NFC re-opened in August 2021, after a long closure due to the Covid pandemic. Despite the massive improvements made to The Queens Hall during various lockdowns, audiences and performers are still understandably tentative about returning to live venues. Attendances at venues around the N.Warwickshire area have been down and slow to build back to those carefree days before Coronavirus darkened the world.
Thanks to Mr. Zuckenberg having “improved” all our Stalkbook Groups by making them non-private, we now have 403 Nuneaton Folk Club members. ( Most of whom I’ve never met or seen). However, Wednesday night at NFC saw the biggest crowd since we reopened last August. That is a tribute to our loyal followers-the ones who we do see-and also an homage o the stature of the Guest Act, Bird In The Belly.
Their long awaited return to Nuneaton came after their initial re-booking had been cancelled and rescheduled several times. They were in fact, the last headliners to appear at NFC before that long, painful Lockdown closure. So there was a special significance in them being there again lon Wednesday. Almost two years on, they strode onto that massive stage and owned it. Not once but twice, in two beautifully assembled, carefully produced sets. Each packed with thoughtful songs which reflected not only the misery and despair of Victorian (and other) hard times but also our own. Who can doubt just how dark these last two years in the U.K. have been, except for the very rich, the privileged rulebreakers and those fortunate enough to be in the very best of health throughout?
BITB have established a Folk Noir genre in which they explore and research the archives of history and then share the outcomes with the rest of us. There always has been a darker side to Folk and Blues and Americana, indeed all the associated music styles we see at NFC. Alongside the jolly Wassails, Morris Dancing and Hoedowns, there is misery and sorrow. "Matty Groves" isn't exactly a walk in the park, is it?
Nunc kicked off proceedings with their now traditional opener, Leroy Carr's “How Long Blues.” In which the wailing anti hero went down to the station seeking his lost Beloved, but did not even see a train. (Perhaps he was waiting for the erstwhile Nuneaton-Leamington Shuttle which has been more elusive than Lord Lucan since its reintroduction a few years ago?). “I went down to the Station/I didn’t see no train/Now in my heart I have an aching pain.” We ended with Steve Earle’s Copperhead Road which isn’t exactly a bunch of laughs either.
Thrupp’nny Bits then did a 30 minute slot, lifting the mood a little with songs like the euphemistic Bold Sir John. But because they too research and hunt for songs which reflect struggle, suffering and change, there were also a few bleaker traditional songs in what was an excellent routine well up to their usual high standard.
The last time we’d seen Glyn Finch was way back at NFC when we were based at The Crown. Various circumstances had delayed his return but he was not the least bit intimidated by the change in venues. Glyn protested that he was a little bit stage rusty but his eclectic choice of material, his imaginative guitar playing and remarkable vocal range tended to bely that. He arranges traditional material so that a unique version of “She Moved Through The Fair,” is followed by similarly adjusted renditions of “Nobody’s Fault But Mine,” and “Hard Times.” And of course (though he remains enigmatically modest about it) there is a unique version of “The Pink Panther Theme “ in his set that remains a once heard never forgotten experience. A few old Fogeys tutted in the darkness, but generally the juxtaposition of Glyn's contemporary approach and TB's more traditional one was both appreciated and understood.
Which led to part one of a step through Time with BITB. Ben and Laura combine their vocals beautifully. The Sunday Express (no less!) wrote recently of Ben’s voice “ If there is a more extraordinary voice on record than that of Ben Webb it will probably belong to a blues singer twice his age.” I could not put it better. Laura’s voice too is instantly recognisable: a hallmark of greatness. She has a style which can cover acapella or harmonies, capable of expressing deep deep melancholy and suffering, or fleeting elation. You could play me twenty different tracks by twenty different female vocalists and within a few bars I would be able to pick her her out immediately and say, “That’s Laura.”
Between them (if you count Ben’s clacky wooden blocks, of which he is immensely proud!), there are at least 12 BITB instruments available on stage plus vocals. The variables and permutations are pretty well infinite. Though based in Brighton, the band have roots that spread further afield. Ben “Jinwoo” Webb is a home boy, reluctant to expand on exactly from where, but he is well familiar with the North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire area. Tom Pryor, the multi instrumentalist engine room of BITB who produces and engineers the band’s videos and albums is at home with the Derbyshire and Yorkshire hills and dales. Indeed the video he made to accompany for "Pale Horse" on the Internet, has scenes shot around Eyam in it.
BITB alas, will not always stay on this circuit forever. Whilst they do, we remain fortunate to have them. Musically accomplished, and now widely known, they will move on eventually to Festivals and Concert Halls if they want to. In a world where Gigspanner, Merry Hell and Show of Hands are major attractions they will be able to compete. Despite this, they remain one of the most grounded bands I have ever met. (And I’ve met loads!). They are a joy to work with: approachable, friendly, appreciative and sincere. None of this is sycophantic, rehearsed or feigned. They are four very nice people. I like them a lot. And their music. The audience did too.
Their third album “After The City” is released later this month February 25th to be precise. It can be pre-ordered and is available in CD format or as a download. Someone described it in print as “an uneasy, restless concept album.” I wouldn’t disagree with that. BITB make you work hard which is fair enough considering the immense amount of work they put into crafting their material.
Finally, thanks to Rich for making it all happen, to Ross for the sound and to Aaron who not only served behind the bar but operated a waiter service, bringing some requested drinks up from the bar below! And wasn’t the Church End Goats Milk Lovely? Nectar! No wonder it’s won so many prizes!
