Kitty Macfarlane confirmed for July
9 Jan 19
by Nathon Jones
We are thrilled to announce that Bristol-based songwriter and accomplished guitar player Kitty Macfarlane will be performing at the opening night concert at this year's Newton Stewart & Minnigaff Traditional Music & Dance Festival on Friday 12th July in the Festival Marquee, Creebridge House Hotel.
Kitty's sharply observed narrative songs are pure poetry, rich with visual imagery and written with an eco-eye – bound loosely by the theme of mankind’s relationship with the wild. Kitty's highly anticipated debut album Namer of Clouds, produced by Sam Kelly and Jacob J Stoney and featuring a recognisable cast of musicians, was released in Autumn 2018 and is an absolute joy.
Gathering inspiration from the sky to the seabed, Kitty’s lyrics touch on intervention and rewilding, climate change and migration and one singular song which is a magical aural tapestry of woman’s historical relationship with textiles and the land. From the starling murmurations on the Somerset Levels to the lowly eel's epic transatlantic migration, and the small part we ourselves play in a much bigger picture.
The album is augmented by all kinds of ‘found sound’ recorded in locations from Somerset to Sardinia – birdsong, waterfalls, the click of knitting needles - and is bookended by sounds of the wild.
Kitty has toured with acclaimed folk duo Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman, and also Blair Dunlop, and performed extensively around the UK. Her first EP received airplay on BBC Radio 2 and 6 Music and she was shortlisted for the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award, received project funding from the English Folk Dance and Song Society and been awarded the Lyndsey de Paul Prize for female songwriters.
"This young Somerset-based singer-songwriter's blessed with a strong identity: a confident singing voice and a compelling writing style deriving inspiration from growing up in the south-west, allied to a talent for finding wider significance in everyday experiences. An outstanding debut" - fRoots Magazine
Tickets for the opening night concert will be available soon or you can purchase a Weekend Pass just now, which covers all ticketed concert events by clicking the link below. We can't wait!
In Other News
What's on at this weekend's SpringGrass Bluegrass Festival?
Over 16th-18th May, musicians and music lovers will head to The Vault Arts Centre for a weekend of concerts, workshops and jam sessions featuring some of the very best bluegrass/Americana/old-time performing artists from Scotland, Ireland, England, Canada and the USA; and what a programme it is!
13 May 25
Nathon Jones
Bluegrass workshops all weekend at top local festival
This year's SpringGrass Bluegrass Festival 16th-18th May 2025 gives you the chance to learn from the very best bluegrass musicians on the scene right now including Charlotte Carrivick (guitar), Evan Davies (mandolin), Eleanor Wilkie (bass), Kieran Towers (fiddle) and Eilidh Patterson (songwriting).
12 May 25
Nathon Jones
Best Events Venue in Scotland 2025?
Huge congratulation to our colleagues and friends at the wonderful The Vault Arts Centre in Newton Stewart for reaching the finals, yet again, of the Scottish Entertainment & Hospitality Awards in the Best Events Venue category.
19 Mar 25
Nathon Jones
