Kathryn Tickell and the Darkening

Named after the old Northumbrian word for twilight, The Darkening comprises four North-East England-based members: Kathryn Tickell(Northumbrian smallpipes, fiddle, vocals),Amy Thatcher(accordion, synth, clogs, vocals), Kieran Szifris(octave mandolin), Joe Truswell(drums, percussion, programming, plus Stef Conner from Cambridge (vocals, lyres, sistrum)and Josie Duncan from the Isle of Lewis (vocals, clarsach). Their inspiration comes from the wild, dramatic, weather-bitten countryside along Hadrian’s Wall, which seems so quintessentially Northumbrian… and yet, almost 2000 years ago that same landscape was inhabited by people from around the world, worshipping different gods and following different customs. Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening explore the connecting threads of music, landscape and people in the region, with ancient songs magnetically pulled into the 21^st century by Amen-inspired breakbeats, ominous sounding vocals, and the wildest of piping from the world renowned Tickell, who has recorded on six of Sting’s albums, and with luminaries from The Chieftains to Alan Parsons.

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