Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman

Nineties Folk collaboration ‘Equation’ hot-housed some of the UK’s finest younger Folk musicians.  Sean Lakeman and Kathryn Roberts hail from that prodigious stable and it’s good to see them out of sibling and contemporary shadows and in their own spotlight (literally!)

The characteristic Lakeman muscularity (guitar) was tempered by the yin of Roberts’ more languid vocals, making for a complementary coupling (and indeed the pair are married!). Yet impressive multi-instrumentalism and vocal skill, particularly Roberts’ exquisite yodel, do not seem evenly matched by the songcraft itself. However, the feistier songs are where this folk power couple most find their groove and fully inhabit their otherwise occasionally distracting theatricality.

Ropetackle Arts Centre, 25 February 2014

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