Not My Good Arm/Tinderbox/Kevin Hewick/Chris Ilett

NOT MY GOOD ARM/TINDERBOX/KEVIN HEWICK/CHRIS ILETT

Duffys 25th May 2025

Sunday evening saw the first of Chris Ilett's "Up the Duffy's" sessions at Duffy's Bar, and a cracking afternoon/evening it was....

Initially a disappointment in that Evan and Si were unable to play due to illness... but the plus was that Chris Ilett played the opening set himself. Accompanying himself on acoustic (he had played electric the last couple of times i've seen him) and he delivered a cracking set... his songs are high quality, very intense and tend towards the darker side of life... but that is no bad thing.. and Chris sings them with feeling and style while palying some fine guitar... i must confess to preferring the acoustic version and this was a great set.

Following Chris, a real life legend... Kevin Hewick. Kevin has vast experience and huge knowledge of the music scene, and has been a stalwart supported of music, especially new music, in Leicester...

Kevins perfromances can end up with more story telling than song, but this set was agre3at balance, interspersing his songs with a few comments and as the set developed the tales were appearing. I'm sure everyone knows Kevin and knows how good his songs are... and his set tonight was quality... in great voice singing strongly with some nifty fine guitar work... i could listen to Kevin telling his tales all night!! Great set

After Kevin, the more electric side of things with a new band to me, TINDERBOX. A band to follow, they were excellent. Excellent songs, with a definite anti-Trump edge... well constructed and played so well by the band... with great assurance and style. i struggle with genres, but this band were rocky/poppy and hugely enjoyable... very hard to believe it was only their second gig... excellent set

Closing the night were Not My Good Arm... a rock band in fine form last night... solid bopping rock with punk influence, the band delivered a powerful set... the bass thundering along with the drums while the guitar and vocals took the lead... very physical music that really gets the adrenalin flowing and the pulses racing... cracking good set to end the evening.

I really love these showcases at Duffy's... Chris is running "UP the Duffy's on the fourth sunday of every month, while Kevin Hewick and Luke Broughton are also runnning monthly sessions... all are there with two aims... to showcase the almost unlimited local talent and to create commnunities of like minded folk in a warm friendly atmosphere... it works!. Keep an eye on social media for forthcoming events

Support your local venue... keep. music live... support your locaql venues and artists

Pete Morton/Sheila Mosley

PETE MORTON SHEILA MOSLEY

IAC 22nd May 2025

Another gig last night at the International Arts Centre and it was another absolute gem...

First up was Sheila Mosley, a fine singer and performer delivering a great set of familiar and no so familiar covers, starting with the old song "Queen of Hearts" learned from the Joan Baez recording then continuing with one of her own songs. She also delivered a fine version of "Shallow Brown" which the audience was only too happy to join in with.

Sheila said at one point that the great thing about playing live is the chance to deliver a political rant... which she does in the form of some fine songs with strong political or social (or both!) content.

A fine singer, excellent performer and artist who delivered a hugely enjoyable fine set... as indeed she always does.

The main event however, was the return of the exceptional Pete Morton, surely one of the best singer/songwriter/performers anywhere in the country.

Pete's set started with "Rivers of the Isle". a tour-de-force listing of countless rivers in Britain, delivered at high speed and with total vocal control... a great opening to the show. From there, it is all emotion and passion... Pete writes superb songs, often powerful pieces with a strong political or social conscience, but also shows that you can make a strong point with humour, as in the beautiful "Related to Me" (the lines about "eating a poacher...") as well as tender emotional love songs.

Pete does include a couple of covers in the show, notably Pete Seeger's "Oh I Had a Golden Thread " which closed the first set and a great version of "Barbary Allen". from the singing of Jean Ritchie.

Pete's performance is powerful and intense, as well as emotional, but laced with humour and warmth which has the audience totally engrossed throughout...

The last portion of the set last night was an excerpt from Pete's

"Ghost of a Sailor Talking Blues" show.. .in which Pete plays a sailor lost in 1603 and now resident in modern harbour... The sailor narrates the history and history of popular song in talking blues style, in an apparently haphazard, but perfectly structured way bringing in snippets from songs as diverse as "Sweet Caroline" "Long Way to Tipperary" "Hi Ho Silver Lining" "Daisy Daisy" "What Shall we do with the Drunken Sailor" and countless others... even including a full length version of his beautiful song, "Another Train". This whole section had the audience laughing and singing vigorously throughout..

I really regret missing the full show earlier this year... but other commitments kept me away

After this, the inevitable encore.. and almost inevitably the wonderful "When We Sing Together"... mind you, last night this segued into " Rock Island Line" which picked up speed as it progressed to a breathless end...

Whenever I see Pete I marvel at the power and resonance of his voice, the way he blends passion, emotion and humour together through the force of his great warmth, charm and charisma...

A truly outstanding singer, songwriter and performer... you can't leave a Pete Morton show without feelings of joy and being totally uplifted... Superb performance

Keep music live... keep music real... support your local venue

Kate McDonnell

KATE McDONNELL

IAC 20th May 2025

Tuesday evening at the International Arts Centre was a real treat! All the way from Albany NJ a visit from the brilliant Kate McDonnell

Kate had totally won the audience over with her warmth and great charm before she had actually sung a note... and when she sang.. what a voice!... Kate has a beautiful voice and sings wonderfully... although her voice is uniquely Kate, at times i heard shades of Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez (high praise indeed), especially in the higher registers.

The overall feel is rootsy folky americana all delivered in an assured way with tremendous grace, charm and humour, and a great deal of pure quality

Kate's guitar playing is superb, and very unorthodox... she plays left handed with the guitar strung right handed... and it was baffling to work out how she formed the chords and managed to play like that... but the main thing is that the results were superb!

Kate concentrated on her own songs, all of which were beautifully crafted and high class, but did put in a couple of covers, in particular a beautiful version of Richard Thompson's "Dimming of the Day"... a song that has a lot of meaning for me... and Dylans "Dont Think Twice, It's Alright" and ending with Steve Earle's "Goodbye", a perfect closer.

This was a simply beautiful performance by a hugely talented artist... an artist who is not only brilliant but has grace and charm in full measure...

A wonderful night... loved every moment

Keep music live... keep music real... support your local venue

Lucca Mae/Amy DX

LUCCA MAE/AMY DX

IAC 18th May 2025

Absolutely wonderful evening at the International Arts Centre last night featuring two hugely talented artists.

First up was the always superb Amy Dx singing solo with just her keyboard. She is a superb singer/songwriter, writing songs of humanity and passion, giving her full scope to extend her magnificent voice. The voice is just full of soul and passion and ranges smoothly from soft and gentle through to top of the range emotional power, all beautifully and with complete control.

The set concentrated on material from the forthcoming second album, which promises to be a real gem, and delighted the audience.

As always, a superb set by Amy.

After Amy, the headliner, LUCCA MAE with her band... a new name to me, but definitely one to follow.

Lucca started off solo, playing guitar and singing... and what a voice!!... bluesy and soullful with more than a hint of jazz stylings... whatever the genre, the voice was simply beautiful...

After a few songs Lucca introduced the band... 3 gifted musicians playing guitar, bass and drums... they played as a band, the musicians accompanying Lucca with taste and integrity providing a perfect backdrop to her voice.

The songs were all originals though midway through the set there was one cover, Peter Greens' Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well!".. .not one i expected but superbly performed...

The whole set was superb, the songs all high quality, Lucca's voice simply stunning and the musical accompaniement perfect...

As an encore, they played two more covers, ending with "A message to you Rudy" by the Specials.

Lucca is a talented artist with a supremely beautiful voice... the whole set was just pure class from start to finish.

The fact that the whole audience listened with wrapt attention to the whole of both sets is testament the the brilliance of both...

Two superb and talented artists on one bill... a wonderful night to remember

Keep music live... keep music real... support your local venue

Eryx London/New Age Grace/Wolves in Alcatraz

 ERYX LONDON/NEW AGE GRACE/WOLVES IN ALCATRAZ

Duffys 17th May 2025

This week a Saturday night trip to Duffy's for another fix of live music... and another great night it was!

First up was a new band to me, Wolves in Alcatraz. They proved to be a powerful hard rocking trio, rock/punk, led by some terrific guitar playing and and supported by rock solid bass and drums... They kicked off at a furious pace, tight rocking music and strong vocals, delivering quite a torrent of words, and the pace didnt slacken... watching and hearing this band is a great way to spend 45 minutes... terrific set, thoroughly enjoyed it...

Next up, the band who had attracted me to the gig... the excellent New Age Grace... always a high class rock band, and playing in this environment seemed to enhance their intensity.

Fronted by a high quality powerful singer and featuring some superb guitar work, supported by a powerful rhythm section of bass and drums the band really rocked through their great set.

The band are tight and work together as a high class unit that always delivers... another great set...

Sadly, due to the onset of post-covid exhaustion, by the time Eryx London started i was struggling to concentrate, and indeed stay awake so only heard about their first song... so it is not possible to make any assessment of them... i can say however, that they were clearly going down well with the large audience so i think they must have been pretty good...

Apologies to the band... would like to have heard more... Keep music live... keep. music real... support your local venues