Headfirst Editor's Pick
"Sell out warning! Mighty virtuosic troubadours, returning to Avonian lands! Following a string of sold-out shows at Strange Brew, Shovel Dance Collective carry their luminescent torch of radically-rooted avant-folk to Bristol Folk Festival. A truly life-affirming knees-up awaits!"
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A gig held at Arnolfini on Friday 1st May. The event starts at 19:30.
Shovel Dance Collective are a group of nine musicians united by a passion for the beauty, force, and political charge of the traditional musics of Britain, Ireland & beyond.
They are committed to Folk music not as an archaeological artifact to be unearthed, but as a living communal activity - inviting & generous to those it speaks to.
“Folk song is a living tradition, not a museum piece.” — Pitchfork
Their music appears as a patchwork as pieces are stitched together, rearranged & recontextualised. The yarn is threaded with their sense of aesthetic innovation, & with a deep sense of the ways in which traditional music holds the voices of the oppressed.
They have performed sold out shows across the UK, with headline concerts at venues such as Cafe OTO, Kings Place & Cecil Sharp House. The collective have appeared at many major festivals including: Glastonbury, Roskilde, SXSW, Rewire, Green Man & End of the Road.
“Live they’re a singularly powerful, joyful experience.” — NARC. Magazine
Their live performance have been acclaimed by The Wire, NME, Financial Times and The Times. And their albums ‘The Shovel Dance’ and ‘The Water is the Shovel of the Shore’ have been championed by MOJO, Uncut, KLOF & Songlines & both were named albums of the year by The Quietus. Early booking advised.
#bristolfolkfestival
TICKETS & ACCESS
This show is a mixture of standing and unreserved seating.
For more information about the festival & weekend tickets please see bristolfolkfestival.org.uk. If you are a wheelchair user please drop an email to [email protected] after booking & we will reserve space for you.
Entry requirements: no age restrictions (under 18s to be accompanied by an adult over 21yrs, 1:1 ratio)
They are committed to Folk music not as an archaeological artifact to be unearthed, but as a living communal activity - inviting & generous to those it speaks to.
“Folk song is a living tradition, not a museum piece.” — Pitchfork
Their music appears as a patchwork as pieces are stitched together, rearranged & recontextualised. The yarn is threaded with their sense of aesthetic innovation, & with a deep sense of the ways in which traditional music holds the voices of the oppressed.
They have performed sold out shows across the UK, with headline concerts at venues such as Cafe OTO, Kings Place & Cecil Sharp House. The collective have appeared at many major festivals including: Glastonbury, Roskilde, SXSW, Rewire, Green Man & End of the Road.
“Live they’re a singularly powerful, joyful experience.” — NARC. Magazine
Their live performance have been acclaimed by The Wire, NME, Financial Times and The Times. And their albums ‘The Shovel Dance’ and ‘The Water is the Shovel of the Shore’ have been championed by MOJO, Uncut, KLOF & Songlines & both were named albums of the year by The Quietus. Early booking advised.
#bristolfolkfestival
TICKETS & ACCESS
This show is a mixture of standing and unreserved seating.
For more information about the festival & weekend tickets please see bristolfolkfestival.org.uk. If you are a wheelchair user please drop an email to [email protected] after booking & we will reserve space for you.
Entry requirements: no age restrictions (under 18s to be accompanied by an adult over 21yrs, 1:1 ratio)
Other festival gigs
— The Old England Pub
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