The Breath & Spafford Campbell

‘Folk roots but different horizons’, said The Guardian about The Breath, the innovative singer-songwriter duo from Manchester. In this double concert they will be preceded by another duo with an equally liberating approach to folk, Spafford Campbell from London.

The Breath has an immediate impact with their personal, heartfelt songs, that are as likely to touch on childhood summers and first love as injustice and grief. While Ríoghnach Connolly lures you in with her warm voice, you will be enchanted by the guitar playing of Stuart McCallum, who’s also a member of The Cinematic Orchestra. The Breath has released multiple albums on Real World, Peter Gabriel’s label.

‘A strangely unsettling beauty’, is how Mojo described the music of Spafford Campbell. Their first album Tomorrow Held was widely acclaimed by critics and earned five star reviews in, among others, Songlines. The fascinating playing by Owen Spafford on fiddle and Louis Campbell on guitar has elements of jazz, electronica and chamber music. But you can still hear very well that the two grew up playing folk music.

Spafford Campbell: Owen Spafford fiddle, Louis Campbell guitar