We are so delighted to have the singular songs and sounds of Kristin McClement to celebrate her album launch, and with brilliant support from the boundary pushing clarinet, sax and wood wind artist Chris Cundy. Can’t wait!
Kristin McClement’s melancholic and ethereal folk music transports the listener to a sacred place – magical, ancient and grounded in nature. Softly picked guitar and delicate piano accompany her earthy, resonant voice.
Join us tonight to celebrate the release of Kristin’s long anticipated second album ‘Chalk From The Downs, Iron From My Blood’. It arrives a decade after her quietly acclaimed debut album ‘The Wild Grips’. Kristin will be sharing the stage with long term collaborator and multi-talented musician Jools Owen (percussion, vocals, keys, brass) and some very special surprise guests.
‘Chalk From The Downs, Iron From My Blood’ is an album of duality. An ode to missed opportunities, unrequited desires, self destructive impulses, the weight of grief, and in turn, longing for an alternate reality, yearning for release. Coming so close to what we wish for but ultimately finding ourselves on a different path.
And in our deepest struggles, we come close to the essence of living. We come close to those around us, sharing our wounds and failures. We come close to the earth and sky that hold us here. We are alive with the beauty of connection, emitting light in our darkest of moments.
Kristin has performed both solo and with collaborators Jools Owen, Emma Gatrill, Martha Rose and Marcus Hamblett across the UK and Europe alongside notable acts such as PJ Harvey, John Cale, Benjamin Clementine, Sam Lee, Kathryn Joseph and The Weather Station.
“Listening to McClement’s voice is like becoming hooked on a drug as it takes over the senses, changing your feelings and perceptions. It’s intoxicating.” For Folks Sake
“Weighty pop music which dazzles, shimmers and glows exquisitely in the cold light of the day.” Goldflakepaint
“A particularly soulful voice; very low and sensual, it washes over you and insinuates itself into your brain without you even realising.” The 405
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Chris Cundy
Chris Cundy plays bass clarinet, saxophones, and rarified woodwinds. He is a composer, performer, and sound installation artist based in the South West of England and has released four solo albums: The Disruptive Forest, Gustav Lost, Crude Attempt, and Of All The Common Flowers. In recent years his practice has focussed on site-specific phenomena incorporating 3D sound mappings and ambient location recordings. Important partnerships with The Roman Baths and Corinium Museum have resulted in a number of ensemble works incorporating objects, field recordings, and reconstructed historic texts.
Collaborations have also seen him working extensively in pop music, writing instrumental arrangements for songwriters including Little Annie, Baby Dee, and Ladan Hussein (aka Cold Specks). He has toured internationally as a solo artist and has performed with acts such as Timber Timbre, Cold Specks, Devon Sproule, and Mercury Prize nominated band Guillemots.
”Swirling around the songs was bass clarinet player Chris Cundy, like a birdsong interrupting an argument” Los Angeles Times
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