skills.  There was plenty of inter-song chat, building up a picture of their back catalogue, but never straying into that tedious trap of doing more talking than singing.  There was plenty of cheeky humour, music business anecdotes, and an easy patter and interplay with the audience. The songs really spoke for themselves.  Hauled up from various parts of their back catalogue the two Nimmo brothers, both seated with acoustic guitar, introduced songs of great power.  The acoustic format allowed the vocals to really shine through, but never at the expense of some great work from the guitars and keyboard.

There were some nice riffs, some great choruses, plenty of audience participation. Most of the audience didnโ€™t need much winning over in the first place, but as a newbie I was fairly quickly convinced too.  Gotta say that I really loved it, and now feel prompted to go and see the band in their more โ€œnormalโ€ full electric format.  Another time, another date โ€“ but hopefully not on a Tuesday!

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Only The Brave Burn The Midnight Oil

Hurrah, at last! Only The Brave is the debut song from Burn The Midnight Oilโ€™s revised lineup; something Iโ€™ve been anticipating since watching them rehearseโ€ฆ

Dulcet Tones Rock Back to Bassett!

You’re a teenage Tom Cruise, at least you wish you were, but stay with me on this! Your parents are away, you’re home alone withโ€ฆ

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BecFest2 โ€“ Stonehenge Campsite, April 25th 2026

by Ian Diddams
images by Sarah Bec

Have you got an empty weekend coming? Fancy a last minute, first field festival of the year? Donโ€™t want to travel far? Then fill your boots with BecFest2, this Saturday, with camping available for those that want to over imbibe or just get into the festival groove around a late-night campfire.

The brainchild of Sarah Bec and following the huge success of her first foray into low key affordable festivals last year, BecFest2 promises all the festival fun to kick the festival season off in style, with great independent bands, great food, great drink, great merch and a chilled vibe without having to deal with tens of thousands of others. Think of it more as a family gathering, of like-minded souls, rather than a field of strangers. And the weather is looking FABULOUS BABY!!!

The line-up features fully independent musicians โ€“ no covers bands here folks โ€“ and the day headlines with the phenomenal Revelation Roots, the energetic reggae, ska and dub band from the South-West, more than ably aided and abetted by

  • James Harriman, a Bristolian performing a Brit-Pop, folk-rock inspired sound
  • Plot 32, a party ska band from Leeds
  • Tabitha Wild, a mischievous singer-song writer with a sparkle in her eyes and a ukulele in her hands,
  • Mexican Dave, all the way from Swindon with his whacky approach to music, fun and drinking games
  • F.M.I. Clatters, who likes Cornish pasties amongst other hilarious musical offerings
  • Andras Droppa, delivering a hard rock blues style set
  • Dub Catalyst, with a reggae/dub/hip hop feel also from then South-West
  • with Ed Liner as compere and DJ throughout the festival.

The music stage is in a barn, but the weather is looking fine anyway, and camping is available from Friday 2th April through to Sunday 26th. For post music festivities thereโ€™s a campfire for a jam session and chat with new found friends including undoubtedly many of the musicians – no “green room” away from the fans here at BecFest2!

Food is provided by the fantastic festival feeders Events Horizon with breakfast and all-day menus with snacks and spuds, chips, burgers, nachos, curry, pies and toasted sandwiches, with carnivore, vegetarian and vegan options amongst those.


Tickets are priced from ยฃ40 for Saturday, through to ยฃ70 with Saturday camping and Friday camping an additional ยฃ22, which in effect is for the campsite itself. And the best bit โ€“ kids go free, with just a small fee for camping, and pre-schoolers not even that! Thereโ€™s even bell tent glamping options fo0r extra โ€“ truly a festival catering for everybody.

So, grab a ticket, and your tent or live-in vehicle – or glamp! – and get down to Stonehenge campsite for a wonderful weekend of music, meals and madnessย ๐Ÿ˜Š

Tickets and further information fromย https://wegottickets.com/f/13935, and thereโ€™s a Facebook groupย https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ApfzDaXrW/ for chat and further information.

Phil Cooper & Friends to Play to at The Fold

Excitement for the rebirth of The Fold music venue at The Lamb in Devizes is building. As youโ€™ve probably seen me posting on social media, Devizine presents two astounding Wiltshire singer-songwriters, M3G and Seren to Devizes this Friday (24th April,) and Gaz Brookfield with JP Oldfield in support has only gone and sold out for the 5th June, but between them we have something else to announceโ€ฆ..

Trowbridgeโ€™s hardest working musician Phil Cooper says heโ€™s โ€œmega-excitedโ€ to bring his show to the Fold on Friday 22nd May. With him he brings a Canadian friend, multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter, arranger and producer LG Breton. Phil explained, โ€œLG told me he was coming from Canada to the UK for a holiday, and asked if there was a chance we could share a stage once again. I jumped at the chance!โ€

And if thatโ€™s not enough for you, the other two original members of The Lost Trades, Jamie R Hawkins and Tamsin Quin will be doing solo support slots, before LG and Jamie join Phil for a Phil Cooper Trio show; I haven’t seen Tamsin for sooo long, and Devizine was the Tamsin Quin fanzine too!

The Lost Trades original line up with Tamsin Quin

Again the event is “pay what you can afford,” and here’s the link to reserve your spot. Phil is such a wonderful musician in whatever guise he delivers, be it The Lost Trades, solo, as The Slight Band or the experimental project BCC, but the best thing about this talented and kind fellow, is either him standing in for missing band members for too many groups to name, or, most importantly, his production and engineering wizardry which has blessed so many artists as well as himself, including our M3G, of whom Phil has produced her last few singles; welcome to the small world of Wiltshire live music!

So, I hope to see you at The Fold on Friday, please bring some cash to donate if possible. The success of these early gigs for the new Fold really will be critical to our ability to put on more, so I hope you can make it, because there’s plenty of other brilliant local acts I’ve discovered on my journeys yet to showcase here in Devizes, and theyโ€™re queuing up, waiting for the green light!

And don’t forget, there’s an open mic up there every first Tuesday of the month.

A huge thanks then must go out to JP Oldfield who has masterminded the project and Sally at The Lamb. We’re so excited at Devizine we’ve a whole page dedicated to it, which I’m off to next to update with this news!

Experiencing Devizes Ways on Market Days; a Special Case for a Town of Culture 2028

Sketches and Written by Brian Edwards

If not too distracted when bumping into townsfolk and village friends, you might remember to get more of a cheese you liked or that essential part for the vacuum cleaner…..

As regular readers of Devizine will know, one of the understated pleasures of Devizes is having a wander around on market days. From the listed buildings to the independent shops, our market day wanderings are significantly enhanced by the character of the townโ€™s historic environment, and an enduring community spirit enriches the charming thoroughfares and myriad of routeways to and from the Market Place.

Farmers & Artisan Market

In 1724 the famous antiquary William Stukeley believed Devizes hosted โ€˜one of the best weekly markets in Englandโ€™. In the previous century the Wiltshire born antiquary John Aubrey thought Devizes hosted the best fish market in Wiltshire, and in the early 16th century that father of English history, John Leland, stated the โ€˜market is very celebrateโ€™. The townโ€™s Thursday market dates to at least 1609, a regular potter around market stalls in Devizes dates to at least 1228 and around the stalls at fairs even earlier that century.

Hence, those visiting the Thursday market in the present are directly linking with a tradition that has periodically been celebrated as noteworthy and has survived hundreds of years of change. And because of this, your present day experience of the cultural footprint could prove influential.

The Brittox: Devizes Jubilee Morris celebrate 2021’s ‘Devizes is Open’ event following the Covid restrictions, and Daddy Longlegs entertain on Easter Monday 2026.

A Town of Culture?

Having been ranked third among the countryโ€™s most quintessential market towns in 2025, Devizes is now bidding to become the U.K. Town of Culture 2028, which offers a top prize of ยฃ3 million as just one of a rollout of substantial financial awards. Towns must at this stage hope to have matched the relevant competition criteria to make the shortlist, which would elicit a ยฃ60,000 grant to support the development of a full application.

In addition to a famous flight of Georgian canal locks and a globally important collection in the Wiltshire Museum on Long Street, Devizes also has a reputation for a busy seasonal programme of festivals, markets and other social and educational events in addition to many places of worship, cultural hubs and active clubs. The lengthy list of cultural happenings covers anything from wildlife to nightlife and every experience from a punishing Westminster canoe race to tinsel tractor runs. The flip side is potentially overlooking something each of us does with regularity without ever thinking how rich and diverse it is in terms of a cultural experience.

Stalls in The Shambles

What might a Town of Culture look, sound and smell like?

If you are familiar with the sights, sounds and smells of a market day mooch, then you may no longer notice the familiar market day hubbub: a soundtrack punctuated by the calls, banter and chats with market traders. You may not give a second thought to the welcome and directions you offered a newbie visitor. You will though notice the music, dance and drama brought by street entertainers, and the art that may be encountered in many forms from the stalls to the windows and interiors of independent shops.

The Ginnel

โ€˜Tell us about the unique story and culture of your town.โ€™

Few will have heard of the once legally renowned court case โ€˜The Mayor and Burgesses of Devizes v. Clark,โ€™ that established the right of a jury to find a general verdict. The unique precedent from 1835 is possibly overlooked now and the butcher Jacob Clark of Maryport Street is entirely forgotten.

The gist of this court case was that Clark sold meat from his home on two successive Thursdays in 1833, when the Corporation held the right to charge butchers to sell to the public from their market stalls.

What interests us with the Town of Culture bid in mind, is not only that the Corporation established in law that their market and right to charge for stalls was ancient, but the arguments that were detailed about the civil authority customarily maintaining a safe adequate โ€˜knownโ€™ environment, where โ€˜large assemblagesโ€™ of the public can bear witness to transactions and events without travelling any great distance. It could have been written with the criteria set by the Town of Culture in mind.

The official Town of Culture requirements include a safe, supportive, nonโ€‘discriminatory environment accessible to all ages – a programme that reaches multiple audiences and offers opportunities for creative content – evidence of capacity, capability, and effective processes to deliver the programme successfully – strengthening or rejuvenating cultural and heritage infrastructure with realistic expectations. The history and modern day experience of the market in Devizes delivers all this and more.

Lilly waits in anticipation outside the bakery.

โ€˜Culture is for Everyoneโ€™

We may never stop to think about it, but a magnificent cross section of local, regional and distant communities are represented on market days. From villagers to townsfolk and tourists threading their way around, to street performers, grassroots artists and other creatively active innovators; market days welcomes them all.

Every decade within living memory is represented on the townโ€™s pavements, and anyone and everyone that isnโ€™t housebound is unconsciously participating in a market day pageant. From prams and pushchairs to rollator walkers, wheelchairs and mobility scooters; these enabling wheeled wonders of our age are everywhere to be witnessed, as are many a responsible human with their pet dog on a lead.

Just sit on any bench in the Brittox and witness how many times you are lapped by elderly phone scrollers, middle age headphone wearers and teenage skateboarders. They are not all in their own world of course: a street performer recently remarked how young people engage with the informal music in the Brittox, stopping to listen and throwing coins into a hat or guitar case.

As outlandish as it may seem then, your wanderings on a Thursday could bear witness to an experience that ticks all the criteria boxes to underpin a bid to become the U.K. Town of Culture 2028. There is surely nothing that is more inclusive, culturally rich and diverse in our lives than a weekly market day dawdle in Devizes. This cultural experience is for everyone from their pram to their very last leg and it is entirely free at the point of delivery.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to our friends โ€˜shop indie InDevizesโ€™ for both the excellent map and much encouragement https://www.indevizes.org.uk/

Many thanks also to David Dawson, Devizes Jubilee Morris and Daddy Longlegs for their assistance. Many thanks also to all the wonderful dogs and humans that featured in doodles which were redrawn and moved around to work up the final sketches.

Brian Edwards is a Visiting Research Fellow at The Regional History Centre, UWE Bristol.

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Serenโ€™s New Single; Worm

Thereโ€™s a cold remote ambience of burrowing doubt in the opening of Westburyโ€™s singer-songwriter Serenโ€™s debut song, in which, as the title suggests, she uses a worm analogy to convey shadows of diffidence. Yet, it is a breath of fresh air of resilience, and an exhaustive equilibrium in which to express sorrow and build from a simple honest riff to a sublime and encapsulating stentorianโ€ฆ..

Worm, released today, is impressive. Itโ€™s a richly layered spring-like emerge, a hedgehog poking his nose out of his winter nest. If isolation is a trap, Serenโ€™s uplifting vocals are the escape route, and in this itโ€™s a message to herself which will profoundly convex to others through association; the key to good folk music. Though, it is an urban myth that you can cut an earthworm into two and both parts will live, Seren uses the comparison to the numbness of her mood, not for dividing or multiplying herself, rather to โ€œsee if I feel a thing.โ€

A reflection on a burrowing exercise from emotional blunting, then, hiding, and waiting for a storm to emerge; this song should be that onset squall, for whilst it uses classic singer-songwriter folk hinting towards Sandy Denny or Maddy Prior influences, the beauty of Serenโ€™s vocal range melancholically penetrates through the numbness of its subject; the formula of an experienced artist, of how Tammy Wynette could woo an audience. Though Worms equally captures, it depends more on mood observation than the literal narrative of the likes of Wynette.

โ€œI wrote the song when I was sixteen, in October, a few months into starting my first year at college,โ€ Seren explained, โ€œthe song was linked to struggles with mental health that I have had around that time and before, and how it was making me feel. Itโ€™s a song that was very personal and something that will forever hold meaning for me.โ€

So, Iโ€™ve not had the pleasure of meeting Seren yet, nor seen her perform. I booked her for our double-bill with M3G for our first evening at the newly opened Fold in The Lamb, Devizes based on the strength of the few social media videos she has posted and M3Gโ€™s recommendation; theyโ€™ve worked together before. This song strengthens my faith that this will be an amazing night, for, like M3G, Seren holds a rare skill to encapsulate through honesty and fidelity to her music. You need to listen to Worm, and if you do, Iโ€™ll see you on Friday 24th April; yeah you got me, itโ€™s a gig plug, but even if it wasnโ€™t, in writing and acoustic combo, Worm is this prodigious and breathtaking!

Listening Link

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Rowdefest 26 Lineup Reveal!

Drizzly Sundayโ€ฆagain. Iโ€™ve just finished designing the poster, so allow me to reveal the lineup for Rowdefest this coming May, might cheer us up aโ€ฆ

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Devizes Music Academy returns with uplifting production of Sister Act!ย 

Devizes Music Academy is set to bring joy, energy and a whole lot of sparkle to the stage with its latest musical theatre production,ย Sister Actย later this week…..ย 

Following the outstanding success of previous productionsย SIXย andย Everybodyโ€™s Talking About Jamie, the Academy continues its run of ambitious, high-quality youth theatre with this feel-good favourite, based on the much-loved film.

Sister Act tells the story of Deloris Van Cartier, a nightclub singer who is placed in protective custody in a convent after witnessing a crime. What unfolds is a heartwarming and often hilarious journey of friendship, transformation and finding your voice – all set to a vibrant score inspired by disco, gospel and Motown.

Directed by Jemma Brown, with her team Sarah Davies and Teresa Isaacson, the production showcases a cast of talented young performers who have taken on an extraordinary challenge – learning their lines, music and choreography in advance, and bringing the entire show together in just five days. They are performing the show in the round – where the audience surround the stage – itโ€™s a truly exciting project. 

Jemma said, โ€œThis show is just full of joy. Itโ€™s bold, uplifting and all about finding your place and your voice, which feels incredibly important for young people. What always amazes me is what this group achieves in such a short space of time – the commitment, the teamwork, the energy. Itโ€™s genuinely quite special to watch it all come together.โ€

Ruby Phipps, who plays Deloris and previously appeared inย SIXย andย Everybodyโ€™s Talking About Jamie, said, โ€œIโ€™m absolutely loving being part ofย Sister Act. Deloris is such a fun role to play, and the music is just incredible. What makes it really special though is doing it with this group – everyone works so hard and supports each other, and it all comes together so quickly. Itโ€™s such a great experience.โ€

At its heart, Sister Act is a story about community, acceptance and individuality – themes that resonate strongly both on and off the stage.

The production also highlights the powerful role the arts can play in young peopleโ€™s lives, helping to build confidence, resilience and a strong sense of belonging.

โ€œIn a world where it can sometimes be hard to see the positives, this show is a reminder of what young people can achieve when they are given encouragement, belief and the chance to shine,โ€ Jemma added.

With a brilliant cast, an infectious soundtrack and a huge sense of fun,ย Sister Actย promises an uplifting night of theatre for audiences of all ages. And the Academy is already looking ahead, with plans to take on the iconicย Les Misรฉrablesย next year.

Sister Act Jnr is at Devizes Corn Exchange on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th April. Tickets: www.ticketsource.co.uk/dma or from Devizes Books.

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Frome Celebrates the Life of Phil Moakes with Fundraiser at The Cheese & Grain

Fromeโ€™s Cheese & Grain will host a celebration of the life of local music promoter Phil Moakes, who sadly passed away last July, aged just 66โ€ฆ

Party at the End of the World will be on Sunday 10th May and will be a special event in celebration of Philโ€™s life, alongside his family and friends. The evening features a fantastic line-up, including The Utopia Strong, Arch Garrison, Richard, Chantelle & Amy, Kavus Torabi, Thee Jolly Rotter, Hodmadoddery, and Sara Vian, and will be hosted by Martin Dimery.

Kavus Torabi fronted Gong, one of Philโ€™s favourite bands, The Utopia Strong are from Glastonbury with professional snooker player Steve Davis, and Sara Vian was one of many presenters at Philโ€™s Visual Radio Arts project. 

Phil Moakes was a keen musician, and played keys in local bands throughout the seventies and eighties, including The Replacements and Wasted Space. For Frome he would become not only a legendary music promoter and media broadcaster, but a prominent community leader advocating the arts. He served as a Somerset County Councillor, founded Frome FM, and was a former Chair of the Cheese and Grain Board of Trustees.

โ€œPhil played a pivotal role in the development of the Cheese and Grain,โ€ a spokesperson for the Cheese & Grain said, โ€œand was instrumental in securing the venueโ€™s long-term future during some of its most challenging years. His dedication, leadership, and belief in the venue and its staff helped shape it into the vibrant cultural hub it is today.โ€

Phil Moakesโ€™ last vision was a project called Visual Radio Arts, which started as a Frome FM project in 2016, and independently branched out to create promotional gig videos for artists from Fromeโ€™s Old Fire Station. It was in 2021 when I first met Phil, having relocated with his family to Royal Wotton Bassett, he had moved the studio to Bath Road in Devizes.

In the lockdown era musicians took to streaming gigs from their homes, often amateurly and with varying results. Visual Radio Arts offered a professional option, to capture bands live, akin to The Old Grey Whistle Test, and many artists took up the offer to perform.ย 

Being new to the area, I think Phil wanted me to suggest local acts who might like to be hosted on Visual Radio Arts. Anyone I namedropped were already on Philโ€™s radar, but it didnโ€™t stop us having a passionate and lengthy chat about the local music scene. Questioning Phil on the financial structure of Visual Radio Arts was all quite vague; it seemed his only motivation was the promotion of the musicians.

โ€œWe remain profoundly grateful for Philโ€™s vision, support,โ€ The Cheese & Grain continued, โ€œand the lasting legacy he leaves behind, not only within the Cheese and Grain, but across the wider Frome community. In celebration of his life and in honour of this legacy, all funds raised from the event will be donated to support the vital work of Fair Frome.โ€ 

Fair Frome is a foodbank charity offering sustainable services and support, raising awareness of the issues of poverty across Frome.ย 

https://www.cheeseandgrain.com/events/partyattheendoftheworld

All Together Ooky; Addams Family Musical with Devizes Musical Theatre

Whether you’ve a bizarre inclination to meet the Addams Family in the flesh and figure this might be your closest opportunity, you couldn’t think of anything worse, or you’ve absolutely no opinion on the matter whatsoever, Devizes Musical Theatre’s Addams Family Musical is a must-see!

Invited to the dress rehearsal yesterday, The Addams Family Musical opens tonight, Wednesday 1st, and runs to Saturday 4th April, at Dauntseyโ€™s School, and I can confirm it’s creepy, kooky, mysterious, spooky and absolutely brilliant. I left delighted and more charmed than spooked.ย 

The Addams Family began as a panel in the New Yorker by Charles Addams, a cartoonist alleged to be nearly as weird as the characters he created, but it was the gothic sitcom of the sixties which most will fondly recall, and Barry Sonnenfeldโ€™s nineties movie adaptations brought them into contemporary culture.

The popularity of a recent television spinoff about the family’s daughter Wednesday fares well with the timeliness of this production, especially being the story of this musical centres around Wednesday coming of age too. Within the beloved setting of the Addams Family franchise, it follows a classic musical plot of forbidden love with a happy ending.

It tells of losing inhibitions and that love is calmly discussing your differences. But, no more spoilers from me! Rest assured you’re in capable hands, because the casting on this is impeccable, and its appearance is the best weโ€™ve seen so far from Devizes Musical Theatre; itโ€™s a ghoulish visual feast.

I couldnโ€™t pick a favourite part, they were all exceptional. Gary Robson makes a convincing Gomez, the father, but Dolly May was born for the part of his wife Morticia, it would seem, and the chemistry between them was magnetic. Likewise for Wednesday, played so utterly wonderfully by Grace Sheridan, and the object of her desires, Lucas, in which Oscar Thorley played with superb ease; if Oscar is his name, well, he should win one!

In contrast to the family traits, Lucasโ€™ parents Lucy Burgess and Simon Hoy presented them with professional quality, particularly when their influences are altered by the course of the narrative. Then you have the steadfast extra family members, pouring the comedy into it, such as the Grandma, Debby Wilkinson, whose haunting cackle alone would be plentiful for comic effect, without the need for her grinning smirks and ambling around the stage.

Cameron Williams plays Frankensteinโ€™s Prometheus butler Lurch, who is still amazing, despite having nothing but a growl, because thereโ€™s a twist, at the end, and Iโ€™ll say no more. The troubled son Pugsley, played with magic by Georgia Saunders is key to a plot twist, and is so convincing in the relationship with his sister, she may as well be a sibling to Grace.ย 

Attending a dress rehearsal has slight differences to the actual show, one thing you wouldnโ€™t see at the show was when, at the interval, Ben Griffiths-Mills, who plays the disturbingly innocent Uncle Fester, came to address the director Lyn Taylor, who happened to be sitting beside me. The Addams Family is more music and fun than spooky, the most shocking part of my evening was not in the show, rather when Ben spoke in his normal voice to Lyn, as I was so utterly convinced by his sublime performance as Fester, I expected him to speak with the quirky high-pitched accent of Fester! And this sums the experience up, so credible it is, I had to remind myself these were actors in character; in that, Thing wasn’t wandering around the school at night, and if forced to pick a favourite, Uncle Ben Fester would probably be it!

Such is the attention to detail, I reveal thereโ€™s not just a random collective of excellent dancers too, but theyโ€™re separate characters of the ghostly ancestors the Addams have venerated, and each dances around their crypts according to their back stories and fate; the program identifies them, and the cast highlight the show.

Iโ€™ve mentioned the dubious double-meaning of the word โ€˜amateurโ€™ used in the term โ€˜amateur dramaticsโ€™ before, being a noun for โ€˜unprofessionalโ€™ doesnโ€™t necessarily mean the subject it refers to is โ€˜rubbish,โ€™ as second definitions suggest. I did so in a review of a Devizes Musical Theatre production, because, while everyone volunteers, the standard, attention to detail, and production values are so high you could assume youโ€™re at the West End. This notion has never been more relevant than with their latest production, The Addams Family Musical; if youโ€™re going, youโ€™re in for a treatโ€ฆand definitely not a trick.

When people come to see ’em, They really are a scream, The Addams Family may not have the same box office clout as Devizes Musical Theatre producing a Disney fairy-tale; thereโ€™s a few tickets left for a performance which usually sells out. Do not be distracted by the quirky choice of production, as this was DMT at their very best.

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Lady Nade; Sober!

Dry January, anyone? Well, Lady Nade just plunged into an outdoor 4ยฐC eucalyptus sauna for a social media reel. But whilst I’d require a stiffโ€ฆ

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by Darren Worrow

Extended Lineup for CrownFest

It was back in October when we revealed CrownFest at The Crown in Bishopโ€™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 & Harmonyโ€™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 isnโ€™t about simply regurgitating what weโ€™ve already said about CrownFest, because thereโ€™s been a few updates since, worthy of your attentionโ€ฆ..

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 youโ€™d have to wonder otherwise, just how theyโ€™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 ยฃ32, children are ยฃ10, and thereโ€™s a ยฃ75 family bundle option too.

So, what Iโ€™ve already told you: Kinishaโ€™s renowned Simply the Best Tina Turner Tribute and Adam & The Ants tribute Ant Trouble headline, closely followed by Wiltshireโ€™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 Salisburyโ€™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 isnโ€™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 everyoneโ€™s lips right now, we fondly reviewed his latest single, and heโ€™s coming too. Eighteen-year-old singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist Dylan Bratley also made the team; a new name to us but Iโ€™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 Creativeโ€™s โ€œGlow with the Flowโ€ event for young musicians at Salisbury Art Centre. They revealed โ€œthe band is composed of four boys, Jasper Hill, Owen Morgan, Thomas Clark, and Toby Allen, who are all currently in Lower Sixth at Bishop Wordsworthโ€™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 โ€œFive Nights at Freddyโ€™sโ€, combined with the influence from their classmate called Adyan, whom they often bring up on stage.โ€ย 

This kind of leaves me wondering what Adyan does, if heโ€™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 thatโ€™s a great look! All roads lead to Bishops Cannings this coming 4th July…. get on one of them!

Vox Populi: New Album From Deadlight Dance

The difference between punk and goth is that as a punk you reject society, as a goth society rejects you. Being society lives mostly online today, that’s probably why my spam filter assumes proposals from exiled middle eastern princes to deposit bitcoin into my bank, and machines to extend oneโ€™s manhood are of interest to a regional entertainment blog, but a local goth duo’s new album should be hidden in a spam folder.

Algorithms now pressure me into having to rush this out, despite noting on social media, Deadlight Dance are releasing their third album, Vox Populi tomorrow (Friday 20th March), which they launched at The White Bear in Devizes last Sunday. Have Nick and Tim got in the humph with me?!

They are Eurythmics-covering retro goths after all, who seem to be dealing with the apocalypse with new songs and a spot of gardening. I’ve always been nice about what they do and thought the feeling was mutual! Not at all; seems after a quick Facebook message, the glitch is real, and the email was discovered; and just like the issues Nick and Tim describe, โ€œthe populist rhetoric, the age of the oligarch where the rapid development of A.I. and deepfakery is upending reality, and โ€˜straight-talkingโ€™ chancers who claim to represent the majority are stoking the smouldering embers of fascism,โ€ these are the depressing first world problems which need addressing, and with them in mind, isnโ€™t it overdue to rekindle the era of the goth spirit?

Recorded as usual at Mooncalf Studio with legendary purple-bearded producer Nick Beere, it feels at times as if Deadlight Dance are canvassing for compassion as humanity gears up to vote for the collapse of civilised society. โ€œItโ€™s dark,โ€ agrees Nick Fletcher, โ€œbut there is hope there. You donโ€™t talk about these things unless you want to do something about it.โ€

โ€œLight and shade,โ€ says his partner in sound, Tim Emery. โ€œHopefully thereโ€™s something forย everyone. For some people, everything will be for them.โ€

With all edgy synths blazing, Gloss opens Vox Populi, dramatically and attacking the beauty industry, its harmful lies and unrealistic standards in an era most pop stars are encouraging them. We reviewed this as a single last October, where I vowed to shave my eyebrows off and draw them back on with a Sharpie. The exploitative nature of the cosmetics industry, the first deep and eerie original song of eight, which speak of algorithmic existences; gaslighting by the elite, the paradox of โ€˜humaneโ€™ food production, identities and the preconceptions that can shape them, the corporatisation of the militaryโ€ฆ and gardening.

โ€œThere are some important horticultural and botanical references,โ€ says Nick, reassuringly. The poisonous evergreen shrub Daphne odora, being an example, as the second tune, a poignant plodding shoegazer and followed by a surprisingly jocund ballad which gracefully reminds of the playful moments of The Cure.

Red Flags warns of danger, but takes no prisoners, Lachrymal is as dismayed as Fields of the Nephilim, Glass Walls is uptempo, furious and robust by design, an enclosed space frameless and seamless, but perhaps not maximising natural light, for thatโ€™s simply not goth!

The Theatre of Absurd thuds us back into the dark, with anticipatory anxiety and New Order beats. Followed by the first of two cover songs, Eurythmicsโ€™ Sweet Dreams. Deadlight Dance comforts you here with familiarity and reminiscence, but stamp their own authoritative pounce on this, and the second, Princeโ€™s When You Were Mine, both of which feature guest vocalist Sian and drummer Mike Dymond, the latter of whom first played with Nick and Tim when they were sixth formers.

Thereโ€™s an underlying retro sensation with all that Deadlight Dance produces, that not all electronica was lost to Stock Aitken Waterman, and neither will it be with smug grinned Simon Cowell. And something wholly satisfying that post punk artists of yore inspired Nick and Tim to form a band, and, acne replaced by wrinkles, thirty years later, amidst a global pandemic and a growing whirlwind of social and political chaos, they felt that the time was right to continue the journey. But what is more, is that younger punk bands, like those gravitating towards DIY labels like Sketchbook, are continuing the theme, and, I reckon, would take Deadlight Dance with similar respect to the aforementioned post-punk artists who inspired Nick and Tim. At least they should if or when they hear this album.

While there is always a coherent thought process behind them all, their previous releases, 2024โ€™s acoustic covers album The Wiltshire Gothic, and the literature-themed EP Chapter & Verse of the same year, held a running theme more rigidly. The dystopian or unnerving observations of the modern era subjects behind Vox Populi is subtler, and this feels like the fashion of their debut Beyond Reverence, only with the natural progression, experience and diligence of those three years. And it shows, this is a most excellent album, once again.

Vox Populi is released worldwide to stream, and own as a CD, vinyl LP and download,ย through Ray Records on Friday 20th March. Check out details on their website HERE.

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Rooks; New Single From M3G

Chippenham folk singer-songwriter, M3G (because she likes a backward โ€œEโ€) has a new single out tomorrow, Friday 19th December. Put your jingly bell cheesy tunesโ€ฆ

Keep reading

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Palooza Invited Back to Fatboy Slim’s All Back to Minehead 2026

Right here, right now in Devizes, Palooza spawned and has become the fast-growing house music event brand in Wiltshire. They’ve beenย invited backย to perform atย Fatboy Slimโ€™s All Back To Minehead 2026, following a standout appearance at last yearโ€™s event. The highly anticipated festival takes placeย 6โ€“9 November 2026ย and brings together some of the biggest names in dance music for a full weekend of music, energy and unforgettable moments…..

Joining an exceptional lineup that includesย DJ EZ, Erol Alkan, Horse Meat Disco, Simon Pegg, Sarah Story, Darren Emerson, Eats Everything, Kirollus, Olive F, Woody Cook, Elliot Schooling, Liam Palmer, Krafty Kuts, Dr Banana, Arielle Freeย and many more, Palooza will once again bring its signature blend ofย house, classics, anthems and underground soundsย to the iconic Minehead weekender.

Known for itsย high-energy dancefloors and community-driven atmosphere, Palooza has built a strong reputation on the UKโ€™s underground scene, making its return to All Back To Minehead a significant milestone for the brand. The invitation back to the lineup reflects the impact of last yearโ€™s performance and the growing recognition of Paloozaโ€™s unique sound and vibe.

โ€œWeโ€™re buzzing to be invited back,โ€ said Greg Spencer from Palooza. โ€œLast year was incredible, and to return alongside such a huge lineup is a real honour. Weโ€™re bringing even more energy this time.โ€

All Back To Minehead continues to be one of the UKโ€™s most celebrated dance music weekends, combining world-class DJs with a unique holiday atmosphere and a packed schedule of activities across the resort.

For full lineup details, tickets and event information, visit:
๐Ÿ‘‰ย www.allbacktominehead.com

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Devizine Presents M3G and Seren at The Fold

Spring is on its way, and we’re looking forward to a season of great live music across the county. You’ve only got to keep your best eye on our ever-updating event calendar to realise the vast and varying options open to you. But here, in Devizes, there’s one particular place I’m personally excited about, the return of The Foldโ€ฆ.

Organised principally by JP Oldfield, the legendary Fold returns with open mic nights on the first Tuesday of each month, Bluebeard and the Desperate Hours headline a freebie with JP in support on Friday 27th March, and the one and only Gaz Brookfield returns to The Fold in a blaze of glory on the 5th June.

But with JPโ€™s reputation spreading like wildfire, he cannot always be at The Fold; I mean, we were just chatting about him supporting Imarhan at Bristolโ€™s The Fleece on Monday, and the many other gigs heโ€™s getting in the area. So, between Bluebeard and Gaz, and not for my ego, well, not entirely, I’m delighted Devizine can be involved with this project.

A Devizine takeover at The Fold, on Friday 24th April, that’s what I’m here to tell you about; bung it your diary now! It’s been too long since we’ve put a gig on. This is happening, the only requirement needed from you is to please support it. In order to encourage your excitement to match my own, we’ve done two things.

Firstly, while we need to fund it somehow, we’re keeping ticket prices as low as possible. Just like it was 1979, this is a pay what you can gig, but I plead that you consider this at the door, that the more you can pay the more we can give you in return, rebuild the Fold, and provide Devizes with some great acts in a comfy, intimate venue and at affordable prices. Please, flash a little cash, not for me, but for our musicians.

My second objective, and I know JP and I are singing off the same songsheet on this even if his singing is ten thousand miles above my own breathtaking shower concertos, is to bring to Devizes the amazing acts we see elsewhere, who haven’t yet made a Devizes debut, or who have rarely played here before. Musicians and bands which I think, โ€œthe good folk in Devizes would love this, they deserve to see this!โ€ And that’s precisely what we’ve done for our first Fold takeover.

We’re hosting two local upcoming singer-songwriters, firstly Meg, or M3G as she prefers, who I’ve been waffling on about for ages, with deserved praise, and my daughter scribbled a great interview with her some years ago.

M3G is an indie folk singer-songwriter from Chippenham. Her music mixes authentic lyrics with soaring vocals. Recently supporting the likes of Frank Turner, Jools Holland, Gaz Brookfield and The Lottery Winners. A regular at Trowbridgeโ€™s Pump, the venue now run by Kieran J Moore, who created Sheer Music at this very venue, The Fold; small world.

Her bio also says she’s โ€œdescribed as, โ€˜Beautiful and Captivatingโ€™ by a local music magazine,โ€ which I’m suspicious was me! And โ€œshe brings a unique perspective and humour to the stage,โ€ which sums it perfectly, if I do say so myself! Her recent singles, like โ€œRooksโ€ , were produced by Phil Cooper, who you should know from The Lost Trades, and also will be at the Fold with Bluebeard on the 27th March; again, small world!

M3G’s style is uniquely wonderful and personal, something I advise you really need to see for yourself; hereโ€™s your chance. I also introduce you to Take the Stage finalist Seren, a Warminster based young folk singer-songwriter with a voice you wonโ€™t forget.ย 

Seren performs a mixture of original songs and covers. โ€œMy favourite covers to perform are Fast Car by Tracy Chapman, Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield, and Black Star by Radiohead,โ€ she tells me. โ€œI first started performing in May 2024, and since then I have performed at CorFest 2025, Swinterfest, and have supported Irish folk musicians in Salisbury including The Henry Girls, Daoirรญ Farrell, and Tim Eady and Mike McGoldrick. I am inspired by a mix of artists/musicians and genres such as folk, indie, pop, indie rock, and jazz.โ€

Both of a similar age, M3G and Seren have worked together before, supporting each other, and after performing solo, promise to duet in a rare finale session. I canโ€™t wait, I advised MantonFest to book Meg a couple of years ago, but I believe this will be both their Devizes debuts. I hope you can join me in bringing these two sublime performers to town and really give them the warmest of Devizes welcomes, on the 24th April; put it in your diaries now!!

Facebook event thingy, here, let us know you’re coming. If you are coming, I promise not to sing myself. Oh, and give the Facebook page a follow too, for updates there.

Only The Brave Burn The Midnight Oil

Hurrah, at last! Only The Brave is the debut song from Burn The Midnight Oilโ€™s revised lineup; something Iโ€™ve been anticipating since watching them rehearse at Devizesโ€™ HK Studios, just before last yearโ€™s Awards. But if my expectations of a recording from this new Devizes based phenomenon was perched on the summit of the highest mountain, gaining a sneaky preview before its release on Friday (13th March) far from disappointed, in fact Iโ€™m now soaring above cloudsโ€ฆ.

I know pressing a CD is a financial risk for any upcoming band against bunging it on streaming platforms, but Iโ€™d urge them to go for it. In the relatively short time Burn The Midnight Oil have been gigging under this current format, theyโ€™ve become the kind of band youโ€™d see live and make haste for their merch stand in hope to return home grasping a piece of what you just experienced. Based on this first of a few singles coming out of Martin Spencerโ€™s Badger Set Studio in Potterne, a compilation album would be a real keepsake.

Itโ€™s hasty and gearing, a rich and refreshing design on a timeless formula; the folk-rock-blues combo conveying enduring, moreish and matured pop, with that driving beat, with that irresistible rolling guitar riff, and with the smooth-as-velvet female vocals soothing a biting narrative. Causal listening itโ€™s feelgood, but in depth itโ€™s fighting against the odds and rising above adversities.

Itโ€™s the song for the comeback scene of an epic movie. Youโ€™re on the edge of your seat, identifying with the character, either relating your own experiences, or more simply distinguishing their plight is their drive, but you cannot sympathise, because like Tina Turner, Gloria Gaynor, or Natasha Bedingfield, sheโ€™s weaponised it, risen above it regardless, and taken control of her own destiny; Alanis Morissette of Devizes.

Yet the most marvellous thing about Only the Brave is, Chrissy โ€œSteenโ€ Chapman can equally hold the vocal power of any of the aforementioned female big hitters, kick the meaning behind the song into touch, and her backing band accompanies her with such tight precision, itโ€™s something to behold. In essence, it has the perfect combination for the memorable and relevant tune you wonโ€™t mind having stuck in your head!

I cannot wait to hear the others, but for now, pre-save this beauty HERE. Find them rootin and tootin their thing live by following them on Facebook, HERE.ย Attend CapFest as seen below, for their next Devizes show.

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The Return of The Fold Music Venue in Devizes

If your average Tuesday night in Devizes might feel like The Day The Earth Stood Still, it certainly felt this way for me yesterday; I was at an open mic, down The Foldโ€ฆ..

Yeah, you read that right, the back room of The Lamb which launched Kieranโ€™s Sheer Music a decade or so ago, a Devizes to Trow-Vegas success story many hold fond memories of. Since then it seems itโ€™s been rather dormant up there, so Iโ€™m sure it will come as a delight to many to hear this once popular, intimate space is reopening, because this open mic night is only the beginning.

The open mic will continue, each first Tuesday of the month, and the weekends hopes to see regular affordable ticketed gigs. Iโ€™ve got to stop saying โ€œTuesdayโ€ now, because in my mind Iโ€™m voicing it as Miranda, probably because Iโ€™m a smidgen over-excited to bring you this fantastic news!

The project has been masterminded by Sally at the Lamb, who has renovated the Fold, and Josh Oldfield, who will be running nights there. Furthermore, on occasions when Josh is gigging elsewhere, Devizine is allowed to use it, and in a joint venture, we hope to bring some great gigs to town.

The legend that is Gaz Brookfield returns to The Fold in a blaze of glory on the 5th June, with our faithful JP in support. But the Fold opens earlier; officially on Friday 27th March, when piano-driven pop-rock trio, Bluebeard and the Desperate Hours headline with JP again in support. This one is free, save a tip jar for the acts.

Devizineโ€™s first night hosting there will be Friday 24th April.

Iโ€™m sorting it out now, do not fear! My concept is to bring in some exciting new and original acts to Devizes, or at the very least ones who have rarely played here, despite me bashing on about them within the pages of Devizine! Starting with an acoustic folk night; save the date, for we have two of Chippenhamโ€™s finest young singer-songwriters, Meg and Seren promising to play for us on the 24th April.

Meg, Image by Kiesha

Details on this and other gigs at the Fold will follow. For now letโ€™s just say last night was a great start to reinventing the venue. A humble and hospitable evening, as most open mics are; shame I rarely get to attend any because they usually occur on weekday evenings.  

With performers at opposite sides of the timeline, a promising acoustic guitar sporting Billy went first, followed by Ronnie unplugged with an electric. Eyebrows were raised further when young bassist, Meadow, backed Ed Dowdeswell, stepson of Jamie R Hawkins, who, though containing elements of brilliant songwriting and riffs clearly rubbed off from Jamie, is carving a name for himself independently, and quite rightly so.

A smidgen more mature musicians, Jim and Ray, blessed us with some folk-blues covers. And between them and our wonderful Sammi Evans, Sammiโ€™s son Kristian also sang quite wonderfully for the very first time; the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Sammi is always a delight to see live, but her set ended abruptly due to guitar string snap, and golden axeman Brian took his place and pumped some gorgeous blues covers our way; Big Mamma Thornton, though, nicely placed sir!

Young Amelia may have been penultimate on the roster, but was the ultimate voice, and known throughout the free world of Devizes, Gordy and Tim polished this fantastic inaugural reopening of The Fold off expertly. I left feeling this will be something very special added to our busy live music circuit here in Devizes, and I hope to see you there soon!

Grand opening with Bluebeard and the Desperate Hours and JP Oldfield will be free on 27th March. The next open mic is due April 2nd. We take over with Meg and Seren on 24th April, Gaz arrives on 5th June, and thereโ€™s more to follow; exciting news!ย Open mics are just nice, aren’t they?!

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Dulcet Tones Rock Back to Bassett!

You’re a teenage Tom Cruise, at least you wish you were, but stay with me on this! Your parents are away, you’re home alone with dad’s liquor cabinet. For certain, you’re going to get into some risky business as the movie progresses, but your initial impulse is to dance around the house in a shirt and pants. I’ve no interest in seeing you in your pants, Tom, what makes the scene so iconic is surely the song choice. Because Bob Segar was bang on the money; experimentation in music is good, but the scene wouldn’t have the same impact if he was listening to Jean-Michel Jarre. Sometimes you do need some old time rock n rollโ€ฆ..

Now, imagine Bob never recorded that song; what song would you pick instead? Options, people, options aplenty, but here, take the 49 to Swindon and try Dulcet Tones for size. Since a single from last May, they’ve a debut EP, Back To Bassett; okay, itโ€™s got a few local references including, bizarrely, an Avebury-Chuck Berry link, but it’s old time rock n roll, at least โ€œrockโ€ if youโ€™re nitpicking, still, the kind of timeless music that soothes the soul.

A bit of delay in mentioning this, apologies to the band, frontman Andrew McLennan, lead guitarist Nick Osman, bassist Darryl Wilks and drummer Rob Cooper, but it makes for perfect air guitar practice from beginning to end! Embellished by wailing guitar riffs to make ZZ Top blush, driving drum rolls, and that archetypal hoarse vocal rebel yell, the opening tune, As I Am, doesnโ€™t wait for you to adjust your funky pants, but being the simple premise is taking them as they are or not at all, the choice is a no brainer; this absolutely rocks!

In essence itโ€™s โ€œgood olโ€™ boyโ€™s music,โ€ windows down summery driving rock, wind in your beard, and itโ€™s more fun than deeply meaningful. Hold On stomps with elements of Tom Petty, or maybe harder, think Aerosmith, Lynyrd Skynyrd, but has the on-the-road narrative to mirror what Iโ€™m trying to say, I hope! 

Three quid for four solid tunes means weโ€™re driving to the halfway house. Dream Home soothes the tempo, thereโ€™s notions of Guns & Roses at their most sentimental. Oh, this is cool; if dulcet tones implies sweet, melodious, and pleasing, this tune proves theyโ€™ve named themselves appropriately.

Title track comes last, does it need saying Back to Bassett has some local references? Not outright slating the town, nor as the concept extends to other local urban areas, like Swindonโ€™s Old Town, rather it suggests theyโ€™d prefer to chill out in a more rural and spiritual setting, an adventure citing our ancient stones and monuments. In subject itโ€™s obviously not going to work well with the Americana of the previous tunes, making this one sound more akin to British psychedelic rock, weighty and significantly Levellers.

Back to Bassett as a track was a pleasant surprise, and proves Dulcet Tones are no one trick pony. Back to Bassett as an EP is loudly and proudly moreish, using the tried and tested formula of classic rock subgenres, like the California sound of Buffalo Springfield or Crosby, Stills, & Nash, and heaps of rock and roll revival, yet with the finale, thereโ€™s adherents of neopagan rock.

Iโ€™ve seen their band name listed gigging about the circuit, Swindon Shuffle I think most, but now I need to grow some hair and make a beeline. You could, if you so wished, say I’m old-fashioned, say I’m over the hill. Iโ€™d rebuke it without too much botheration, because I keep myself eclectic through personal want and need in writing this blog, but thereโ€™s many occasions when I contemplate Bobโ€™s words and agree; today’s music ain’t got the same soul, and go for that old-time rock ‘n’ roll. When I do, now thankfully I have Dulcet Tones; you should too, you old rocker!

LinkTree HERE

Talk in Code Headlined Devizes Winter of Festive Ales

Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts key into the town’s majority demographic for its first annual event of the year, mature couples, with an affection for sampling the widest varieties of beers and ales. In this The Winter of Festive Ales may function parochially, but is not only extremely popular and is revitalising from the torpor of winter, it also raises vital funds for DOCA to stage more family-driven events freely throughout the coming yearโ€ฆ..

Cabaret and music acts usually perform, yet are secondary in importance to the sampling of the booze for the average amateur connoisseur attending; no issue there, because that’s the ethos of the event. In reviewing an event my top priority is awarded if it โ€˜does what it says on the tin.โ€™ The Winter of Festive Ales at the Corn Exchange received top marks in that department, we tried maple syrup and blueberry stouts, mango cider and plenty of other interesting and delicious fusions selected by Stealth Brewery, The Southgate and The Pour House, and Padfield Porkies pies are undeniably knockout.

With cabaret it can therefore be quirky and perhaps out on a limb, which I’d consider a deliberately lethargic roller-skater, a ragamuffin Basil Brush styled wolf, and a chequered suit bloke putting four ping-pong balls in his mouth is; the drink influences greater belly laughs. But for the music, one might opt for the demographic’s preferred genres, of blues or roots driven prog rock.

Being honest the fact Talk in Code headlined this year surprised but delighted me, with their original eighties-nineties indie-pop fusion, but I didn’t need ponder if this was the best choice, because, yet again, Talk in Code proved they fit into any box, without even having to change their set to suit. They more simply, do what they do, and it’s infectious to all.

Said this before, where Talk in Code can charm a food festival, fete, or anywhere from a Pride festival to a bike meet. They come up trumps at FullTone, supporting an eighties tribute like The Pet Shop Boys Actually, and equally thrill at grassroots venues such as Bradford-on-Avon’s Three Horseshoes. Though I might advise it is best to see Talk in Code in Swindon where their fanbase is largest and the vibes alight most, for every random event across the nation they display their sublime sound,  and forthcoming personas at, the positivity in their style rubs off, building to a phenomenon, known only too well by their adoring fanbase, the Talkers.

You can find the Talkers at any Talk in Code gig, they reside at the front attired in merch, encouraging other punters to dance. Else, afterwards they’ll chat with band members like family. Unlike a pop band who might hide in a green room, they mingle. Aside from the hive mind of their fans, though, there’s a dedicated corporate identity, a brand with clever marketing which supports the music. This completes the Talk in Code effect, displayed triumphantly, even here, at the Winter of Festive Ales in Devizes last night.

The event splits into two ticketed sessions, one quieter in the afternoon for the real ale connoisseurs to rap about body, fruitiness and alcohol content, the later evening session more lively and entertaining. Yep, Talk in Code will deliver this with bells on.

For the average punter whose kids have likely fled the nest, the early start time of the evening session might suit as more ale can, and will be consumed. For us with teenagers in need of picking up from Saturday jobs, feeding and watering, it unfortunately meant we missed The Wholesome Soul Duo and some cabaret. And I was looking forward to this soul duo, who often take the early Sunday gig at The Southgate, having yet to cross them off my must-see list. I know a raffle must come towards the end, but if I remain slightlyย dubious about the arrangement of acts, thinking Talk in Code could’ve finalised the evening, rather than winding it down too early, and The Wholesome Soul Duo be pushed to a later slot than 6pm, that’s only due to personal commitments. Itโ€™s a quality, well-organised and enjoyable event with plenty of time for quantities of alcohol consumption, which confirms Devizes is a town of culture; drinking culture at least! Whatever the outcome of an award, residents here know it is.

And this is the just opening, the beginning of a year of seasonal events across the town, either blossoming or established, many of which, with a sprinkling of dedicated volunteers, DOCA will stage, host and gift to, not only the population, but attracting visitors from afar. For this alone, we love and thank everyone who comes together to make DOCA a thing. The Winter of Festive Ales is vital to the funding of it, and remains to be a fantastic, Devizes fashioned occasion worthy of your hard-earned cash.

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Wiltshire Music Awards 2026 Announces New Organisers and Major Event Upgrade

The Wiltshire Music Awards 2026 entered an exciting new era when Stone Circle Music Events announced was as official sponsor and organiser. Backed by their Galway, Ireland office, the company continues to grow as a major force in event production in the South West of England.…

Joining them are theย  Kingston Group, bringing extensive industry experience within Wiltshire. Together the partnership will build on the success of 2025, and deliver an enhanced awards experience.

This yearโ€™s Wiltshire Music Award ceremony will feature upgraded audio-visual production, large screens, professional camera coverage, an experienced compรจre, and a headline star appearance. A new county-wide marketing campaign will ensure the entire region is engaged.

Committed to rotating locations, The Wiltshire Music Awards 2026 ceremony will be held at White Horse View Events Centre, beneath the iconic Westbury White Horse, hosting up to 400 guests seated at tables.

Nominations open on the 1st May, and close 1st June 2026, with the Awards Ceremony due to take place on Saturday 26th September 2026.

Seeking Volunteers

The Wiltshire Music Awards are seeking volunteers, and invite anyone who cares about local artists, live venues, grassroots music, and giving people a platform to shine, to contact them. Together we wish to deliver the countyโ€™s biggest celebration of live music and grassroots talent.

We would truly love to hear from you, whether you have experience in event planning or simply a passion and some time to give, your contribution could help make 2026 our most inclusive and inspiring year yet.

Please get in touch at: hello@wiltshiremusicevents.uk

Perform at the Wiltshire Music Awards Evening

We are now inviting talented artists from across Wiltshire to take the stage at our upcoming Awards Evening. This is a fantastic opportunity to showcase your music, celebrate the local scene, and perform in front of an engaged live audience.

If you perform anywhere in the county of Wiltshire and would like to be part of this special night, weโ€™d love to hear from you.

To express your interest, please email: patrick@stonecirclemusicevents.uk

Live Music in Trowbridge; Still Pumping! The Sunnies, Between The Lines and Meg at The Pump

Images from KieshaFilms

I confess my motivation to venture out this winter stagnated, like sludge in a drain. Akin to a hedgehog, I poked my twitching rhinarium out of my nest last Sunday, a mere pint down the Gate with Jon Amor. But what better way to cure my hibernation than a refreshing night at Trowbridgeโ€™s tโ€™rrific grassroots venue, The Pump?

Chatting with Kieran online prior I hoped Melkshamโ€™s upcoming band Between The Lines were on his radar, cos theyโ€™re blooming amazing, to which he replied coincidently they were playing there on Saturday with The Sunnies headlining and Meg also in support. How I missed listing this gig, being I run an event guide, remains a mystery, but it didnโ€™t mean I should miss it physically; viva Trow Vegas!ย 

Okay, itโ€™s labelled a โ€œstudent night,โ€ organised by small Trowbridge label Nova Sounds Records; Iโ€™m young at heart and Gen Z donโ€™t age discriminate. Theyโ€™re there to party, support local acts they adore, none too fussed if a codger hides in the background. Bands invigoratingly fresh and hopeful, supplying a new scene with zest, but also a timeless punk lore of affordable and friendly gigs, which makes The Pump function successfully, bucking a tragic proneness era of grassroots venue closures.ย ย 

Nick Harper comes to The Pump this Friday, Jah Wobble did a DJ set at the beginning of the month. These events are bound to sell well. What is more amazing is The Pump will sell out staging three young local acts, and their ethos trends on this. While other music venues strive to host the big names of now and yesteryear, The Pump stages the future ones, with triumphant pride. Itโ€™s the most modest and humble place where dreams come true.  

All three acts have presented their wares here before, and been subjects to Kieranโ€™s Future Sound of Trowbridge project. Now they return in the present tense. I noticed in both Meg and Between The Lines, a vitalised sense of confidence in their breathtaking performances. One could rightfully mark this โ€œpractice makes perfect.โ€ However, after congratulating them, I pondered if playing at The Pump, rather than the other places I last saw them, was also an element making them feel at ease. Describing The Pump like a sacred home, they unanimously agreed it did, and ultimately, how utterly fantastic is that in a largely rural area where most venues are pubs they cannot either play or invite their fanbase?!

Images from KieshaFilms

As for The Sunnies headlining, I whisked into the end of their set at Bradford Roots Festival some years ago, but have never had the pleasure of witnessing them at full steam. And they were too, totally on fire. If youโ€™re Devizes based itโ€™s best to dub them Melkhamโ€™s answer to Nothing Rhymes With Orange, as both formed as school bands based around a similar time, and both caused a phenomenon in their respective towns. If youโ€™re Melksham based, youโ€™ll know, The Sunnies have a loyal teen fanbase, and frontman Jarret Brown loves nothing more than to leap offstage and join them! Youโ€™ll also be aware just why they rouse a crowd into a frenzy of joy.

They came out all guns firing, all fiery indie-punk pride, flavoured agreeably with soulful basslines breathing universally acceptable pop vibes. Yet initially it was when they chilled it with ballads of youthful desires I began to consider they were at their best. This is the opposite to the usual indie-punk band, which tends to thrive on the uptempo. Though I had to consider they like to warm up, because the finale saw them turning up the heat once more, sparks flew and encore demanded.

They played their breakthrough song of three years ago, Veridity, with equal gusto as some new tunes, which, returning to my point about these bands feeling comfy here with their fanbase, they pleaded for feedback and were welcomed rapturously. 

Images from KieshaFilms

It helps everyone greatly to be comfy, ergo, if you want to see these young bands at their best, here is where to do it. Between the Lines was the perfect example; loved their set at Swindon Shuffle, if they came across understandably nervy. Slightly younger than the Sunnies they live in their shadow across Melksham, but elusive manly dominance is filtered by the most wonderful female singer and bassist, Belle. Itโ€™s breezier, subtle grunge with an acceptable alt-rock tinge, progressing nicely, and a pleasure to hear, especially their originals. Man, they do a sublime version of Tears for Fearsโ€™ Mad World though, and in this and other covers project a timeless essence of classic rock in their performances.

And what a brilliant performance it was, tricky to rise after Chippenhamโ€™s soloist M3G, with her unique heavenly acoustic style, her songs so personal you can see the claw reaching out to clutch your heartstrings. We love M3G here at Devizine, and as she played through three new songs she has worked with Phil Cooper on, I became eager to review them. Again, she weaved the crowd with audience participation, something she mayโ€™ve shied away from previously.ย 

Images from KieshaFilms

It was a pleasure to see both these supporting acts honing their style and abilities, in such an apt and welcoming place,with the bonus of finally appreciating the might of the Sunnies. If they all cut their teeth at Neeldโ€™s Take the Stage, they thrive here at The Pump. And you need to be there to witness them.

Iโ€™m not easy to please, grumpy old sausage that I am, yet twas a great night, but this was just another day at the office for them there lovelies at The Pump! I didnโ€™t meet Simon from Sketchbook Records, which I had hoped to do. I was informed he had a blinder on Friday hosting an event there, and thereโ€™s the thing; from their acoustic nights relished in the Village Pump folk roots of yore, to the Bar-Stewards Sons of Val Doonican and the metal hardcore of Broken Lungs, Avicide and Dead Society next month, thereโ€™s something for you at The Pump, see here.ย 

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Steatopygous go Septic

If you believe AI, TikTok and the rest of it all suppress Gen Zโ€™s outlets to convey anger and rage, resulting in a generation ofโ€ฆ

Keep reading

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REVIEW โ€“ Wakeman & Son @ The Corn Exchange, Devizes โ€“ Saturday 21st February 2026

Yes! Wakemansโ€™ Journey To The Centre of Devizes!

by Andy Fawthrop

Rumours are swirling round that D-Town is about to launch a bid to be named the UK Town of Culture, and you have to think that we have to be in with a chance. Letโ€™s face it – any competition that doesnโ€™t use the state of the local roads as one of its yardsticks has to be worth entering….

And, as if by magic, up pops an event that, once again, proves that weโ€™re punching above our weight.ย  Weโ€™ve already highlighted here in Devizine some of the amazing stuff thatโ€™s coming up over the coming months that will put us in with a shout, but last night at the Corn Exchange just went to prove what we can do here in our little town if we put our mind to it.

Despite relatively little advertising of the event, over 400 people snapped up tickets to see the return of rock legend Rick Wakeman to the stage last night, in a one-off โ€œwarm-upโ€ gig for his forthcoming US tour, this time accompanied by son Oliver.ย  I guess it was a case of โ€œIf You Knew, You Knewโ€, and the event was a complete sell-out from weeks ago.ย  The room was so packed that the sound guys had to set up shop in the hallโ€™s kitchen area and to work their magic through the hatch.ย  It was a bit tight in there, but we were all friends, so that didnโ€™t matter one little bit.

The Wakemans are no strangers to this particular stage.ย  Rick appeared here a couple of years back with his outfit KGB (another cracking night that was), and his other son Adam has twice appeared with his band Jazz Sabbath (also highly recommended).ย  Looks like Longcroft Productions have got the inside track with the Wakeman family.

Rickman senior breezed onto the stage, belying his 76 years, and proceeded to wow the room with his first piece on the grand piano. He was shortly followed by elder son Oliver, and the two keyboard wizards then proceeded to deliver a two-hour plus show of absolutely stunning musicianship.  Moving easily between the five different keyboards on stage, the two men played a wide range of pieces including both relatively recent compositions, as well a goodly smattering of block-busters from the huge back catalogue.  And Rick told us that as a โ€œwarm-upโ€ it was chance for them to experiment a little.  โ€œYouโ€™re getting more here than the Americans are going to get.  You deserve it more than they do!โ€  Cue rapturous applause.

Image: Oliver Wakeman

It wasnโ€™t just the music though. Father and son are both born raconteurs, and interspersed the items on the set list with some wonderful anecdotes.  We had stories of rescue dogs, marriages and weddings, of the Wakeman parents, of encounters with unwilling pub landlords, and even of previous encounters with our local Moonrakers. Some of which might help explain why โ€œHow Much Is That Doggy In The Window?โ€ and โ€œSweet Georgia Brownโ€ made short, yet unsurprising appearances in the set-list.  There was a lovely running gag about the exact date of Oliverโ€™s birth, and how old he was at various times in the stories.  And it was great to see the obvious warmth and respect between the two men.

And of course there was plenty of time across the two hours (interrupted only by what Rick referred to as โ€œthe Bladder Breakโ€) to explore themes from their musical pasts.  Both men have featured at various times in the different line-ups of Prog superstars Yes, from the 1970s onwards.  So there was a mash-up arrangement named โ€œThe Yes Suiteโ€, followed by several of Rickโ€™s solo ventures – โ€œThe Six Wives of Henry VIIIโ€, โ€œMyths & Legends of King Arthurโ€, and the stunning โ€œJourney To The Centre Of The Earthโ€. We also journeyed round some older stuff from The Strawbs and David Bowieโ€™s โ€œLife On Marsโ€. 

Musically it was an absolute master-class.  To say that these guys know their way around a keyboard is to massively understate just how good they were.  As a nightโ€™s entertainment it was engrossing. Of course there was plenty of whooping and cheering, and a standing ovation.  And of course there was a two-hander encore.  Can I give it more than ten out of ten?  I would if I could.

And before the Wakemans finally disappear into the night, swirling cloaks and hair about their persons, just a word about the back-room boys.  You donโ€™t get fabulous nights out like this without an enormous amount of background work and logistics.  So hats off to Paul Chandler of Longcroft Productions for even daring to bring this one off show to D-Town. And hereโ€™s also to the piano suppliers, to the piano-tuner, to the sound and light guys, to Wadworth for sponsoring, to the Corn Exchange staff and to the small army of volunteers.  A true team effort to bring together a really amazingly good night. Bravo to all concerned.

Trending….

The Wurzels To Play At FullTone 2026!

If Devizesโ€™ celebrated FullTone Festival is to relocate to Whistley Roadโ€™s Park Farm for next summerโ€™s extravaganza, what better way to give it the rusticโ€ฆ

DOCAโ€™s Young Urban Digitals

In association with PF Events, Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts introduces a Young Urban Digitals course in video mapping and projection mapping for sixteen to twentyโ€ฆ

Jol Roseโ€™s Ragged Stories

Thereโ€™s albums Iโ€™ll go in blind and either be pleasantly surprised, or not. Then thereโ€™s ones which I know Iโ€™m going to love before theโ€ฆ

Vince Bell in the 21st Century!

Unlike Buck Rogers, who made it to the 25th century six hundred years early, Devizesโ€™ most modest acoustic virtuoso arrives at the 21st just shortโ€ฆ

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Big Ones: The Major Events in Devizes This Year

No one knows why, apparently, but fish are dying in our canal; everyone says wait for the EA report, except for the fish. A town full of road works, burnt out buildings and roads which look like weโ€™ve suffered a doodlebug air raid, but thereโ€™s glitch in the Matrix; itโ€™s temporarily stopped chucking it down with a perpetual drizzle of ice rain, and I saw a cold early-rising hedgehog this morning. When I see my first hedgehog I assume spring might yet be on its way; chin up.

The Government (should you wish to call it that) has launched the first ever UK Town of Culture competition, and Devizes Town Council thinks weโ€™re in for a chance here; best of luck with that! Town Councillors are looking to collaborate with local groups, organisations and individuals in putting together an Expression of Interest that showcases our amazing community spirit and the rich story we have to tell as a Town; thereโ€™s work to be done!

Councillors are holding an initial meeting on Thursday 26th February at 6pm in the Assembly Room at the Town Hall and it is open to everyone who is interested in collaborating on this project. A big yes to this, whatever we can do to help …..without having to attend a town council meeting, just ask!

Meanwhile, rather than fix their problems, other town councils, like Melksham’s, are making national news sellotaping pictures of the journalists they donโ€™t like very much onto punchballs for embarrassingly pathetic potshots, namely Joe McCann of Melksham News.  

We have a good relationship with Joe at Melksham News here at Devizine; the butt of a seriously pathetic joke at Melksham Town Council simply for doing his job has seriously backfired. Donโ€™t mess with the press, we stand united. Could this become a trend? I wonder who’s face might get onto a punchball at Devizes Town Council?!

Moi? I’d be honoured, mโ€™lord!!

No, look, honest guv, or .gov.uk, Iโ€™m here to help. I don’t want a medal, but think we can PROVE Devizes is actually a great place to live, and deserves to be a Town of Culture. There’s lots going on culturally. Iโ€™m only here to tell you what, donโ€™t give me the third degree simply for doing it in a satirical way, because it only serves a purpose; making this an entertaining read rather than a list of events, which you can find anyway, on our event calendar. Iโ€™m nice, no, really!

So, last week of February: DOCAโ€™s Festival of Winter Ales is at The Corn Exchange on Saturday 28th. Weโ€™ve previewed it, read further here and hope to see you there for a beer!

March

March is a bit dry, to be honest. Wiltshire Museum, though, begins the exhibit John Piper in the South Country which opens on Saturday 7th March and runs until the 7th June. I hope to be at the opening ceremony and will report my findings.

Sir Alan Ayckbournโ€™s How the Other Half Loves opens at The Wharf Theatre on Monday 16th March, running until the 21st. Thereโ€™s a comedy night at the Corn Exchange on Friday 20th, and Jimmy Royal & the Regals play Long Street Blues Club on the 21st, so things are starting to look up.

The first โ€œBig Oneโ€ in Devizes is at the end of March, when Kingston Media host The Bands By The Green, on the Saturday 28th. In support of Julianโ€™s House, they promise a family afternoon of live music from 1:30pm, featuring Charlie Greenwood, Kelly Dale, This Way Up, Simplicity, Crackerjack, and Foo Lizzy. Tickets HERE.

April

April kicks off creepy and kooky, mysterious, spooky, and all together ooky when Devizes Musical Theatreโ€™s Addams Family Musical comes to Dauntseyโ€™s.

Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race starts at the wharf on Friday 3rd, and someone was recently complaining this doesnโ€™t attract much attention, so weโ€™re mentioning it here, donโ€™t blame me!!

By the 5th itโ€™s Easter, find lots going on from our updating events calendar, but behold, an Easter Egg Hunt at Hillworth Park.

Friday 10th sees Devizes Music Academy present Sister Act at The Corn Exchange, which runs until the 12th.

Tuesday night out, anyone? Long Street Blues Club were instrumental in helping establish King King in their early days and this superb band is now firmly established as one of the premier Blues Rock acts in the country. They return to the Devizes Corn Exchange on Tuesday 21st.

May

The annual Cancer Research Car Boot Sale at Stert Country House starts off May, on Saturday 16th, unless thereโ€™s anything Iโ€™ve missed? The event calendar updates, this will not, so please, bookmark it into your favourites and check in regularly, because the further we get into the year, the less events we currently know about. This is a teaser of whatโ€™s to come, do not, I repeat, do not, get your summer dresses and sun hats on just yet!

Saturday 23rd sees two new DOCA events, Out & About, where they look at acts in the Community, and the DOCA Festival of Discovery. More to follow on these, but save the date.

Friday 29th sees The Wharf Acting Coโ€™s Whoโ€™s Play is it Anyway, the show theyโ€™re taking to the Edinburgh Fringe; this is an exclusive sneaky peak. More on this HERE, plus Lou Coxโ€™s Having a Baby and the Sh!t They Donโ€™t Tell You in Books, also appearing at the Edinburgh Fringe, of which you can also catch at the Wharf Theatre on Saturday 30th.  

The Devizes Arts Festival kicks off the same weekend, and it is Rowdefest on Saturday 30th; we had a great time with this last year, and this year looks to be just as great if not more. Barrelhouse headline, with the sublime Ruby Darbyshire; handpicked by me personally!

June

Devizes Arts Festival, runs until June 14th; hereโ€™s everything we know so far, well nearly everything; thereโ€™s a surprise Iโ€™ve been told to button my lip about. They trust me too much! Monday 1st June Anthony Horowitz: A Life in Murder, Tuesday 2nd, Patrick Grant in Conversation, Thursday 4th, Hot Mess, and Friday 5th sees the Robert Vincent Band, and Milton Jones on Friday 12th June; thatโ€™s all we have for now, watch this space.

John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett at Long Street Blues Club on Monday 8th. 

Saturday June 13th sees the Wiltshire Steam & Vintage Rally returning to Park Farm near Devizes. Sunday 14th is the Devizes Lions family funday and car show, Lions on The Green.

July

Ooh, got a big one here for you! July kicks off Saturday 4th with the awaited return of CrownFest at The Crown in Bishopโ€™s Cannings, and this one looks unmissable, with more artists being added all the time. The current poster weโ€™ve got needs updating, I believe Ruby is coming and a host of others. Iโ€™m looking forward to Ant Trouble, because I picked this one, Stand and Deliver, your ticket money or your life!!

But the month is jam-packed; Town of Culture, box ticked! Saturday 11th and it is the most unique festival around these parts; FullTone. If a sixty piece orchestra playing out of their new location on Park Farm doesnโ€™t quite tempt you enough, The Wurzels and Jason Donovan might! Preview HERE; gorgeous, darling!

Friday 17th sees the Classic Ibiza thang at Bowood House. Saturday 18th and youโ€™ll find Devizes Vegan Market, aptly in the Market Place. Sunday 19th and abracadabra; DOCA will transform Hillworth Park into a Magic Garden.

But, hey, this one is going to be big and needs your attention! Park Farm Festival returns for it’s second year on Saturday 18th. Lovely as this was last time, it needs you. More universal and family appeal than last year, Jon Amor Trio is playing, with well, look at the poster, look, and read our preview!

Friday 24th, and itโ€™s the legendary Devizes Scooter Rally – all weekend! A fantastic event, you donโ€™t need a scooter, but some dancing shoes are essential footwear. You will love All That Soulโ€™s sublime Motown makeovers, and thereโ€™s a Blondie tribute, a separate venue for those talc dusters and lots of good time reggae and ska.

August

As I said earlier, weโ€™ve lots more to add and lots more to find out about, so keep this frequency clear, and love Devizine. You can go to a meeting to etch out a plan to make Devizes a town of culture, but itโ€™s me here, on me tod, typing this out for your attention; donโ€™t you forget about us!

So, letโ€™s rush through what little we know about the later months; Saturday 29th August is Confetti Battle & Colour Rush. Monday 31st will, of course, be Black Rat Monday at The British Lion in which you are duty-bound to attend!

September

Saturday 5th is Devizes Carnival.

Devizes Food and Drink Festival is on from Saturday September 19th to Sunday Sept 27th.  The festival is run and managed locally, entirely by volunteers and will offer 20+ original food and drink experiences, kicking off with an Artisan Producer Market in the Market Place on the 19th and finishing with the World Food Tasting Experience on Sunday 27th in the Corn Exchange.

The rest of our event calendar is looking blank. Help me fill them in as we go, and hereโ€™s looking to a fantastic 2026, town of culture award, or not, we strive on, we know Devizes is great!

Help DOCA Raise Fundsโ€ฆ.by Drinking Booze! Winter of Festive Ales Returns

Now, you know when you see a fundraising advert and think, I’d like to raise some wonga for this or that cause, but further reading reveals you’re expected to take on an extreme mission like trekking the Great Wall on a unicycle made from coat hangers, or scaling Everest in just clogs and your wife’s undercrackers? Well, this one is a smidgen easier, and it’s something Devizions take great pride in accomplishingโ€ฆ..

Yes, the end of February is nigh, when Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts asks the good folk of Devizes to raise some needed funds, which they inevitably pump back into a system supplying said good folk with a year of free events such as carnival and the Winter Festival, so it’s for their own benefit. And all they need to do to help is drink fine ale and enjoy some quality entertainment. Throw down the gauntlet, why don’t you DOCA, and roll out the barrel, for this is a challenge I’m confident both you and I can really get behind!

This happens annually at The Corn Exchange, and this year’s is on Saturday 28th February. I’m told a fair amount of tickets are still up for grabs, so after reading this don’t vegetate playing Royal Match on your phone, put it to good use and buy yourself a pass to The Festival of Winter Ales. And here’s seven darn good (or at least reasonable) reasons why I think you should:

As usual the event is divided into two sessions, one of quieter reflection for the true ale connoisseur in the afternoon, and the evening more lively session, for the party people; how amicable and considerate.

Equifinal, though, is pies, and the extensive range of booze, from the dark ales experts of The Southgate and Stealth Brew Co, to IPAs, American pale ales, ciders, perry, and, if you donโ€™t mind handing your hard-earned cash to TVโ€™s tax-avoiding billionaire gammon, Clarkson, the Pour House brings Hawkstone Lager!

Also predetermined whatever session you rock up to, is a raffle, and Social Club Cabaret starring puppeteer and self-acclaimed all-round nutter Dik Downey, some aerialโ€fusion salsa with Amy G, and The Amazing Malcolm, who may or may not be the same amazing Malcolm who runs Stealth Brewery, but if it is, I want at least half of my money back; bless him!

Everyone’s favourites, and who certainly gets my seal of approval, Talk in Code are headlining the evening session, with their unique take on indie-pop originals, although I’m informed they recently took vow of beverage abstinence and said I could drink all their beer.

Those immortalised in Lego lads, Talk in Code are supported by The Wholesome Soul Trio, regulars at The Southgate, and though Iโ€™ve yet to tick them off my must-see list, Iโ€™ve heard nothing but good things about their classic playlist of soul and funk with improvised solos.

Even the afternoon session looks intriguing, as Iโ€™ve not heard of either act, but singer Amy Irvine is accompanied by local legend John E. Wright, so must be doing something Wright! And A Call from Tomorrow are a young indie covers duo from Wiltshire we wish the very best of luck.

And the last good reason is that physical tickets are available to purchase at Devizes Books; so you could treat yourself to a copy of my outrageous murder-mystery whodunnit-whocares novel while youโ€™re there!!

Devizes Sammi Evans in the Shadow of a Debut Single

Being a singer in a tribute or covers band is nerve-wracking. Though tributes can hide behind a mask, a cover band frontperson can be reassured only by the notion that friends are backing them; blame the drummer! But a soloist, singing their mind acoustically is in another ballpark. Stripped back, alone, exposing your innermost thoughts, desires or even personal issues to an audience takes some bottle. It’s a test of courage for the most egotistical, the mental equivalent of standing naked. Yet a majority of those who do, I find, are actually modest and reserved.

In an interview with Peggy-Sue Ford last year, Aberystwyth born now Devizes-based singer-songwriter, Sammi Evans, expressed both her excitement and terror at playing live on the show, opened up about her troubled childhood, ADHD, and being a self-certified โ€œscatter-brain,โ€ and in doing so created one of the most interesting and touching of Peggy’s Don’t Stop The Music shows on Swindon 105.5.ย 

The last time I met Sammi she was showing me the artwork of her upcoming debut single, explaining how the purple background and gothic font gave it a sense of corporate identity, as well, holding her phone with a subtle tremble, telling me how anxious she was about releasing it. That single, The Shadow, came out a couple of days ago, and thus, Sammi has traversed the local open mic nights, jams at the Southgate, and pub gig circuit, to a recording artist; that thought alone would goosebump the least nervous!

The song’s subject reflects this anxiety, it drags you into a dark closet, and hauntingly honest, questions the listener if they experience similar ghostly fears. Sammiโ€™s vocals are academia aesthetic, rich with a focused ethereal and melancholic soundscape. But it is through an impressive arrangement by Martin Spencer of Potterne’s Badger Set studio, which adds to the other-worldly ambience, with a tinkering piano breathing a touch of gothic horror film score, even subtle classical crossover about the otherwise poignant acoustic guitar marvel.ย 

Hey look, Iโ€™ve been to art college and know about light and shadow. If the shadow depicted in this song is metaphorically actualising foreboding as shadows and monsters lurking within them, the quality of the song contravenes its subject, upon its release. It might have felt that way in Sammiโ€™s mind at the time of writing it, but releasing it mightโ€™ve been that face your fear moment of diving off the top board into the pool. And now itโ€™s out there, perhaps more art for artโ€™s sake and prosperity than fame and fortune, she should consider it an exhilaration of accomplishment, because it’s really rather wonderful.

It should then act as the opposite to shadow. This debut single is a light source, beaming directly above Sammi Evans, which casts only a minimal shadow at her footprint, if at all, and, I hope, reduces any seeds of doubt that she can write thought-provoking lyrics and compose them into songs with illuminating results. I look forward to hearing more, Sammi! x

Listen to The Shadow HERE

Chandra Finds Heaven on Earth

Usually I just write what I think, but if I had a point-scoring system this new single from Bristol-based indie-pop outfit Chandra would tick every box. Itโ€™s called Heaven on Earth; if Belinda Carlise made it, Chandra rocked it!

Punchy, tick. Find that perfect hook, tick. Subtly righteous narrative, tick. Balance pithy narrative with equal amount of carefree fun, tick. Rock out, double-tick! Itโ€™s got the no worries in the face of adversity attitude of Three Little Birds, the youthful carefree tenet of Supergrassโ€™s Alright, the drive of Crash by The Primitives, and the punch of The Beastie Boys fighting for their right to party. Yet, itโ€™s august, styled, and definitively Chandra.

Weโ€™ve not heard from Chandra since 2024 when we fondly reviewed his debut EP Lifted, so itโ€™s great to feature him again, as thereโ€™s nothing to criticise about this cracking single, which means my work here is done! Itโ€™s raining outside, who cares, plug this blast of indie-punk-pop onto your playlist and cease your worrying!

Listen HERE

Fulltone โ€˜26 to Ignite Wiltshire with an Epic Weekend of Live Music

Now in its seventh year, and at its new and better venue, Park Farm on the edge of Devizes, itโ€™s full steam ahead for The Fulltone Festival โ€˜26. From the 11thโ€“12th July Fulltone is set to ignite Wiltshire with an epic weekend of live musicโ€ฆ..

Promising a โ€œspectacular, joy-filled weekend of live music which brings together orchestral power, iconic artists and a true summer festival atmosphere in the heart of the Wiltshire countryside,โ€ The Fulltone Festival is a uniquely magnificent show. Presented by The Fulltone Orchestra, the festival features a fifty-piece live orchestra, major guest performers, celebrated tribute acts and genre-spanning concerts, from cinematic classical masterpieces and symphonic rock to dance anthems, Motown classics and sing-along crowd favourites.

Designed as a family-friendly, inclusive festival, Fulltone โ€™26 offers free entry for children under 14, accessible ticket pricing, on-site camping and a relaxed, welcoming environment that encourages audiences of all ages to experience live music together. The event arena is packed full of great food and drink stalls, as well as allowing picnics. Thereโ€™sย parking on site and a shuttle bus taking people from the town to the event. Itโ€™s exceptionally well organised, with Event Director Tanya Earley at the helm of the eventโ€™s operations again.

Image: Gail Foster

The weekend begins for campers on Friday evening with a campsite DJ warming them up. Saturday and Sunday are packed with unmissable performances across the weekend. Audiences can enjoy an electrifying programme including orchestral performances of Holstโ€™s The Planets paired with the Star Wars Suite and Symphonic Queen, featuring Ricardo Afonso who is back by popular demand, as featured in The Voice.

The guests this year are particularly special. West Country legends The Wurzels gives Fulltone the key to their combine harvester, and Jemma virtually yelped down the phone at me at the thought international pop icon Jason Donovan headlining a huge Sunday night eighties spectacular finale; thereโ€™s going to be too many broken hearts in Devizes that weekend (okay, youโ€™ve got to be of a certain age to get that gag!)

Thereโ€™s also some ska madness with nutty boys tribute Mainly Madness, and Seriously Collins, celebrating the music of Phil Collins and Genesis. Special guests are expected with a Best of Motown show, and everybody will officially be free to feel good when Devizesโ€™ very own BBC Introducing DJ James Threlfall teams with nineties singer Rozalla, for some dance anthem floorfillers. Even the poster has more colourful zap and zest to it than ever before, and conveys Fulltone 26 will be one youโ€™ll never forget!  

Conductor and founder Anthony Brown said, โ€œFulltone is all about the thrill of live music and the magic that happens when people experience it together. For 2026, weโ€™re bringing an extraordinary mix of sounds and styles to Park Farm, from breathtaking orchestralย moments to songs people know and love. Our aim is simple: for everyone who comes to feel uplifted, connected and part of something special.โ€

Tickets are on sale now. Early Bird tickets are available until 28 February 2026. Weekend and day tickets are on sale now, with under-14s attending free when accompanied by a paying adult. Weekend passes offer the best value.

You can find full details and tickets here: www.fto.org.uk/events and theyโ€™re Especially for You; see what I did there?!

Stone Circle Music Events to Donate all Proceeds of CrownFest to Wiltshire Hope and Harmony

Stone Circle Music Events announced today that all proceeds of CrownFest will be donated to Wiltshire Hope & Harmonyโ€™s Dementia Choir. CrownFest is an all-day family festival, happening on 4th July 2026 at The Crown, Bishops Cannings, Devizes…..

Due to perform over two stages will be Kinishaโ€™s renowned Simply the Best Tina Turner Tribute, Adam & The Ants tribute Ant Trouble, Wiltshireโ€™s premier indie-pop favourites and winners of six Wiltshire Music Awards , Talk in Code, purveyors of Irish & Celtic folk The Publicans, Salisburyโ€™s rock cover band Innovator, rock covers band Tipsy Gypsies, George Wilding, Ruby Darbyshire, Mother Ukes, and Lucas Hardy, with more acts to be confirmed.

Stone Circle Music Events connects the timeless energy of live music with the rich landscapes of Wiltshire and Galway, and specialise in events which feel local, authentic, and unforgettable. There will be a selection of food, stalls, and camping is provided for an additional ยฃ15. Early bird tickets are already available for purchase.

Get your tickets HERE

Founder of Stone Circle Music Events, Patrick Oโ€™Sullivan said, โ€œwe are delighted to announce the proceeds of CrownFest will go towards Wiltshire Hope and Harmony. The charity won a special award at the Wiltshire Music Awards, and we continue to support them.โ€

Devizine is so happy to see the return of this marvellous local festival, but even more excited to see it grow through Stone Circle’s expertise, and this announcement is surely the icing on the cake. So many families are affected by dementia, Wiltshire Hope and Harmony is such a great and worthy cause.

Wiltshire Hope and Harmony is a community-focused organisation in Wiltshire which uses the power of music therapy to bring people together and improve wellbeing. Their work centres on inclusive, therapeutic music-based groups and activities designed to support individuals and families from various backgrounds.ย  Their passion and commitment drive their mission, to create a harmonious environment for All Together, and they inspire change and hope in our community.

Their Community Music Therapy Groups run free, therapeutic music sessions led by registered and trained music therapists, supported by volunteers. 

Tunes Chill and Chat sessions are stay-and-play groups aimed at families with babies or children who have special educational needs (SEN) or additional needs. 

The Dementia Choir & Cafรฉ is a weekly choir and social cafรฉ designed for people living with dementia, along with their carers, families, and support staff; helping participants connect and express themselves through song.

Founder member of Wiltshire Hope and Harmony, Lisa Williams was fortunate to discover firsthand the transformational power of music therapy whilst training for her Masterโ€™s Degree in Music Therapy in 2018. Lisa was privileged to train with the visionary team at the University of the West of England and their Aphasia Choir. Determined to form a local choir and cafรฉ, Lisa founded The Royal Wootton Bassett Dementia Choir & Cafรฉ after her graduation in 2020. ย 

The Covid pandemic slowed the project, but in 2023 the Royal Wootton Bassett Dementia Choir and Cafe was formed. The Choir has since worked with hundreds of people living with dementia and associated conditions, and currently meets weekly, either at their ‘home’ in St Bartholomewโ€™s Church hall, or else on ‘tour’ visiting local care homes, community venues and churches.

Wiltshire Hope and Harmony also supply support for other groups, tailoring them for people with various needs, including sensory impairments or English as an additional language. They offer volunteering and engagement opportunities, from musicians and singers, to support roles and trustees, helping expand their reach and impact in the community.

For additional information on Wiltshire Hope and Harmony

Early Bird Tickets go on Sale for Park Farm Music Festival in Devizes

If Devizes Scooter Rally has already established its base at Whistley Roadโ€™s Park Farm and Full-Tone are moving to these new pastures, last year the site saw a superb inaugural festival of its own making, Park Farm Music Festival, with the expert knowledge of the good folk who brought us Mantonfest. Itโ€™s happening again this year and looks set to be even better than last year; I kid you not! Early bird tickets went on sale today, and the lineup has been revealed; letโ€™s poke our noses in and pretend summer is on its way, shall we?!

Starter for ten, Mantonfest is a longstanding cherished gem on Marlborough’s event calendar, a family friendly festival which has stood the test of time, and folk return annually like itโ€™s a pilgrimage; you can rest assured youโ€™re in good hands. I hailed Mantonfest as โ€œthe friendliest festival youโ€™re ever likely to attend.โ€ย 

While Park Farm Music Festival may yet have to establish itself to the same level of excellence, last yearโ€™s first time was an absolute blinder, bringing a taste of Mantonfest to Devizes and leaving folk hanging on the hope this would become a regular extravaganza.

This year the stage is set again for Mantonfestโ€™s house band, the awesome groovy vintage blues boys, Barrelhouse, but in essence the organisers are keen not to present something completely Marlborough; weโ€™re in Devizes now, mucker, if weโ€™re going to have blues we NEED Jon Amor to come along too! And theyโ€™ve answered this call, The Jon Amor Trio need no introduction to Devizes; Iโ€™m glad to see their name on the lineup, Iโ€™m certain all of the town will be too.

Onto the headliners, yes, it is tribute act top heavy, which works a treat for Mantonfest. In this you should note, the organisers do not skip on quality when it comes to tributes, all are tried and tested. Iโ€™ve bore witness to most of them, and will bet my pet budgerigarโ€™s life that youโ€™re in for a wonderful day. Last year there was an emphasis on hard rock, with astounding AC/DC and Nirvana tributes, while this year looks to have more universal appeal. 

If Queen tributes are two to a penny, despite being a tricky act to replicate, and some Iโ€™ve seen were great, One Vision played Mantonfest two years ago, and, just, wow, Iโ€™ve never seen it done with such quality, attention to detail and finesse as this one. I could definitely call this the best Queen tribute Iโ€™ve seen, perhaps in my top five of all the tributes Iโ€™ve seen.

Inferno, an Abba tribute Iโ€™ve not seen before, but itโ€™s Abba, what could possibly go wrong? As I said, the organisers take no compromise when it comes to booking only the very best tributes, so, dancing queens, have no concern. The next two I have seen, Madness and Bad Manners tribute, Badness, and Slyde, as you might’ve guessed, a tribute to Slade, are both brilliant, for precisely similar reasons.

Slyde played a Christmas do at Marlborough College Memorial Hall, where support Barrelhouse were on fire, and Sylde polished off the evening with a plethora of, not only Slade hits but just about every seventies singalong pop hit I could imagine, with the sprinkling of glam only Noddy Holder couldโ€™ve brought to each classic. And it was Christmas, so he aptly called it, and yes, it was something to behold. If One Vision is on my top five, Slyde must also be.

Now, Badness, ironic name, thereโ€™s nothing bad about the performance, but only, perhaps in the way they will totally and utterly rule the audience with a spellbinding show of their own. They do not attempt to mimic Madness, like Slyde they offer a repertoire of classic hits from the era their homage was in their prime, only this time itโ€™s obviously Two-Tone ska and new wave, and you will be skanking. Furthermore, youโ€™ll be under no illusion Badness are attempting to precisely mimic Madness, they only pay homage to them, and are uniquely themselves, add their own spin to it, particularly with the most hilarious stage banter youโ€™re ever likely to witness.

Has that tempted you? Because Iโ€™m getting excited just typing this recommendation! Theyโ€™ll have a big outdoor stage, brilliant sound and lighting, plenty of room to dance, lots of trade stalls, a range of food and drink outlets and showers for those camping. Theyโ€™ll be running a FREE shuttle bus to and from the The Bear Hotel hourly, gazebos and picnics are welcome, so too are campervans, caravans, and tents.

Early bird tickets are up for grabs: Adults – ยฃ30. Youth (Age 13-17) – ยฃ20. Child (Age 7-12) – ยฃ10. Under 7’s – Free. Campervans/Caravans – ยฃ30. Camping – ยฃ20. Itโ€™s on Saturday 18th July. Book HERE.

Swindonโ€™s finest Chicago and Texas blues covers band Last Train Smokinโ€™ are also on the fantastic roster, along with rock covers band Strange Horizons. Is it summer yet?!

Trending….

CrownFest is Back!

Yay! You read it right. After a two year break, CrownFest is back at the Crown in Bishop’s Cannings. So put a big tickโ€ฆ

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2025 on Devizine; Review of the Year; Part 1, Jan-June

If past years seem to be racing by me on roller-skates, now theyโ€™re in Formula 1 cars! 2025, in a word, was โ€œaverage,โ€ though the Devizine annual stats fell for a second year, at 6% lower than 2024; you lot still here?!

Iโ€™m not concerned about that, you filthy traitors; youโ€™ve been digesting the clickbait of that Gazelle & Herod again, havenโ€™t you?!! Ah, truth is I have been staying home, hibernating a lot like a lightweight couch potato; probably an age thing, most likely a financial thing too; weโ€™ve got hyperinflation to make Robert Mugabe envious. But we keep a stiff upper lip as the world plummets into chaos, our little corner of it remains a pretty nice place to live (if a bit Tory,) where you can block pavements with hoarding or nick a cardboard sheep from a church and get away with it. None of which we are here to highlight, we focus on the best bits, and slag off the worst with a sprinkling of satire; if you donโ€™t like it, you know where to go!

Hits took a hit because I bit my tongue on many local political or social issues this year, to concentrate more on arts and entertainment, but folk love a good shit stir rather than being told about some talented locals doing good. Plus, Iโ€™m sick to the back teeth with any dependence on Facebook shares, itโ€™s become a toxic playground for so-called adults and AI bots pretending to be human to boost propaganda. I think Iโ€™m going to be one of those smiling insanely old men, content to feed the ducks in the park, rather than ranting at anyone younger than me within range, but Iโ€™ve the right to change my mind on this! 

They also took a hit because Iโ€™ve been actively engaged in two fantastic major events, RowdeFest and The Wiltshire Music Awards. The latter in particular used up much of my time, but hey, I think they were worth it. The Awards really brought together a wealth of people involved in the Wiltshire music scene, caused me to wear a suit, and we hope to build on this with future years.

The other contributing factor to the downfall of hits to the website might have been me writing a new book, something I rarely get the time for, but was certain I wanted it published by Christmas. I made that deadline and Murder at the Scribbling Horse is officially out; you read it yet? No, didn’t think so!

But lots more happened in 2025, and those we featured are briefed below; we couldโ€™ve done more but I think we put out a lot of content; you have to give me some time to play pointless block puzzle games on my phone. Thank you to all our contributors, Ian, Andy, Lois and the few guest writers who have submitted this year. We always need more writers to make this as comprehensive as possible; it is about as flexible as it can possibly be, you can be a fruitcake, we donโ€™t mind, so do get in touch if you can help.

Please continue to support us, we thank you all for your dedication to Devizine; hereโ€™s to 2026; try best to avoid the fascist division, millionaires triggered by being disallowed to rip wild animals to death, the US or Russian bombs heading our way, the complete disregard for funding environmental projects while they spend billions fighting for the last scraps of oil, any world leader kidnapping, painting roundabouts, and the usage of anti-terror laws to arrest pensioners peacefully campaigning against genocide.

Just follow us instead, enjoying a pint in a pub and listening to live music, played by real people, focus on youth projects rather than fables of hooliganism, focus on talented individuals doing good rather than bitter clickbait and national headlines, and be here, in the warm and truth, with Devizine; we tell it like it is, and donโ€™t purvey bullshit!              

January

Just as this year starts with a review of the last, so did 2025, but not before I took a visit to the Swindon Story Shed. Forestry England invited dog walkers to Nightingale Wood, apparently to celebrate Walk Your Dog Month; surely every month is walk your dog month?! The second feature film for director Keith Wilhelm Kopp and writer Laurence Guy, First Christmas entered development. We covered how My Dadโ€™s Bigger Than Your Dad Festival raised ยฃ11,500 for Prospect Hospice, and thereโ€™s moreโ€ฆ. 

Jamsters began at Devizes Southgate, an initiative to provide a Friday night platform for loose groupings and associations created at their regular jam sessions each Wednesday. We announced The Beat were to headline Devizes Scooter Rally, that Nick Hodgson formerly of the Kaiser Chiefsโ€™ new band, Everyone Says Hi had an instore at Marlboroughโ€™s Sound Knowledge, and we unfortunately said goodbye to the now disbanded People Like Us; sorely missed.

The original line up of People Like Us

We had new singles from Nothing Rhymes With Orange, a new album from Illingworth, and fuller sessions from Kaya Street. Andy reviewed the first Devizes International Blues Festival, Ian covered Jerusalem at the Mission Theatre, and Veronicaโ€™s Room at The Wharf Theatre.

We previewed OakFest at the Royal Oak in Pewsey, La Belle Hรฉlรจne, White Horse Operaโ€™s Debut at The Wharf Theatre, Devizes Musical Theatreโ€™s Beauty & The Beast, Henge at The Cheese & Grain, and Bradford-on-Avon Green Man Festival which unfortunately this year is in jeopardy, and we welcomed Caffe Vialottie to Devizes, our most popular article of the year.

Februaryย 

It may be topical now, but weโ€™ve always been supporting the hunting ban, and in February reported how Beaufort Hunters attacked Wiltshire Hunt Sabsโ€™ drone. We sadly confirmed Devizes Street Festival was cancelled for the second year in a row, and The Emporium in Devizes was to close, but Devizes would get a new youth centre.

Previews included, Marlborough School of Languagesโ€™ Summer Fiesta, Jazz Sabbath at the Corn Exchange. We announced The Brand New Heavies were to headline Minety, tickets for DOCAโ€™s Winter Ales were running out, and that I was to organise the music for Rowdefest in May, probably my favourite memory of 2025.

We featured Melkshamโ€™s teen band Between the Lines, reviewed JP Oldfieldโ€™s debut EP Bouffon, Jamie Hawkinsโ€™ short film Teeth, and new singles from I See Orange and Sam Bishop. Swinterfest broke me out of my hibernation, and I also got out to see the fantastic Static Moves at the Three Crowns, plus Cephidโ€™s Sparks in the Darkness at The Rondo, which was mindblowing!

March

We announced that Devizes auctioneers Henry Aldridge & Son were relocating to the Old Emporium, Soupchick was to take over The Hillworth Park Cafe, that after the fire in Northgate Street Devizes Kebab Van successfully relocated to Folly  Road, that Devizes was to have a new festival, Park Farm Festival, and of course the very first Wiltshire Music Awards.

We featured the Belladonna Treatment, had a wonderful local reflection on the Trump & Zelenskiy meeting from a Ukrainian living in Wiltshire, and it was one of my all-time favourite interviews with eighties legend Owen Paul ahead of a Devizes gig.

We reviewed The Killer & The Catalyst, Devizes author Dave McKennaโ€™s novelette, Geckoโ€™s new album, and singles by Chloe Hepburn and George Wilding. 

Previewed Devizes Arts Festival, Exchange Comedy in Devizes, Swindon Palestine Solidarityโ€™s Charity Iftar, CUDSโ€™ Devizes Town Litter Pick for GB Spring Clean, and Hells Bells AC/DC tribute coming to Devizes! We listed the results of Salisbury Music Awards.

I managed to make it out to see The Devilโ€™s Doorbell and JP Oldfield at the Cellar Bar, Ruby Darbyshire at the Southgate, and Cracked Machine with Tom Harris in support, too. Ian gave us Blood Brothers at The Mission Theatre and Flatpack at The Rondo, and Pip Aldridge reviewed our Fulltone Orchestra at Tewkesbury Abbey.

I ranted on the state of the roads, and for fun ran a Take Our Wiltshire Pothole or Moon Crater Quiz Challenge!!

April

Ah, All Fools Day, a golden opportunity for us, in which last year we told the fib that funk godfather George Clinton was exiled to the Wiltshire village of Urchfont, created funk music there and it was covered up by their parish council! You might assume it was hardly viable, but some fell for it, and messaged in their outraged reports of โ€œfake news!โ€ 

We looked into DOCAโ€™s new youth initiative Yea Devizes, and while we published our usual extensive list of Easter holiday activities, we also previewed DOCAโ€™s Junk Street drumming workshop.

I visited The Hillworth Park Cafe, where Soupchick took over, hailed Devizes DJ Greg Spencer, the creator of Palooza house nights, who made the prestigious bill of Fatboy Slimโ€™s All Back to Minehead festival, and reviewed the now sadly defunct No Alarms No Devizes playing at the Three Crowns. Discovered Fran Daisy at Swindonโ€™s Plough, and Henge at the Cheese & Grain was a high contender for my gig of the year; out of this world!

We had a guest review from Melissa Loveday on Devizes Music Academyโ€™s Something About Jamie, which though Iโ€™m sorry to have missed, I did catch them playing it out at FullTone Festival in the summer. I did attend Devizes Musical Theatreโ€™s Beauty & the Beast at Dauntseyโ€™s School and the opening of Un/Common People, Folk Culture in Wessex, a fascinating exhibition at Wiltshire Museum.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

Reviewed Hannah Rose Plattโ€™s album Fragile Creatures, probably the best album we covered last year. The website for Wiltshire Music Awards went live and people held on to cast their votes in May. 

We exposed Reform candidate Calne Violette Simpson for her Facebook profile picture showing her hunting antelope in South Africa, and Devizes South Conservative candidate Sarah Batchelor, who committed election fraud, up and left with her tail between her legs and almost running Bishops Canningโ€™s Crown into the ground. Thankfully it seems the new owners are turning it around and recreating the village hub it once was. 

May

I was honoured and delighted to organise the music for our village fete, which has in the last few years been run by a lovely independent committee, safe from a questionable parish council. It was a wonderful sunny day and the highlight of my year. I called in some favours and presented an amazing lineup for a free fete, featuring, in order of appearance, The Jubilee Morris Dancers, Andrew Hurst who brought bassist Lucianne Worthy with him, Talk in Code, The Sarah C Ryan Band, Thieves, and Burn The Midnight Oil. Being it was the last day of the month, I didnโ€™t write about it until June.

I paid a Sunday afternoon visit to Devizes amazing record shop Vinyl Realm, when Deadlight Dance were attacked by wasps and still managed an amazing unplugged acoustic set. Ben Niamor reviewed Jake Martin at Swindonโ€™s Castle with SOP, and Ian gave us his views on Sweeney Todd at St. Augustineโ€™s Catholic College in Trowbridge, and the Diary of Anne Frank at The Wharf Theatre in Devizes, which was so good I had to go myself. Lois covered newcomers Kingston Mediaโ€™s Bands at the Bridge in Horton.

I previewed the Bradford-on-Avon Live Music Festival, despite it clashing with our Rowdefest! Also, Ruby Darbyshire who performed at Silverwood Schoolโ€™s open evening. Andy provided a preview of Chippenham Folk Festival, and Lois provided us with previews of Australian Folk singer Ernest Aines at Swindonโ€™s Deanery Theatre and David Olusoga at the Cheese & Grain.

Announced the opening of voting for Wiltshire Music Awards, that Devizes-based The Big Sound Choir was to perform with Aled Jones at St Georgeโ€™s in Bristol, and that Bird is The Word were taking over music organisation at Bradford-on-Avonโ€™s Boathouse.

We featured how Lucas Hardy was collaborating with Rosie Jay, and Fromeโ€™s James Hollingsworth, who was bringing his solo recreation of Pink Floydโ€™s Wish You Were Here album to the Devizes Southgate and elsewhere, and reviewed his album with Griffiths, Lost in the Winds of Time.   

I reviewed Clock Radioโ€™s album Turfing out the Maniacs, Ruzz Guitarโ€™s Between Two Worlds album, Playing Solitaire; Phil Cooperโ€™s first solo album for five years, Thievesโ€™ debut EP, a new single from George Wilding, and one from Auralcandy featuring vocals from Sienna Wileman. A feature of a Melksham marketing expert launching AI training courses was met with controversy, yeah, I get that!

June

If we were all busy with the Devizes Arts Festival, we were previwing summer events like a new festival for Devizes, Park Farm, clashing with an amazing day at the Three Crowns for an air ambulance fundraiser, and I finalyy got over my hangover and ego, and gave coverage of Rowdefest; highlight of my year!ย 

Andy reviewed White Horse Operaโ€™s Cosi Fan Tutte and The Lost Trades at the Piggybank, Ian did The Mikado at the Mission, The Taming of the Shrew at the Rondo, and of course we all did our bit for the Devizes Arts Festival. Andy also covered an extensive weekend when The Lions were on the Green in Devizes, we had Crammer Watch Day too, and Devizes Arts Festival did a fringe gig at the British Lion; summer lovinโ€™. The highlight of this had to be Whereโ€™s the Cat, the Wharf Theatreโ€™s writing groupโ€™s hilarious reenactment of the Moonrakers fable at the Crammer, which I felt obliged to cover too. 

Eddie and I were guests on Peggy-Sueโ€™s Donโ€™t Stop the Music show on Swindon 105.5, chatting about the awards. We met Henry the chocolate duck raising funds for cystic fibrosis at HollyChocs, previewed Supergrass headlining Frome Festival, a genderqueered Shakespearean performance at Bathโ€™s Rondo, and Swindon Palestine Solidarity events. Lois did Idles at Bristolโ€™s Block Party. 

I reviewed The Hotcakes of Wildfireโ€™s album Shoes & Acid, ranted on vocal minorities triggered by events of cultural diversity, and did a No Surprises column promising to return the feature, but promises are made to be broken! Thereโ€™s simply too much to whinge about, and for my health, I need to see the glass half-full.

Bands at The Bridge

Thatโ€™s all for now, folks. Do not fear, itโ€™s still summer in our minds, and weโ€™ll kick off in July for the second part. I know, our goldfish attention spans cannot take in a whole year in one article, what with so much brilliant stuff which happened over the year, so come back when Iโ€™ve officially emptied the Quality Street tin and completed the last half of this review of 2025; but I must say, I think the first half was better!!

Awesome! Talk in Code Immortalised as Lego Minifigures!


Ah, let’s talk about Talk in Code one more time this year, because we’re secret Talkers here, and everything has been awesome this year for them, but now they’re being immortalised as Lego minifigures!

Surely, the piece of resistance of local merch, it doesn’t get better than this! Lego minifigures have become something of a collectors item over the years, and the finest local indie popsters have a Lego inspired fan reward scheme they’re calling TICBRIX; genuine awesomeness!

Now open, all you’ve got to do is attend their gigs, which is a pleasure in itself, collect stamps on a loyalty card, and collect the band figures. Pick up the cards at the merch desk at any show, get it stamped, and after every two Talk in Code shows, you can claim your FREE minifigure and badge from the merch desk.

With four members in the band, it’s going to take you eight shows to complete your collection, but thatโ€™s not all. At the halfway point, youโ€™ll be eligible for a bespoke, Lego stage set for them to all play on, complete with a bass guitar, extra guitar, drumsticks and even a Sneddsโ€™ luxury beard upgrade!

Personally, I feel inclined to hotfoot it up the loft to find my bricks and build a spaceship for them to gig on because they’re out of this world! Spaceship!!!!

Some early 2026 performances from the guys include 17th Jan at The Kings Arms in Amesbury and also at Devizes Winter of Festive Ales at The Corn Exchange on 28th February. On the 28th of March, there’s a Talkers Show by personal invite only at The Hop in Swindon. Join the Talkers WhatsApp group to get in on that and be in the know of other gigs by texting โ€˜add meโ€™ with your first name to 07725 138077. All welcome unless you’re from the planet Duplo!

Rooks; New Single From M3G

Chippenham folk singer-songwriter, M3G (because she likes a backward โ€œEโ€) has a new single out tomorrow, Friday 19th December. Put your jingly bell cheesy tunes on hold for a moment, because this is a beautiful, epic journeyโ€ฆ.

M3Gโ€™s seventh release, Rooks, poignantly pulls on the heartstrings when presented by the rise and fall of a romance, rooks often being a slang for cheating someone. It runs into six minutes, and reflecting the heartbreak of the subject, the song rises and falls accordingly. It creates a spellbinding ambience of both hope and worry equally, and is of magical vocal and acoustic guitar composition, with a gentle cajon drum subtly placed.

Inspired by the likes of Florence Welch and AURORA, Meg was open about her autism in our interview from 2023, and claimed it as the backbone to her creativity. In this, what she creates is completely original, unique, and unequivocally personal. Meg doesnโ€™t just sing, she projects her innermost thoughts and expresses them, angelically. In Rooks, you can literally feel the characterโ€™s heart breaking, causing yours to inevitably go with it.

The hyphen in the term singer-songwriter has never been so apt with another. Sure, I hear lots of brilliant expressive singers and lots of songwriters who can pen a marvel, but no one merges them so seamlessly and forgoes any fear theyโ€™re exposing too much of their innermost thoughts, dreams or desires. You only need to venture ten seconds into Rooks to observe what I mean, and if Meg constantly strives for improvement, causing me to say this is her best song yet each time, here we go again; this is awe-inspiring, her magnum opus to date.

Recorded and mixed by Phil Cooper, his genius registers on it, yet still, itโ€™s Just M3G; layering her backing chants over her main vocals like choral had a singular tense, and who even designed the cover. She says working with Phil is โ€œa massive step above my other releases. I am so proud of it.โ€ It is on a next level, Iโ€™m uncertain what she could do to top it, but assured she will, and Iโ€™m certain Rooks will appease her fans and make her find new ones.

Rooks streams tomorrow, 19th December 2025.

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Burning the Midday Oil at The Muck

Highest season of goodwill praises must go to Chrissy Chapman today, who raised over ยฃ500 (at the last count) for His Grace Childrenโ€™s Centre in Uganda, with a little help from talented friendsโ€ฆ.

Years back as soloist singer-songwriter One Trick Pony, Chrissy organised annual fundraising gigs at the Southgate around Christmas time, but now tuned up a notch with her incredible Americana band Burn the Midnight Oil behind her it was a high noon lock up and load for a Sunday afternoon hoedown at the Muck and Dunder rum bar in Devizes. The better half, Mrs Devizine, has been asking me to take her somewhere tropical, so given such an opportunity, we bused it to The Brittox.

With Burn The Midnight Oil rightfully grasping the top slot with the same intensity as me holding my pineapple vase of piรฑa colada, all kicked off at half-two with Gary Hewitt-Long performing a rare acoustic set. New to the game, and while I obviously cannot condone a satirical song aimed at a certain rogue local councillor, Gary was unnecessarily bashful, as he acoustically played out some great originals to warm the crowd!

Perhaps it was the crowd which, understandably nerved him; it sure was building, as Martin Rea sauntered through them, sporting a fashionable bum bag and dishing out raffle tickets.

A Wiltshire duo new to me, One Plus One may offer sums even I can handle in name, but their performance was delightful. A proficient and lovable pop cover duo to please any event, One Plus One is guitarist Dave, and Emily on vocals, confident to take on an Amy Winehouse cover or two and come up trumps. Chapel Roan’s Pink Pony Club also got a superb makeover, and they polished it off with the seasonal Fairytale of New York; why not?

Maybe only because our modest local folk legend Vince Bell, who followed, also planned to finalise his sublime set with the UK’s best loved Christmas song, with his wife Lisa as Kirsty MacColl. Though more musical theatre, no stranger to the limelight, Lisa nailed it, and the handsome, pretty, and the queens of New Devizes City crowd never minded the doubled up cover and sang the chorus.

Vince also offered Chrissy the accompanying chair for a spellbinding middle duet they supposed they should record, and they should. But beginning his set with his divine self-penned melancholic earworms, garnished in percussive rhythm guitar mastery akin to flamenco, and raising the spirit with the more spritely Spiderman Pajamas, Vince is a local treasure and never fails to charm.


Exactly a year after we first interviewed the original lineup, Burn The Midnight Oil came bursting on and delivered their awesome set with unified passion and precision, seemingly lapping up every minute. You’d be excused for assuming this band has been playing together for decades despite it being less than a year in the new format.

They appeased the audience with a taste of what they’ve been working on, looked fantabulous, and, most importantly, put 210% into their show. Yet it was arguably the sum of all these parts and the community festive spirit, which made it the wonderful afternoon it was.

St John’s Choir Christmas Concert in Devizes

Join the St Johnโ€™s Choir and talented soloists for a heart-warming evening of festive favourites, carols, and candlelit Christmas atmosphere this Friday 12 th December at 7.30pm…..

The spectacular, and oldest church in Devizes, St Johnโ€™s Church has a Christmas Concert on Friday with All proceeds go to Juliaโ€™s House and St John’s Church.

Tickets are ยฃ10 for adults, free for accompanied children. Tickets are available via Ticketsource, Devizes Books, or by scanning the QR code in the poster below.

For Now, Anyway; Gus White’s Debut Album

Featured Image: Barbora Mrazkova

My apologies, for Marlboroughโ€™s singer-songwriter Gus Whiteโ€™s debut album For Now, Anyway has been sitting on the backburner, and itโ€™s more than worth a quick mentionโ€ฆ..

Gus White is a respected folk musician, record producer, festival organiser, and community maker with a deep love for the rooted and the heartfelt. His production credits are the string that ties together an emerging scene that refers to itself as Third Wave Folk, involving a collective of artists which record with Gus at his Wiltshire studio. This includes microtonal and genre-fluid rising-star Maddie Ashman, folk singer Minna, and UK folk-charting artist Ann Liu Cannon. The latter is our connection, fondly reviewing Ann Liuโ€™s album Clever Rabbits back in July.ย 

Though, in the short wintery month this album has been simmering itโ€™s made number twenty-six on the Official Folk Album Charts, making Gus rightfully charting too. An initial listen from yours truly and I can understand why. I do declare it as instant as Douwe Egbertsโ€™ Pure Gold, only in rapture rather than coffee! Itโ€™s chock full of cool vibes, that breezy feelgood Sunday morning acoustic which is too darn soothing itโ€™s impossible to criticise. As for Gusโ€™s barista skills, Iโ€™ve no confirmation, but going on his music, I could take a wild guess heโ€™s a tea fellow. 

Eleven songs strong, put the kettle on yourself, and allow Gus to get on doing his sublime thing! Thereโ€™s no rise and fall, the melodies flow like the Iguazu Falls. If I pick out individual elements into Gusโ€™s melting pot, like the doo-wop-ish structure of middle-track Terrible Things, the bluesy guitar picking in the following song, Head Held High, or jazz drum percolate in Please, Forgive Me, theyโ€™re all so subtly placed. If Gus defines it Third Wave Folk, thatโ€™s what it is; a composition borrowing from Americana and English folk, but neither whole; a gorgeous cherrypick from both. It has the universal folk-rock feel of Goerge Harrison and Cat Stevens, and is equally as uplifting.

Though some themes are negative, the overall ambience is pessimistic; if youโ€™ve a bad day, so what? Watch the rain trickle down the window outside with that lukewarm brew in a slightly stained chipped mug, listen to this and contemplate, life goes on, youโ€™re rising above it.

If the penultimate song on For Now, Anyway, After So Long is rinsed in a dejected romantic memory, Gus carries it as skilled as Tom Petty, and the final song Still Learning lifts the spirit one final time like a contemporary Dr Hook, with that beguiling cheerful chorus. It departs your ears leaving you aching for more; a beautifully and skilled production from someone who comes across as a modest genius tea-drinker. Gus produced, mixed and mastered For Now, Anyway, a defining statement as a songwriter and a prime example of his meticulous production work. 

Image: Jeremey Prout

Authentic too; recorded in 2021, with a live band of friends and local musicians, Gus White approached this stunning album like any other project, stating he was โ€œtrying to capture the magic, and the essence, of the song in a single live performance, in the way real instruments and human voices blend when left to their own devices.โ€

Gus, also a member of folk band Dead Pages, is co-organiser of Late Spring Folk Festival, which celebrated its third iteration this summer at Dummer Down Brewery near Micheldever, since forming at a Wiltshire pub venue. This yearโ€™s is Saturday 23rd May. If he showcases this album there itโ€™s worth the reasonable ticket stub alone.

For Now, Anyway is out now on Man Made Tigers. Available to buy on CD & vinyl exclusively from Sound Knowledge in Marlborough and is available across streaming platforms. Donโ€™t procrastinate like me, as Iโ€™m sorry I did now Iโ€™ve heard it.

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Oh Danny Boy!

Oh Danny Boy, oh, Danny Boy, they loved your boyish Eton looks so, but when ye was voted in, an all democracy wasnโ€™t quiteโ€ฆ

by Darren Worrow

A Quick Shuffle to Swindon

Milkman hours with grandkids visiting it was inevitable a five hour day shift was all I was physically able to put into this year’sโ€ฆ

by Darren Worrow

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Pet Shop Boys, Actually with Talk in Code at the Tree House

Having to unfortunately miss Devizesโ€™ blues extravaganza on Friday, I crossed the borderline on Saturday to get my prescribed dosage of Talk in Codeโ€ฆwith a Pet Shop Boys tribute thrown in for good measureโ€ฆ..

Two classic tracks into their set at Frome’s little sister venue to the Cheese & Grain, The Tree House, Pet Shop Boys, Actually from Shropshire hailed their support act as better than them. Self-deprecating isn’t unheard of, rare for music acts, but the bottom line is, I’ve heard far worse tributes than The Pet Shop Boys, Actually, actually.ย 

For Talk in Code, though, it was an accolade fully deserved, as they did what they do as fantastic as ever, and thrilled more than their fanbase at the modest venue. The other attendees, there for classic pop they cherish, found Talk in Code fitted like a glove, despite their songs being original, because they have a timeless universal appeal, and their uniqueย synth-pop spin on indie provides it with a defining eighties feel.

Itโ€™s an ideal opportunity to reopen the perpetual debate I have with myself over the worth of tribute acts, even cover bands too, against those producing original music. Like any tribute act, the value of their performance hinges predominantly on the individual and their association with the act theyโ€™re attributing. Whether a tribute act is good is far more subjective than an original act; based upon personal reflection. โ€œItโ€™s comfort music,โ€ Talk in Code guitarist Snedds expressed to me outside the venue; agreed, personally Iโ€™m impartial to The Pet Shop Boys, therefore passably comforted.

They broke through in the middle of electronica. I brought and loved my 7โ€ of West End Girls in 85, others did too as it hit number one, and the duo walked away with awards. Though the Pet Shop Boys created their own take on electronica, much like Madness did with Two-Tone, were hugely successful with it, and again like Madness, they continued the template way past the trend fizzling the competition out. Such a practice causes division, you attain a fan following, whereas mild observers tend to consider if the uniformed style gets repetitive, especially over decades. Iโ€™m of that mindset, hence my impartiality.

So here at this rather snazzy tree house, carpeted and significantly more congenial, hospitable than the big cheese, but smaller and rather more conventional than Fromeโ€™s hipster and counterculture reputation, being situated within a housing estate fashioned sports bar, The Vine Tree, a fair crowd of Pet Shop Boys diehards gathered amidst regulars and โ€œTalkersโ€ for a cracking night in a nice, welcoming and universal pub.

Often to miss the support act is unfortunate, for this gig it wouldโ€™ve been sacrilege. Talk in Code were on fire as ever, blasting out their cheerful tunes, frontman Chris wiggling moves in his Adidas uniform and rightfully boasting of their success at The Wiltshire Music Awards, outside our county! Itโ€™s a lively show I will never tire of, and if I have to witness tribute acts too, if by some miracle I make eighty, will someone please wheel me over to a tribute act show to Talk in Code?!

As for The Pet Shop Boys, Actually, prior I considered if The Pet Shop Boys is quite a simple act to make a tribute from, compared to other eighties acts; call up a proficient keyboardist, buy him a BOY cap, don a tuxedo and white scarf and play musical statues! Although they tended to lightheartedly play their accomplishment down, they made a brilliant job out of it. As those pop classics came through adept and nimble, I paused to consider if my opinion of the Pet Shop Boys isnโ€™t a smidgen harsh; through the splendour of this tribute I saw them in a refined light, and that is a true sign of a proficient tribute act, and their worth. 

Interestingly, they adopted a female singer too, to soften the vocals to match Neil Tennantโ€™s camp tones, and to play the incredibly tricky part of Dusty Springfield for What Have I Done to Deserve This? Likely the trickiest part of the show. To my approval, Pet Shop Boys, Actually covered a Beloved track too, a kind of raverโ€™s answer to The Pet Shop Boys, and they thumped out the newer, technologically progressed tunes after a workout of eighties classics, and returned to the hits for an outstanding finale; someone get me one of those jackets that looks like I got stuck in a carwash!

If you go to see a tribute act with expectations of precisely recreating the magnitude of the original act, youโ€™re an idiot and will be let down in most cases! If you go to see a tribute act open-mindedly, with your priority on having fun, nine times out of ten you will, especially if you hold a passion for the act being attributed. Use your noddle, donโ€™t see Pet Shop Boys Actually if you’re hoping for a tribute to Slipknot, but do if you like The Pet Shop Boys, and youโ€™ll find theyโ€™re really rather good!

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Talk in Code Down The Gate!

What, again?! Another article about Talk in Code?! Haven’t they had enough Devizine-styled publicity?! Are their heads swelling?!ย  Didn’t that crazy toothless editor catch themโ€ฆ

Keep reading

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Butane Skies Not Releasing a Christmas Song!

No, I didnโ€™t imagine for a second they would, but upcoming Take the Stage winners, alt-rock emo four-piece, Butane Skies have released their second song, but itโ€™s not a Christmas song, noโ€ฆ.

If youโ€™ve had enough debating if Die Hard is a Christmas film with the family, when obviously nothing says Christmas like Hanz Gruber falling from the Nakatomi Plaza, maybe try this stocking filler for size; Not a Christmas Song isnโ€™t a Christmas song, not a jingle bell or a Noddy Holder to hear here. I didnโ€™t ask Santa for a Christmas song anyway.

It is, though, marvellously negative about the commercialisation and the absence of snow, wrapped wonderfully in a theme of seasonal romantic disruption. Oh, but it has the subtlest hints of Yule in reference; folky and in the odd twinkling piano riff, so not entirely a thrashed punk anti-Christmas feel neither. As ironically as Alanis Morissette, and as proficient as her too.

If The Pouges & Kirstyโ€™s seasonal offering was subtle but pimped somewhere along the lines by commercial radio, Butane Skies takes the disguised holly and mistletoe to another level. You could listen to this in June without being told off; clever concept, but then, the composition of the song is equally a stroke of genius and it rolls out all rather wonderfully. Take a listen, thereโ€™s no partridges in pear trees yet.

Streaming Options HERE

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Barrelhouse are Open for Business with New Album

Rolling out a Barrelhouse of fun, you can have blues on the run, tomorrow (7th November) when Marlborough’s finest groovy vintage blues virtuosos Barrelhouse release Open for Business, their third studio album indicative of their astounding live showโ€ฆ..

Tim and Stuart’s dramatic guitar riff from the off, Dave Growcott’s drums kick in and Open for Business doesn’t wait around for you to hang your barn jacket on the juke joint’s hall tree. Nick’s growling harmonica strides into the room next, all guns blazing, and we’re like a greyhound out of the traps when Martin grits his teeth and presents his deep encapsulating howl.

If the black cat bone mentioned as the title of the opening tune is a hoodoo lucky charm for protection and luck, it’s unnecessary, expeditiously it magically assures you’re in for a rocky ride to the dusty crossroad, with minimal pitstops and without the need of any such luck.

It doesn’t calm the zest frenzy until the third track either, an absolutely sublimely haunting cover of The Beatlesโ€™ Come Together, where Hedi’s backing vocals compliment Martin’s with such unbelievable harmony it smooths out the pace welcomingly.

Things go country for a ballad to Lydia, which I snooped through the interweb searching for an original version only to be informed by Nick Beere, more than just a mouth organ, rather the producer and engineer behind the album via his studio Mooncalf, that guitarist Tim wrote the song. Reason for my research being, itโ€™s magnificence is instant, it simply sounds like a singalong country classic akin to The Band’s The Weight, which is also superbly covered penultimately on the album, btw. Then it’s back to full steam blues workout when they repropel Muddy’s mojo, a second Muddy classic into the melting pot, and belt the living daylights into Canned Heat’s On The Road Again.

Classic Americana come edgy blues rock cover choices, the ambience of Barrelhouse I’m illustrating you might wrongly convey in generalisation as โ€œthey’re a serious bunch of hard rock dudes,โ€ but there’s a subtle frivolousness in their delivery which charms a crowd. Their labour of love is reflected joyfully outward to an audience without a pretentious mood, and fondly thrown back at them with an enthralled response, making their shows atmospherically interactive and thrilling. The experience in comparison to your atypical morose blues band is one rather of danceable merriment; a tick from me.

Mantonfest 2023 Image Gail Foster

If a song is original it’s hard to distinguish them from classic covers, Barrelhouse combines them into a seamless show, and makes an irresistible party album. A party appealing to Mantonfest’s youthful fanbase, who’ll invade the dance area when Barrelhouse mount the stage, and impress the matured Devizes blues aficionados with equal measure.

A Bo Diddley beat polishes this album as a grand finale, but if polished ramped serious blues cuts melds with an effervescent delivery is their working formula, its true beauty rests in the simplicity of its production. There’s no technical studio skullduggery here, no manufactured overdubs; what you hear is what happened in real time. Each song is recorded in a single take, making it not just authentic but the perfect representation of their energetic and entertaining live show. Something the band pride themselves in. If you’ve ever seen an amazing band live, only to be disappointed by the CD you brought because it didn’t match the splendour rawness of their performance, this is not the case here. Open for Business is taking the Barrelhouse show home with you. That’s why it’s a keeper.

But donโ€™t take my word for it, next Saturday (15th Nov) sees the album launched at St Peterโ€™s Marlborough, with support from 7pm. Itโ€™s free and copies of the album will be available on CD and vinyl. And if you canโ€™t wait for that, this coming Saturday (8th Nov) Barrelhouse will turn the Devizes Southgate into their own juke joint, a legendary occasion blossoming in modern folklore, as Devizes loves the blues and word got out via a toothless milkman.

Failing these options, theyโ€™ll be donning Santa hats and bringing out the tinsel at the Bear in Marlborough on 20th December, when you can almost taste the pigs in blankets in the ether.

Duality; Debut EP From Melkshamโ€™s Between The Lines

It was never just the fervent ambience created which made me go tingly with excitement about Melkshamโ€™s young indie band Between The Linesโ€™ demo single Fading Time, it was the profusion of potential. A latent driving me to Swindon Shuffle this year, where theyโ€™d be playing at The Hop, but now a manifest for all to hear the reason for my tingle, as Between The Lines release their debut EP Dualityโ€ฆโ€ฆโ€ฆ..

Four tunes including the demo Fading Time, flowing on an exceptionally defined style of breezy, female-fronted indie pop-rock. Age makes me contemplate Fleetwood Mac, younger might cite Florence & The Machine, Iโ€™m left thinking of The Corrs, particularly the opening track of hurt heart, Personal, with subtly building rich layers akin to grunge, but subtle and so incredibly cool. 

I interviewed bassist Belle upfront, lead guitarist George, and Ethan and Louis, who both switch between drums and guitars, the latter being the rhythm guitarist, back in February and their professionalism impressed me enough to go in with high expectations for this debut. I was expecting goodness, I got my earful and it was even better than I imagined it might be. This is delightful magic with universal appeal, charming yet biting with tender guitar riffs.   

Debatably Fading Time has the snappy hook, but Stuck in This is melodiously superior, the metaphorical drowning theme. Oh my, Belleโ€™s vocals reflect off the water on this. Iโ€™m going out on a limb here to suggest something comparable to Kirsty MacColl, but donโ€™t assume thatโ€™s sacrilegious or exaggeration until youโ€™ve listened, please.

I worry Iโ€™m overusing the word sublime recently too, possibly reducing its impact, but I happen to like it, and can find no word more apt to describe Duality, and for a debut that itโ€™s a fantastic achievement, an accolade they should all be very proud about.

But they saved the best till last. Simply titled Your Love, the final song is an uncomplicated rolling pop ballad, rich in ambience, and possibly the most durable, accomplished technically, and commercially viable. While fresh and contemporary with smooth indie-pop vibes, the EP flows akin to something timeless, even prog-rock, and if Your Love is the one to be accompanied with a dreamy showcasing video, which I believe it deserves to be, Iโ€™d like a slightly extended bridge, to really show the listeners what theyโ€™re made of.

And to meet Between The Lines isnโ€™t the zesty teenage gang with stars in their eyes encounter, rather a modest and humble unity who seem thoroughly at ease with their talent, and while thereโ€™s a confidence which needs blossoming on stage, given the quality of Duality, it remains the boost they will naturally attain. I’ve high hopes, this is beautifully constructed and produced.

Joyrobber Didn’t Want Your Stupid Job Anyway

A second track from local anonymous songwriter Joyrobber has mysteriously appeared online, and heโ€™s bitter about not getting his dream jobโ€ฆ..

If this mysterious dudeโ€™s August invective track at racist talk show host Jeremy Kyle, and his patronising attitude, it feels like him telling me heโ€™s โ€œnot one for holding a grudge,โ€ might have a smidgen of irony too! His grungy pop-punk response to his career rejection might be biting satire, but amusing with it.

Eight and a half years ago, he claims, he was cruelly denied his dream job by what appeared to be a corrupt interview process. Perhaps it was to take over from Kyle, but Joyrobber reveals nothing, even after I badgered him for a clue to his identity.

What we do know is it was produced by Sugarpill Productions, a parody of hip hop pioneering label Sugarhill, has the vocal engineering talents of Jolyon Dixon, and is rather catchy with a highly amusing hook. I Didn’t Want Your Stupid Job Anyway is indicative of how we all might feel after a failed interview but being British, we bit our tongue. A bolshy after-contemplation with dry implications, in a Weezer skater-punk two-fingers up fashion.

I donโ€™t believe for a second heโ€™s pleading for sympathy, just to get the frustration off his chest by thrashing a guitar at it. If youโ€™ve been there too, youโ€™ll identify, making me like this more than the debut single, because Iโ€™ve an incalculable history of bodged job interviews, likely because they were all knobs as well!

Itโ€™s up on Spotify, downloadable from Bandcamp with a โ€œname your priceโ€ option, and itโ€™s Marmite, love it or hate it, it remains a sticky spreadable extract to get over your dysphoria, but not sing at the Job Centre.

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