Live Review: Lachlan Bryan and the Wildes + Emily Lawler, The Town Hall, Kirton in Lindsey – 22nd August 2025

The Town Hall at Kirton in Lindsey is Lincolnshire’s premier Americana music venue, continuously punching above its weight with the quality acts that regularly tread its now hallowed boards. Over the last fifteen years, local promoter Brian Chudley, along with his wife Pam have taken this venue and placed it firmly on the musical map, attracting the best artists in Americana music from both the UK and around the world. In the case of tonight’s headline act, they hail from Melbourne, Australia, and not only that, they regularly return, such is the hospitality of the hosts, and the continued support of the local congregation.

So it was that Lachlan Bryan and The Wildes returned to Kirton in Lindsey, having first co-headlined the local THL Festival back in 2022. Bryan himself has been back since, having performed a solo spot on this very stage just 13 months ago, while lead guitarist Riley Catherall, a quality singer-songwriter in his own right, also paid a return visit last year to play an acoustic set. In both cases, they were ably supported by Emily Lawler, who, this evening, as well as performing as part of The Wildes, was also opening proceedings with a short set, more of which later.

Commencing with what would be a two-set show this evening, the band took the audience back to their earliest days with the title track of their debut album, when they were still known simply as The Wildes. ‘Ballad Of A Young Married Man’ was first released in 2009 and has continuously remained a staple of the band’s live shows ever since, becoming a long-time fan favourite. Choosing to open with this classic song is a strong indication of the quality of material Bryan has recorded over the last fifteen years, and immediately engages the audience. It is a song that typifies Bryan’s novelistic style of writing, full of characters from the dark side of the street, from drunkards and no-hopers to idle dreamers and damaged souls, all emanating from some shadowy past that’s never quite revealed.

If that opening number in itself wasn’t a statement of intent, then the second song completely blew all doubts away with ‘A Portrait Of The Artist As A Middle-Aged Man’, a song from their 2018 album “Some Girls (Quite) Like Country Music”, imbued with its dark, brooding narrative and graphic imagery helping to create some of the finest storytelling in song this millennium. Surrounded by a quartet of excellent musicians that includes long-time collaborator Shaun Ryan on bass, along with Ben Middleton on drums, Bryan’s vocal delivery teased the tension from the narrative as the song built in crescendo with Catherall’s guitar and Lawler’s fiddle sparking off each other as they sparred like two boxers in the ring.

The most recent album, “As Long As It’s Not Us”, which came out in 2021, was strongly represented during the first set, firstly with ‘You Remind Me Of Myself’, followed by the title track that had Catherall and Lawler again combining to deliver a stunning solo to the outro. In between, there was time for a fine rendition of last year’s single release, ‘The Continuing Saga’, while ‘I Hope That I’m Wrong’ with its gentle opening saw Bryan’s vocals supported by a gently strummed acoustic and some delightful slide guitar from Catherall, creating a subtle ambience which expanded as the rest of the band joined in halfway through.

There was still time for two more songs from the most recent album, with the reflective beauty of ‘The Road’ being one of the many highlights of the night, while the edgy groove of ‘I Went Down’, with its unsettling narrative reclaims the tension before the title song to the 2013 release “Black Coffee”, a song Bryan wrote for his grandfather, who he idolised despite his dislike for country music, proved to be the perfect song to round of an exhilarating first set.

More used to playing one long set, an interval was rather unfamiliar territory for Bryan and The Wildes, though they all made themselves available to converse with the locals who were keen to take advantage of the opportunity whilst perusing and purchasing from the wares on the merchandise table.

Glasses replenished, the band retook their place on the stage for a swinging rendition of ‘It Tears Me Up’ before trawling their back catalogue for a couple of real gems. First up was ‘Deathwish County’ which recalls the early years of touring the southern states of the US with fellow countryman and songwriter Chris Pickering. It’s another brooding, desert noir classic from Bryan on which the band offer the perfect conduit, Catherall and Lawler supplying the sweetest of vocal support to a song that has long cemented its place in the band’s set list. ‘Dugdemona’ followed with its tale of voodoo curses, though its backstory presents more humour than black magic. The song structure here is nothing short of sublime; the story building in intensity with each verse, Catherall’s guitar playing, this time with the subtle use of feedback, is again delightful, acting as the perfect foil for Bryan’s brilliant poetry.

The inclusion of ‘Long Time Coming’, released as a single last year, is something of a surprise bonus, which sees Catherall swap guitars for a Fender Telecaster and indulge in more exquisite slide playing before two more crowd favourites help lift the atmosphere within the hall to another level. ‘309’ dates back to 2013, but it still holds a special place in the set list as it allows the band to flex its muscles and stretch out. Middleton took full advantage behind his drum kit, having started the evening’s performance using brushes to gently caress the required rhythmic accompaniment, his stick-laden hands now became a blur as he marshalled his fellow bandmates through the closing bars to an intoxicating crescendo. With a need to draw breath, the pace was slowed for ‘Afraid Of The Light’, a song Bryan co-wrote with one of Nashville’s finest singer-songwriters, Kim Richey, and another absolute Highlight. With Catherall taking Richey’s place on backing vocals, and Bryan singing as if his life depended on it, together they held the audience in the palm of their hand until the final notes brought about an outpouring of appreciation. Truly wonderful.

There was still time to shift through the gears as the band tore into ‘I’d Rather Sing In Churches’ before closing the second set with another track from their award-winning 2013 album, as ‘You, Me And The Blues’ brought the night’s proceedings to a close. However, after such a superb performance, the local congregation were never going to let the night end there, and so it was that Bryan and The Wildes returned to the stage to perform ‘Careless Hearts’. A classic country love song with some delightful backing vocals from Lawler, whose violin or possibly going by its size, viola, playing had helped broaden the musical palette, adding a sweetness to the spice throughout the evening’s show.

Bryan will be returning to this very venue on the 15th of November with his other band, The Pleasures, to perform one of only two concerts scheduled for the UK. This short tour will be in celebration of the recent release of their new album “Enemy Of My Enemy”, and will surely be a must-see gig, so better to book early.

Kicking proceedings off this evening was Suffolk’s very own Emily Lawler. Having previously led the Suffolk Youth Orchestra, Lawler studied a Master’s degree in Community Music, immersing herself in the world of folk and country. Now based in York as a freelance musician, she has played with various UK artists, including Dan Webster, Skylights and Alistair Griffin, as well as international acts such as Ben de la Cour and The Weeping Willows. Needless to say, her association with both Riley Catherall and, most importantly, Lachlan Bryan has brought Lawler to the attention of the wider Americana audience, with numerous appearances at this evening’s venue.

Having previously opened her support set with none other than Sandy Denny’s ‘Who Knows Where The Time Goes’, one might consider Lawler to be either overtly ambitious or slightly mad. However, as those who have been privileged to witness her live will attest, this is the rarified air to which she belongs. And, as if to prove that very point, this evening she started her seven-song set with a simply sublime cover of Courtney Marie Andrews’ classic song ‘Honest Life’. Choosing to support herself with an acoustic guitar for the duration of her set, an instrument she only picked up during lockdown, Lawler continued with a selection of self-penned numbers that betray a poetic soul with the consummate craft of bringing a modern slant to traditional folk music. ‘Lament For Lost Time’ and ‘Orphelia’ have an enduring quality to them, creating an ethereal and hypnotic aura that is both of its time and timeless. The more upbeat ‘Note To Self‘ offers a sense of Lawler’s musical scope, while a delightful rendition of the multi-talented Richard Hardcastle’s ‘Breathe’ was the pick of a small handful of carefully chosen covers.

A much-anticipated debut EP from Lawler has long been in the offering, and this evening’s performance was a timely reminder of her unique talents as a singer-songwriter, reaffirming that the EP will definitely be worth the wait.