bellowhead
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'One of the most kick-ass live bands around’ The Observer Music Monthly
Although Bellowhead are often described as a folk big band (winners of numerous BBC Folk Awards, including Best Live Act), they are much more than that. Mixing folk, rock, jazz, soul and world music influences with more than a hint of English Music Hall, and a dash of cabaret, they are Arcade Fire, Lotte Lenya and Tom Waits, all rolled into one. Between them, the 11 musicians play more than 20 instruments. Six of them sing. The horn section includes a sousaphone, reeds and a bass clarinet. There's a frying pan amidst the percussion, and a cello in the strings. Add to that melodeon, fiddle and vocals and you have a heady brew that defies easy categorisation.
In the past 18 months, Bellowhead has released a critically acclaimed debut album Burlesque (Westpark/one of The Guardian's 'Top 1000 Albums to Listen to Before You Die'), appeared on BBC TV's 'Later with Jools', performed everywhere from the Royal Opera House to the Shepherd's Bush Empire and along the way captured the hearts of festival audiences all over the country. The band now has high-profile fans the world-over, ranging from California’s Red Hot Chili Peppers to the Black Country’s Frank Skinner.
In between touring the UK, releasing their first ever DVD (April 2008) and a brand new album (Autumn 2008) - not to mention innumerable solo projects, 2008 sees Bellowhead follow in the footsteps of Saint Etienne when they become Band in Residence at London's Southbank Centre. The band will also curate several different themed musical events, across the multitude of different spaces that South Bank Centre has to offer.