As a last-night treat for our temporary houseguests, we took them to see the Brighton-based band Noble Jacks at the relatively new BEAM stage and screen venue in Hertford town centre. And what a treat it was! High energy folk rock with strong americana accents from a band going places, led by the charismatic frontman Will Page on fiddle and acoustic guitar and the ubiquitous folk accessory, a harmonica harness. And ably supported by Matt Deveson on electric guitar, Jack Hosgood playing some mean bass, and rock-solid Lawrie Miller on drums. This is a fine upbeat foot-stomping combo who have thrilled and enchanted audiences at many gigs and festival appearances over the last few years and garnered Live Act of the Year nominations in the process. But, first things first – Hertford Theatre’s recent renovations have created two stages for live performances (a 547-seater and a more intimate 141-seater), and three cinema screens, right next door to an equally renovated Wetherspoons – who could ask for more? And the sound is really excellent, powerful amplifiers, great separation of instruments and superb clarity in the vocals, a worthy venue for Hertford’s first Folk Week, of which Noble Jacks were a part.
Kicking off with ‘Another Day Gone‘ and then leading straight into ‘Gun Hill‘, both from the band’s 2017 album “What the Hammer”, the pace was set for the evening with Page leaping round the stage as he stroked his fiddle bow on the strings with great speed. He certainly looked the part, with baggy trousers and braces hanging down, with a plain white T-shirt, and cloth cap. The audience was clapping and tapping their feet from the off, almost without stop, until the finale, the band’s signature track, ‘The Blacksmith Stomp‘ (also from the aforementioned album), nearly two hours later. In between, we were treated to some fine stagecraft from Page and some interpersonal banter between the band, most of which was shared with the audience (except when they stood back from the mic). The connection with the audience was brilliant, including some anecdotes from the road, some history of the songs and how they came into existence – Page also described how a gig in Brighton, when he was thirteen, led to his existence as a folk roots practitioner – the guys he saw, and met, that night were Dave Swarbrick and Martin Carthy. Such was the rapport that the audience willingly clapped and even sang along when requested, and ended the evening standing and stomping their feet and fist-pumping to the closing track.
While not always the experience of other artists, COVID provided the impetus to Page’s songwriting to the extent that the band’s 2022 album “Last of the Wild” might not have existed without the pandemic, as they would otherwise have been gigging. From that album came some excellent songs, the lead-off track ‘Never Been Here Before’ (featured in AUK here and here ), ‘Oceans’ and ‘Late Night Train’ (with its fascinating backstory), all strong americana tracks led by Page’s acoustic guitar and Deveson’s intricate electric guitar riffs, with nods to Tom Petty or The Eagles. Interspersed with those were songs from their 2020 album “Stay Awake”, including the atmospheric ‘Lift Me from the Floor’, an oft-recorded number, ‘Enjoy the Ride’, with its message of positivity, and ‘Dreams Carry Me On’. The pure foot-stomping fiddle tracks remind one of Mumford and Sons, and good examples were an early sea shanty and the energetic Charley Daniels’ classic ‘The Devil Went Down to Georgia’ with its screeching fiddle. Noble Jacks stand very high in comparison with these and other contemporaries like the Lumineers.
The band clearly thrives on audience response and their music is not only upbeat but tends towards the positive lyrically on most of the tracks – music as an antidote, “that emphasises building on the things that are important and stripping out the collateral which harms us and our surrounding world”, as the liner notes on “Last of the Wild” state. Well, with help of the rest of the band – Deveson was creating little guitar riffs behind the fiddle and just occasionally strode forward with delicate and finely crafted guitar solos, Hosgood played some stunning bass lines throughout and Miller provided formidable punch with his drumming – the audience left hugely satisfied by the music of one of the most proficient americana/folk bands around. If you are looking for an upbeat and really feel-good time out, you should see these guys.
