PrettyInScarlett

Something of a last minute plan but M and I had high hopes of the 18th July Fractal Sparks event based on information from the people at Brass: Durham International Festival . The show was billed as a multimedia spectacular featuring Jo Hamilton , Lanterns on the Lake , Durham County Youth Big Band (DCBB) and The Band of the Royal Corps of Signals .  Arriving early at Durham Cathedral, the venue filled up in a relaxed manner, and was completely full by showtime. The event was effectively 2 concerts and the first concert featured Newcastle band Lanterns on the Lake with DCBB. This 45 minute-odd set was a very relaxed affair. We hadn't heard any Lanterns music before, but they have a keys/guitar/violin/drums setup mixing low-fi indie and post-rock sounds. The band seemed a little nervous (slightly limited stage talk) but we enjoyed the set. The songs which worked best with DCBB (and at least 1 song had been written especially for this concert) were 'To My Soul', 'Cr...

After our sojourn in Worcestershire, M and I have now relocated to Durham, north-east England. Still early days but I am slowly finding venues and event listings. The end of June saw us at Hill Island Microbrewery 's mini festival at Alington House - fruit beers!! Shades of Ottawa, especially the raspberry.... The last week, along with summer (yay!) saw the opening Streets of Brass from this year's Brass: Durham International Festival . Walking in along Framwellgate Bridge on Saturday 6th we were greeted by the enthusiastic and entertaining performers from Brassy B, whom we could hear down in Fowlers Yard . Fowlers Yard had a 10th anniversary festival/open day; we tried the delights of Leonard's for lunch, plus a swift drink from the Hill Island folk. Our brief Brass experience continued with Oompah Brass in the Market Place. Fantastic playing and also very, very funny; treats included covers of Bonnie Tyler's 'Total Eclipse of the Heart', plus 'Crazy Li...