You must be Folking joking?!

Folk is often a word that people my age run away from. The word ‘folk’ has traditionally conjured up images of hanky-shaking morris dancers and …is it ok to say… woeful tales from 60s-esque bearded men? (I have a bizzare mental image of a cross between John Lennon and Jesus, with the melancholy of Johnny Cash (who I love by the way!) but wearing bells).

…I’m sorry!

But thankfully the likes of Mumford and Sons, Florence and The Machine and Noah and the Whale, etc. have turned that stereotype on it’s head, and made folk a more accessible genre to young music fans.

It seems Folk is evolving to encompass a fusion of other genres too, often acoustic musicians and more ‘indie rock’ groups place themselves under the label of folk.

One of the missions of the Folkstock Foundation is to show people what superb original talent is out there, which is why the family-orientated festival is keen to promote the ‘acoustic’ element in it’s title (Folkstock Acoustic Festival).

If the word ‘folk’ still makes you unsure, what if we said the artists can be likened to the talents of Ed Sheeran, The Passenger, Ellie Goulding and Lucy Spraggan? And there are plenty of young up & coming artists, as well as brilliantly established artists of all age ranges (and incredible talents).

The change faces of folk

Over the last few years I’ve seen an increased popularity of folk-associated instruments, such as the ukelele (my university even had it’s own ukelele society!) and these, as well as some more surprising folk instruments will also be making an appearance at the festival – so you might just discover a new-found talent or interest!

Folkstock Director Helen Meissner says; “I’d like to attract people to the festival who would not have considered coming to one before perhaps, or at least, one which has the word folk in the title. While there is a nod at folkish music on sometimes folky instruments, the music is just going to be excellent (if you like harmonies, melodies and ‘stripped back acoustic’ sound).”

The Folk, celebrating their folk music passion

On the risks and difficulties of trying to bring in new audiences, Helen added: “I think it’s boring just to rely on preaching to the converted – where’s the growth, where’s the audience development, the broadening of minds?”

And who knows, you might even find once you get there, you actually really like the music from the woeful, bell-wearing bearded hippies too! 😉

If you’re persuaded to give it a chance (go on!), you can hear a selection of the artists here:

SoundCloud

OR if you prefer to watch artists’ performances, you might like to browse our Folkstock Youtube channel

YouTube