Folk Bands and Artists
Jez Hellard and The Djukella Orchestra
King´s Cliffe
Jez Hellard & The Djukella Orchestra play traditional and contemporary folk music, from jigs, reels and rebel ballads to tango, rhumba and even reggae. The word Djukella is a common insult in the Balkans, meaning mongrel, and goes some way to describe the mixed provenance both of the music and the musicians themselves. A singer of potent songs, stunning harmonica player and fine guitarist, Jez was born in Cumbria, and subsequently grew up (to a certain extent) in a village in Northamptonshire. Since 2005, he has played almost a thousand gigs; from Vancouver to Istanbul, New York to Taipei, sharing stages with the likes of Dick Gaughan and Rory Mcleod. From Glastonbury Festival and Canada´s North Country Fair to theatres, venues, clubs and house-concerts around the world. Nye Parsons is a virtuoso double-bassist with a lyrical style which will have you craning your neck for a better view. He´s played with countless bands over a 30 year career and has worked with Jez since 2006. Fiddlers James Patrick Gavin from County Holloway and Alastair Caplin from the Isle of Lewis (known for his work with the powerhouse John Langan Band and some notable film-scores) provide the top end, sometimes one, sometimes two at a time, depending on logistics; moving seamlessly between celtic, bluegrass and manouche styles and weaving a fine tapestry of sound to accompany songs and tunes alike.
On “Heavy Wood”, they’re joined by Dominic Henderson and Tommie Black-Roff of London folk trio, TEYR on uilleann pipes and accordion respectively, along with cameos from James Hegarty on pandero and the sublime Ewan Bleach on clarinet.
Heavy Wood features a selection of diverse but thematically cohesive songs and tunes from the band’s wide repertoire. From reworked favourites of the folk canon to up-to-the-minute political comment from songwriters such as Canada’s Prairie Balladeer, Scott Cook, Bristol’s Billy Rowan (aka The Undercover Hippy), Brighton’s Bing Lyle and Jez himself.
Recorded by Sam Welbounre of Mindful Sounds, live in the studio, bar two harmonica overdubs on songs where Jez’s hands and mouth were otherwise engaged, the album showcases the full range of the band’s abilities, from the ghostly bowed harmonics to full tilt abandon, taking in jigs, reels, bluegrass, reggae and a rhumba-inspired harmonica waltz along the way.
Opening with Cook’s classic “The Lord Giveth and the Landlord Taketh Away” we make our way through Taoist philosophy, nature poetry, Napoleon’s retreat, the Spanish Civil War and the current refugee crisis, among other things, before winding up with a stripped back version of “Wheel of Fortune”. For fans of traditional fiddling, James Patrick Gavin’s playing on “Not Safe With a Razor” and a couple of other sets is absolutely breathtaking, and not for the feint-hearted. It goes some way to explain the album’s title.
It comes in a handsome gatefold cover with a twenty page booklet filled with fine photography, original artwork and brief explanations of where all the pieces come from.
