English band Blackbeard’s Tea Party is a young group of six young musicians who have taken the traditional songs of England and mixed it with rock-based energy and dance beats. They were voted best live band in the UK at the 2011 FATEA Awards. Blackbeard’s Tea Party is set to perform on June 20th and will be Friday night’s closing act at the Rainforest World Music Festival at 11.15 pm – 00.15 am.
1. Can you give our readers a brief history on how the band was formed?
Blackbeard’s Tea Party formed to busk on the streets of York when the six band members completed their university degrees in 2009. The band has grown from there, going on to play gigs and festivals across the UK. We have recorded an EP and two albums to date.
2. What do you consider as the essential elements of your music?
Fun, energy, playfulness and stage-craft are essential to our live show. Musically, we mix traditional folk sounds of voice, fiddle and accordion with distorted electric guitar, synth bass, and a feast of hand percussion.
3. Who can you cite as your main musical influences?
We take influences from all over. We’re very active in the UK folk scene and many of the traditional songs and tunes we play have been shared and learnt in that environment. The rock elements are influenced by bands we love – Muse, Iron Maiden and Primus for example. Our drummers have studied their craft around the world – in Cuba and in Africa – so there are strong African and South American elements too. And when it comes to our stage-craft, we look to The Blues Brothers for inspiration.
4. Tell us about your first recordings and your musical evolution.
Our first EP ‘Heavens to Betsy’ featured more acoustic guitars, double bass and brass. When we came to record our full-length album ‘Tomorrow We’ll Be Sober’ we shifted to more electric sounds – guitar solos and crunchy distorted sounds. Our most recent recording, ‘Whip Jamboree’, is denser sounding, groovy and funky, with a darker edge.
5. Can you share some information about the program you’ll present at the Rainforest World Music Festival?
It will be a real mix of material from across our musical career, from some of our earliest tracks to brand new material that we haven’t yet recorded. There will be songs and tunes, with plenty of opportunities to dance and sing along.
6. If you could gather any musicians or musical groups to collaborate with, whom would that be?
We’d love to work with Les Claypool, best known for his work with Primus, but we all currently love his folkier, stripped-down work with Duo de Twang. We love his musicianship, but it’s his quirkiness and sense of fun that really appeals to us.
7. Do you have any upcoming projects to share with us?
2014 is our busiest year to date, with two UK tours and 20 festival appearances, but we’re also working on a new album. It’s shaping up to have a dark-funk sound that we’re very excited about. Watch this space.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
