Regular AUK readers will already be familiar with Ferris & Sylvester and their distinctive blend of blues, folk and Americana. Having won multiple awards, including UK Album Of The Year at the UK Americana Awards 2023 and achieving #1 on the Official Jazz and Blues Album Chart, the duo are irresistible songwriters with eclectic influences and songs that sound at once both distinctive and varied. In just a few years, they have developed their own record label, produced work by other artists, such as Beans on Toast, and supported the likes of Robert Plant, Eric Clapton and Jade Bird. As a live act, they have grown into a forceful, joyful stage presence, performing with surging energy. With new material on the way and eager to try the songs with an audience, Issy Ferris and Archie Sylvester played two nights at Spiritual Bar in Camden Town. This was a real homecoming for them – they both played here as solo artists many years ago, and this is, in fact, where they first met before beginning to write and play together. So, this venue really is part of their journey, both as musicians and as a now-married couple. And what a wonderful venue it is. To say that Spiritual Bar is an intimate setting would be to understate the proximity between artist and audience, the blurring of that relationship – this sort of gig is one that we all experience collectively, musicians drawing upon the response of the crowd in shared moments that are much more difficult to achieve in larger spaces. Perhaps that’s what spirituality is all about – it’s an apt name for a space that encourages and serves soaring moments of communal exhilaration alongside songs of stillness, reflection and real feeling.
Before Ferris & Sylvester took to the stage, Oli McCracken offered excellent support. The room was already busy, and the crowd appreciated his songwriting and storytelling. McCracken’s old Gibson acoustic guitar had a lovely warmth to its sound, matched by that of his characterful voice. He opened with ‘Life is Strange’, during which his fingers travelled up and down the guitar’s neck, supplying low notes as well as a light, bright strum. This was followed by the subtle chord changes and delicate vocal of new single ‘Daybreak’. Throughout his performance, McCracken often had real emotion etched across his face, never more so than on ‘Letter from a Boxcar’, an excellent example of his gritty singing and narrative lyrics that, together, place us in the song, in a place, in a moment. This song required a missing capo, and it is, perhaps, a sign of what a wonderful small venue this is that a bartender just happened to have a spare one in his pocket. A highlight was ‘Too Much Trouble’, which was full of soul and was described brilliantly as “…not quite a love song – it doesn’t make it there. It’s more like a wishing song.” McCracken’s set concluded with the faster, intricate ‘Old Man’s Gun’, the tuneful ‘Day by Day’, and the genuinely atmospheric ‘Streetlights’. Oli McCracken was an impressive support act who was perfect for these intimate surroundings.
Ferris & Sylvester started with one of their new songs, ‘A Joy to be Alive’, written shortly after the birth of their son in Nashville, which was a challenging time for the couple; writing this was a cathartic experience. When Issy Ferris repeats, “It doesn’t scare me to get older // It’s a joy to be alive,” there’s a real depth of feeling behind the words, and that is evident on her face and in her projection. The duo’s voices work perfectly together, in unison and in harmony, as they move through a ranging, adventurous melody. Over the years of performing, recording, and living, they have developed a very distinctive vocal blend, and this new track demonstrates an ongoing inventiveness and soulfulness. It’s rare to write joyful songs so well, but they find the right balance between edginess and uplifting spiritedness consistently. Next up was ‘Mother,’ one of the favourites from their last album. Sylvester continued to play his acoustic guitar for a more stripped-back version of the song while Ferris grabbed her bass guitar from where it was hanging on the wall by the stage and contributed an insistent rhythm. They noted that Paul Simon’s ‘Still Crazy After All These Years’ is now 50 years old before delivering an outstanding cover. Ferris’s vocal performance was simply gorgeous, sometimes delicate, sometimes soaring, as Sylvester’s voice added depth. His guitar work was hypnotic to watch, light finger-picking giving way to a sweet strum. Ferris said, “I can’t believe someone could write a song so good that transcends time so well,” and it’s hard to disagree. Later in the year, Ferris & Sylvester will be releasing an EP of covers, which promises to be exceptional if they’re all as strong as this.
Next, there was a second new song, ‘Fishing Song’, another number written in Nashville for the couple’s ‘accidental American’ son. The song has a jaunty tunefulness, a timeless melody, like a lullaby or nursery rhyme, although they noted that their son doesn’t like it anymore – he’s more into ‘Purple Haze’. Their voices were suitably delicate and melodic, interspersed with Sylvester’s whistling. The song has a lovely sentiment, exploring the relationships between parents and children: “Next time I turn the lights on / I know you’ll have grown again.” ‘Tiny Little Love’ was one of the best songs of the evening, a magical moment. Ferris’s voice was incredibly well-controlled, flying high and deepening low while she delivered an oozing, woozy bassline. Restrained but with bursts of volume, this was smoky-bar soulful, the sound of old cinema from a previous age until Sylvester’s fuzzy guitar pulled it into today. On record, this is lush and sweeping and is sure to become a fan favourite. This future favourite was followed up by one of the duo’s most popular songs, ‘Flying Visit’. It was a beautifully intimate performance of a song that is lyrically full of exposed vulnerability. Ferris and Sylvester sang together into one handheld mic, their heads close and their voices combining to great effect. This was actually meant to have been played before the previous song, but Sylvester had started playing the wrong one. In the relaxed setting of Spiritual Bar, the humour derived from moments like this helped to make the show even more personal. Ferris told a story of how she had watched Sylvester playing solo here years ago and had bought his CD. However, when they were introduced, she had played it cool and pretended not to know who he was. After they had moved in together, Sylvester found the album amongst her things, and the secret was out.
The couple were then joined on the stage by Ross Gordon on the drums for the remainder of the show, and his rhythm added an altogether different energy throughout the subsequent songs. With Sylvester on his Les Paul, ‘Dark Side’ began with fluttering notes on the electric and handclaps with the audience before the gritty, grooving blues kicked in. This was all rasping vocals, powerful percussion and swirling guitar. One of the gig’s memorable moments came when there was an instrumental pause with just the drums, hand claps and Ferris and Sylvester’s intertwining voices. This was followed by the anthemic, dramatic ‘Burning River’, a song about the couple’s first trip to Iceland. Once again, the audience were involved in creating the hand-clap rhythm and showing off their ‘spirit fingers’. Ferris told everyone that it was time to sing along, “It goes like this,” but everyone already knew the tune and didn’t need any reminders.
Tickets for these two shows had sold out quickly, and the audience was made up of fans who were very familiar with the older songs. A new song, ‘Jealous’, was next up. Although completed recently, this had been partially written years ago on Ferris’s iPhone. A strong beat underpinned Sylvester’s fast chord changes and bright notes. They talked about the direction and purpose behind the new record, much of which was written shortly after the birth of the couple’s first child and really draws on that relatable and special love.
The always well-received ‘Better in Yellow’ was written about being 17 and trying to be cool, although they have now decided to “…lean into not being cool!” Listeners can find two versions of this: a full studio version and an alternative that was recorded in their kitchen. Both are brilliant. With a strong beat, laid-back groove and a chorus that rises high, this was hugely popular with the crowd. Sylvester played an excellent guitar solo, his fingers flying up and down the frets. All the remaining songs featured solos from Sylvester, and they were all absolutely outstanding. His solos always emerge from and serve the songs in keeping with the melody and tone rather than feeling like something isolated, separate or added on. New song ‘Strange Things’ started slowly, a moody introduction giving way to crashing drums and guitar and the song built up to a huge ending with forceful guitar and splashing cymbals. Sylvester’s solo was languid, bending strings and hanging notes, becoming more intense as he struck the strings hard with his pick. Another new song, ‘Lucky Night’, had a great groove, a pounding snare drum, fuzzy blues guitar and a soaring vocal tune in the chorus. The final song of the night was ‘London’s Blues’, an old favourite that was for “…the finger-clickers.” The beginning was intense, with an unresolved tension between the notes.
And just like that, the evening was over, and we were left, quite rightly, wanting more. The setting was perfect for showcasing new songs; Spiritual Bar is so intimate, and the proximity to the performers was such that it was a challenge to take quality photographs – we were actually too close. There were personal songs and personal stories as Ferris and Sylvester really gave something of themselves. Afterwards, they chatted with members of the audience, sharing their time and appearing to enjoy the experience as much as everyone else, and those are key elements in their shows: a sense of communal joy in the music and the company. The new songs are typically melodic and well-crafted, maintaining their distinctive sound while also being fresh, new and reflective of a range of influences. The new material is refreshingly positive and themed around genuine, whole-hearted love. While chatting with Ross Gordon, he shared a philosophy for life that is also the reason he has become involved in lots of projects, like being in the duo’s band and playing at various folk festivals: “Like everyone. Like everything.” That uncynical desire to be open to everything – all people, possibilities and opportunities – mirrored the music and was one of the things that stayed with me after the show. A feel-good thought to end a feel-good evening.
