Over the past five years, Twisted Folk Tours have become known for adventurous, hand- picked line-ups representing the best in modern folk and twisted popular music. Twisted Folk eschews the shiny and formulaic in favour of the stranger, lovelier, and more curious, bringing together artists with disparate backgrounds and influences, and fostering new collaborations and live experiences. Past tours have included London based electronic folk outfit Tunng teaming up with desert bluesman Tinariwen, Vashti Bunyan playing with Adem & Vetiver, Dizraeli with Chris Wood and many more besides.

The Revival Hour

When John-Mark Lapham realised David Stith’s voice was exactly what was needed to finish a piece of music he’d been working on, neither knew the collaboration would work so well that they’d go on to strike up a partnership, name it The Revival Hour after a groundbreaking American evangelist radio show of the 1930s, and dedicate most of the next two years to invest their music with all the rousing and intimate emotion that such a name warranted.

The Revival Hour’s brilliance isn’t so surprising when you know the duo’s previous form. Texas-born Lapham was the sounds-and-samples component of Manchester-based The Earlies, purveyors of a kaleidoscopic brand of folk-tronica explored over two celebrated albums, and recorded a mini-album for 4AD with fellow Texan Micah P Hinson under the name The Late Cord. The Buffalo-born Stith, meanwhile, released an equally revered debut album, Heavy Ghost, in 2009 on Sufjan Steven’s Asthmatic Kitty label, a record much admired by the likes of Bat For Lashes and Grizzly Bear.

The Revival Hour is the sound of adventurism; of deep, historical musical connections; of falling in and out of love; of bravery. Truly courageous in scope and spectacle they share an affinity with PJ Harvey, Dusty Springfield, The Knife, Antony Hegarty, Robert Wyatt, Here We Go Magic, Portishead - artists they share a compulsion with to create a timeless sound, epic in ambition and sonics.

‘One of the most helpful, beautiful singles I heard all year’ DROWNED IN SOUND

Support from Serafina Steer

Serafina Steer is an English harpist, pianist, singer and songwriter.

On her album change is good change is good:

‘Probably my favourite album of the year so far’ JARVIS COCKER

'* * * * *' MOJO