The Imagined Village
If you think you know about English folk music, think again! The Imagined Village project, the brainchild of producer and musician Simon Emmerson, has recast age-old traditions in the shape of the twenty-first century. A daring mix of ancient and modern, The Imagined Village fuses fiddles and squeezebox with dub beats and sitars.
Rob da Bank’s favourite gig of last year was seeing this folk supergroup perform which had him in tears after 3 songs.
An incredible audio visual adventure into the history of british folk music with many of its leading lights appearing, including Billy Bragg, Martin Carthy, Eliza Carthy, Shiela Chandra and Chris Wood, backed by a band featuring Simon Emmerson, Johnny Kalsi, Francis Hylton, Andy Gangadeen, Sheema Mukherjee and Barney Morse Brown. Benjamin Zephaniah and John Cooper will appear on screen bringing the oral tradition of story telling into the digital age.
As a collective they strive to explore their musical roots and identity as English musicians and music makers, contributing to the debate about what currently constitutes the English Identity, drawing inspiration from their Victorian song collecting ancestors right up o their present day peers.
As musicians their primary focus for this communication is through their music and this will be one live show not to be missed as we proudly welcome them to Camp Bestival this summer.
www.myspace.com/theimaginedvillage
www.imaginedvillage.com