About this concert
The Bookshop Band formed in September 2010, releasing their first album in December that year. They have since released 13 albums each exploring a different theme in their responses to over 100 author’s books. They have toured extensively around the UK and abroad, from bookshops to festival main-stages, and have been commissioned by BBC Radio 3, The V&A Museum, The National Portrait Gallery and the Centre Pompidou in Paris, most recently writing two songs for the launch of Philip Pullman’s The Book Of Dust. They are currently working with The V&A Museum on a musical series of banned books. Between them Beth Porter and Ben Please bring the books to the stage along with a multitude of instruments, including cello, harmonium, glockenspiel, guitars and ukuleles which, along with their distinct voices, create a cinematic sound that draws the audience right in to a highly intimate performance, at once touching and mesmerising, heart wrenching and often funny.
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Beth Porter Biography
“Utterly charming” Nick McCabe (The Verve)
“A writer in the vein of Cat Power, Moldy Peaches and
R.E.M.’s Automatic For The People”
Songwriting Magazine
“A thing of beauty” Jim Barr (Portishead)
Marshes is the new incarnation of Beth Porter and the Availables. We hope you don’t mind the name change but I’ve been thinking about it for a good year now and it seems to suit the new album that will be releasing and the songs that I tend to write. Having recorded the new album before little Molly was born and finishing it after, (thanks to an Indiegogo fund-raising Campaign) it feels like a life time’s journey in making a record. However, the album is a coherent collection of charmingly orchestrated songs with a full band, strings, wind and brass and will be available soon! You can pre-order it here:
https://www.bethporter.co.uk
The songs are dark, quirky, charming and ethereal and depict themes such as fear, confusion, money, the weather and the odd cheesy love song, all carried by Beth’s pure and unaffected voice.They have been said to channel Ray Davies and have been likened to Radiohead, The Incredible String Band, The McGarrigle Sisters, REM, Cat Power and This Is The Kit. It’s fair to say there’s a bit of a 60s/70s vibe.
The album has involved many of Beth’s previous band including Jools Scott on piano (The Duckworths, The Cool Web) Emma Hooper on Viola (Waitress for the Bees), Pete Gibbs on Bass (Count Bobo) Sue Lord and Ian Vorley on Violin (Red Carousel) Paul MacMahon on Drums (Protest Crayon)
Producer Luke Cawthra (son of Dr Feelgood’s Gypie Mayo) has brought a cool sound to the songs as well as warmth, clarity and some awesome guitar solos from his studio in Clifton, Bristol.
Beth is the cellist with Eliza Carthy and the Wayward Band and she is one half of prolific duo The Bookshop Band as well as String Quartet Red Carousel. She has played cello on over 100 records including those of The Proclaimers, Petula Clark, Newton Faulkner, Jackie Oates, Jim Moray, The Heavy. She has played and written for short films including BAFTA winning The Eagleman Stag by Mikey Please
Beth moved from Bristol in the South West of England up to Wigtown, South West Scotland in 2017, where the inspiration for the name Marshes came from.
Previous biography ...
Drawing from her classical background and extensive and varied live performance experience, Beth creates a unique and refreshingly modern texture to her repertoire contrasting the cello, ukulele and recorder with a voice that will hold your attention right down to the last glorious note.
For the last few years, Beth has been collaborating with and playing for some of the best musicians in the South West. Now she calls on some of them to play with her to work on creating a new sound. The Availables are variable but members frequently include Sue Lord (Violin), Emma Hooper (Viola) from Beth’s string quartet The Stringbeans; Jools Scott (piano/accordion) from The Duckworths and who plays in the Pump Room in Bath; Jeff Spencer (bass) who is a prolific composer and producer/engineer; and Daisy Palmer (drums) from Goldfrapp.
The Availables have been compared to The Penguin Café Orchestra, The Incredible String Band and Kate Bush!
Beth has recorded cello for over 70 sessions since she came to Bath in 2000 and has played for many artists including Peter Gabriel, Newton Faulkner, The Unthanks, Jackie Oates, Jim Moray and Kula Shaker.
She is currently playing for Eliza Carthy, Jennifer Crook, Reg Meuross, The Stringbeans and The Bookshop Band amongst others!
'It's beautiful stuff and, for such a talented musician, remarkably spare: ukulele chords, nimbly plucked cello and electronic texture afford plenty of room to hear fully the naturalistic songwriting...and a voice that's spring water pure. The songs have something of an old spiritual feel-few words, circling round with lovely simplicity.' Venue January 2010
‘Beth Porter and The Availables offer fabulously inventive folk with classical precision. We therefore label them - implication intended – an incredible string band.’ Venue January 2011
Read More“A writer in the vein of Cat Power, Moldy Peaches and
R.E.M.’s Automatic For The People”
Songwriting Magazine
“A thing of beauty” Jim Barr (Portishead)
Marshes is the new incarnation of Beth Porter and the Availables. We hope you don’t mind the name change but I’ve been thinking about it for a good year now and it seems to suit the new album that will be releasing and the songs that I tend to write. Having recorded the new album before little Molly was born and finishing it after, (thanks to an Indiegogo fund-raising Campaign) it feels like a life time’s journey in making a record. However, the album is a coherent collection of charmingly orchestrated songs with a full band, strings, wind and brass and will be available soon! You can pre-order it here:
https://www.bethporter.co.uk
The songs are dark, quirky, charming and ethereal and depict themes such as fear, confusion, money, the weather and the odd cheesy love song, all carried by Beth’s pure and unaffected voice.They have been said to channel Ray Davies and have been likened to Radiohead, The Incredible String Band, The McGarrigle Sisters, REM, Cat Power and This Is The Kit. It’s fair to say there’s a bit of a 60s/70s vibe.
The album has involved many of Beth’s previous band including Jools Scott on piano (The Duckworths, The Cool Web) Emma Hooper on Viola (Waitress for the Bees), Pete Gibbs on Bass (Count Bobo) Sue Lord and Ian Vorley on Violin (Red Carousel) Paul MacMahon on Drums (Protest Crayon)
Producer Luke Cawthra (son of Dr Feelgood’s Gypie Mayo) has brought a cool sound to the songs as well as warmth, clarity and some awesome guitar solos from his studio in Clifton, Bristol.
Beth is the cellist with Eliza Carthy and the Wayward Band and she is one half of prolific duo The Bookshop Band as well as String Quartet Red Carousel. She has played cello on over 100 records including those of The Proclaimers, Petula Clark, Newton Faulkner, Jackie Oates, Jim Moray, The Heavy. She has played and written for short films including BAFTA winning The Eagleman Stag by Mikey Please
Beth moved from Bristol in the South West of England up to Wigtown, South West Scotland in 2017, where the inspiration for the name Marshes came from.
Previous biography ...
Drawing from her classical background and extensive and varied live performance experience, Beth creates a unique and refreshingly modern texture to her repertoire contrasting the cello, ukulele and recorder with a voice that will hold your attention right down to the last glorious note.
For the last few years, Beth has been collaborating with and playing for some of the best musicians in the South West. Now she calls on some of them to play with her to work on creating a new sound. The Availables are variable but members frequently include Sue Lord (Violin), Emma Hooper (Viola) from Beth’s string quartet The Stringbeans; Jools Scott (piano/accordion) from The Duckworths and who plays in the Pump Room in Bath; Jeff Spencer (bass) who is a prolific composer and producer/engineer; and Daisy Palmer (drums) from Goldfrapp.
The Availables have been compared to The Penguin Café Orchestra, The Incredible String Band and Kate Bush!
Beth has recorded cello for over 70 sessions since she came to Bath in 2000 and has played for many artists including Peter Gabriel, Newton Faulkner, The Unthanks, Jackie Oates, Jim Moray and Kula Shaker.
She is currently playing for Eliza Carthy, Jennifer Crook, Reg Meuross, The Stringbeans and The Bookshop Band amongst others!
'It's beautiful stuff and, for such a talented musician, remarkably spare: ukulele chords, nimbly plucked cello and electronic texture afford plenty of room to hear fully the naturalistic songwriting...and a voice that's spring water pure. The songs have something of an old spiritual feel-few words, circling round with lovely simplicity.' Venue January 2010
‘Beth Porter and The Availables offer fabulously inventive folk with classical precision. We therefore label them - implication intended – an incredible string band.’ Venue January 2011
Contemporary Folk
Nu Folk
Chamber Pop
Folk
Acoustic
Electronic
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