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Bridie Jackson & The Arbour

Venue: The Black Bull
Town: Maften
Date: 21/9/13
Website: http://www.soundcloud.com/bridie-jackson

On a cold Saturday night it was nice to sit in a cosy, little pub in Maften at The Black Bull. In which I was going to be entertained by the talented Bridie Jackson. Fatea are no stranger to Miss Jackson, having reviewed her albums before tonight's live performance was amazing.

In case you are not aware of Miss Jackson and the Arbour (where have you been) is local to me from Newcastle, they create amazing sounds. The band all had different backgrounds in music but they found a shared passion for the art and with that used it to their advantage to create something interesting. With Miss Jackson on vocals and guitar, Jenny Nendick on cello, Carol Bowden on percussion and Rachel Cross on violin. They released the album in January 2012, with a sold out gig at The Sage Gateshead. They have gained recognition with featuring on shows such as BBC Radio 1 and live sessions with Dermot O Leary on Radio 2.

I felt honoured to be watching the talent group. I have never seen them perform live, so it was a pleasant surprise. They played a song using belleplates We Talked Again, the song was beautiful yet haunting. Their voices and the sound of the instruments memorised me, I forgot I was at a pub (even if there was a lot of background noise) the song had me stunned. Bridie's voice took my breath away; her voice is just simply beautiful. From the very first note to the last note, there were no imperfections. I could have been sitting there and being stung my bees and I myself would not have noticed. For her voice is heavenly, together with the rest of the band they produce music that creates such a serene and peaceful atmosphere.

It wasn't all just Bridie Jackson and The Arbour, the 9 girls(The Hex Pistols) from Hexham in Tynedale (Lizzi, Ali C, Ali B, Jenny, Kate, Lesley, Catherine, Rachel and Charlie) brought a sense of humour to the gig. They all came together by accident, when they couldn't get a support act for Miss Jackson's gig in Hexham. All members of the choir (Charlie Buchanan's Town Choir) are now looking into all musical influences to create an entertaining performance. They were really entertaining and funny, I would say a modern day version of The Overtones with a hint of that girl power from Spice Girls and you had The Hex Pistols.

Overall it was a really good night, celebrating local music and appreciating local talent.

Gemma Hirst