A mixed crowd emerged out of the torrential rain to watch Bellowhead at the York Barbican but the performance they watched satisfied all of the diverse gathering. The historic city of York is a fitting setting for a band who take so many of their songs from traditional music but Bellowhead manage to produce a blend of the old and the new with a set that mixed folk with everything from punk to funk.
The set opened with some of the new material from the bands 2012 album Broadside including Byker Hill and Black Beetle Pies which were atmospheric and edgy with John Boden, the band’s incredibly tall and slightly eccentric front man, revelling in a jarring, stop-start dynamic. Later on in the set the band dipped into their back catalogue. The more live-friendly tracks like London Town and Hopkinson’s Favourite exhibited not only some virtuoso fiddle playing but also Bellowhead’s ability to enthral a crowd.
Despite being in the midst of a tortuous touring schedule the eleven piece still managed to bring an energetic performance although minus some of the stage climbing antics they have been known for. The evening was characterised by some excellent musicianship, backing up a set that was interesting and new whilst still pleasing fans of earlier work.