A waft of folk serenity floated across the Kitchen Garden this evening as Devon-based duo Harbottle and Jonas brought their alluring style of music to the good folks of Kings Heath and beyond. It was the sort of night which began with the formalities of surnames, but easily slipped into the domain of Dave and Freya courtesy of a friendly demeanour. Throughout a two-hour span interjected by the obligatory commercial break, a light shone brightly on the duo's affirmed ability to sing, play, write, observe and interpret. If the top table of the folk fraternity is a little congested with the female-male duo format, I'm afraid room will have to be made for one more now the stature of Harbottle and Jonas is rising.
My journey following the duo has been a little stuttered. Acquaintance with their music was first made reviewing the 2019 album THE SEA IS MY BROTHER. Unfortunately the plan to double up with a live viewing was scuppered at the time and like many things in the cultural word circumstances took over and the enforced break ensued. Likewise the latest album released in March this year slipped the net, but the tide began to turn when catching them as part of the Brother Sea band at this summer's Beardy Folk festival. Now the circle is complete as there is nothing like an immersive gig to really get to grips with an artist.
From a base of combined vocals plus Freya's concertina, harmonium and piano, and Dave's multiple strings, the sets evolved as a mixture of contemporary, traditional and borrowed folk music. Themes ranged from the sea to personal connections and figures mined through reams of research and observation. This was your archetypal folk gig with heaps of informative chat adding to a heady cultural mix.
On the aesthetic front, few would dispute the stunning beauty to Freya's vocals when taking lead as being a highlight to the show. An immaculate construction echoed those on top of the game and they delivered the standout moment of the show when Freya took to the piano for the first time and sung her personal lockdown song 'Lights',
This song was one of several lifted from the new album titled THE BEACON. Others included the title track depicting a local Dartmoor landmark, an unsung wartime hero in 'Edith Cavell' and the most personal of tributes in 'Whenever I See a Robin'. The album also includes a version of the much loved and interpreted 'Black is the Colour'' which Freya gorgeously delivered in the pre-encore slot.
The final number before an appreciative audience bid farewell was 'Blessing' from The Lost Words Spell Songs project. Ironically the very same track was sung by Karine Polwart earlier this month in her Birmingham Town Hall gig. Two versions of a wonderful song are not to be sniffed at.
From the encore, let's rewind back a couple of hours to the opening where 'Was It For You' and 'Hall Sands', both from the excellent THE SEA IS MY BROTHER album, got things underway. However the remainder of the show tended to give this album a miss, and in turn we went back a little further to an earlier recording with tracks from Dave's home area of 'Northumberland' and a song about Grimsby in 'The North Sea Ground' adding a geographical spin to the output.
On the covers front, versions of Steeleye Span's 'Hard Times of Old England' and the famous 'Motherland' from Christy Moore's back catalogue both went down well. Similarly a dip into the Scottish traditional songbook with 'Mingalay' brought out an invited bout of audience participation. Possibly the most popular of the covers had a link into the next Harbottle and Jonas project. A new record with fellow Devon resident Reg Meuross is out very soon and the duo couldn't resist sharing his song 'England Green and England Grey' with a delighted crowd.
You couldn't fault anything delivered from the stage this evening. Fine musicianship underpins the sound, but there is so much more elevating Harbottle and Jonas rapidly up the folk ladder. Even the Kitchen Garden got in on the act and created another innovative floorspace to utilise the whole of the area now the onset of late autumn has rendered the patio out of bounds. All in all, a wonderful insightful evening that allayed the stuttered start to appreciating Harbottle and Jonas. Thus moving Dave and Freya into the frame as one of the favourite duos operating on the folk circuit.