Live Review: Julian Taylor + Michele Stodart, The Town Hall, Kirton in Lindsey – 8th August 2025

One of the advantages of having caught the music bug at such an early age is that I have been privileged to witness some of the world’s finest artists, musicians, and singer-songwriters from the last six decades create their magic in front of an appreciative audience. In more recent years, several of those musical highlights have taken place upon the hallowed boards of the stage at the Town Hall, Kirton in Lindsey, the home of Americana music in Lincolnshire. However, what was witnessed by another full house at this revered venue on the second Friday in August 2025 will be forever remembered as an “I was there moment”.

Julian Taylor and his band, which consisted of Raevennan Husbandes on guitars and vocals, Michele Stodart on bass and vocals and Sian Monaghan on drums, were making no less than their third visit to The Town Hall in as many years, and the excitement of their return had been building for weeks, with discussions of their previous performances reverberating around a packed hall intoxicated with anticipation. Recent years have seen Taylor start to reap the rewards for over two decades of musical commitment that have seen him build an irreproachable reputation as a truly independent artist. Albums such as “The Ridge”(2020), “Beyond The Reservoir”(2022) and last year’s “Pathways”, along with a high-profile appearance at the 2023 Cambridge Folk Festival have all contributed to cementing his reputation this side of the pond, whilst airplay on BBC Radio 2 has helped take his infectious music to a wider audience that makes one feel that a most deserved breakthrough to bigger things is now surely on the cards.

The night’s show was split into two halves, which could loosely be described as an acoustic set followed by an electric set. However, the band remained on stage throughout with only Taylor swapping his instrument as he began the first set dressed in what appeared to be a smart, tan-coloured suede jacket with long tassels on the sleeves, acting almost as an extension to his braided hair that flowed down from beneath the trademark hat. He opened with a song that can already be described as a classic and clearly a favourite with the locals, ‘The Ridge’, with its emotive narrative that transports the audience across the Atlantic to a different place and time, and its tale of childhood recollections. The band immediately locked into the ambience of the track and throughout the first set continued to subtly deliver the perfect mix of empathy and intensity as Taylor traversed his recent albums to offer up one classic after another. The biographical ‘Ballad Of A Young Troubadour’ with its joyously infectious vocal intro found the local congregation in good voice, requiring little encouragement to take up the call to join in, at which point the atmosphere in the hall shifted up a gear, elevating the concert to another level, as if spiritually imbued. A level that would be maintained for the remainder of the show.

Two of the strongest songs from “Beyond The Reservoir” were also featured early in the first set, with both ‘Wide Awake’ and ‘100 Proof’ drawing from Taylor’s close connection to his extended family and the natural world. In truth, many of his songs have a common thread, with a strong sense of spirituality resonating through his poetry, as well as the stories he shares between songs, that instil a perception of togetherness and harmony so fractured in today’s troubled world.

There was time during the first half for Taylor to visit his most recent album with the title track, which included some delightful backing vocals from Stodart, and ‘Weighing Down’, which tackles the issues of low self-esteem and destructive thinking, both proving particularly popular. A real bonus was the inclusion of ‘Georgia Moon’ that originally appeared on the 2017 album “Absence Of The Sun” before the set concluded with the powerful ‘SEEDS’ that draws from the darker days of Canada’s history when it tried to destroy an indigenous culture via a residential school system that resulted in hundreds of deaths and schoolchildren buried in unmarked graves. It seems hard to imagine that a song of such hope and beauty could be born from such horrific origins, and yet in the hands and voice of Taylor, his poetry soared, hymnal in reverence, like a sermon without the preaching, the resurrection of hope and joy tangible around the hall as the musicians left the stage for the interval.

After approximately twenty minutes, during which time many from the audience took the opportunity to meet Taylor and take full advantage of the wares available on the merchandise table, the band returned for the second set. Taylor had by now discarded the jacket, swapping his acoustic guitar for an electric Fender Telecaster as he led his musical companions into the appropriately named ‘Back Again’ with its laid-back groove propelled along by the slightly more muscular dynamics of the electric set. The tempo continued with the soulful ‘Desert Star’ as Taylor’s vocals reached new heights, before the distinctive opening chords of ‘Bobbi Champagne’ ignited the blue touch paper in the room, the audience vociferously responding to Taylor’s request for vocal support as they bayed the title track back at him.

It’s been three years since Taylor first joined forces with the three musicians who shared the stage this evening, during which time they have supported him on all of his UK tours. It would be easy, too easy, to draw reverence to the fact that they are an all-female band, for the truth is their gender is irrelevant, as they are simply three outstanding musicians who collectively provide Taylor with the perfect conduit for his varied canon of musical styles. The sympathetic arrangements they supplied for the acoustic set, particularly Monaghan, who displayed the deftest of percussive touch, betraying a musicality of the highest order, were a joy to behold, while Husbandes, who, during the first half, had delivered some delightful slide guitar, was now supplying a mix of chunky rhythms and mind-blowing solo’s from her red Telecaster. Effortlessly underpinning everything was Stodart on bass, who, along with Husbandes, supplied constant backing vocals for Taylor. The joy exuding from the trio as they performed together was palpable, only matched by that of Taylor, clearly aware of his good fortune in sharing the stage with such talented musicians. It’s little wonder he returns to these shores so regularly. The fruits of this collaboration were perfectly demonstrated in the rendition of his most recent single release, ‘Dedication’. Recorded by the quartet, this wonderful track will appear on the upcoming album “Anthology II” due for release next month, and is already earmarked as another Taylor classic.

The joy emanating from the stage was infectious, flowing around the hall like an electric current, with the audience now on their feet dancing between the seats and down the aisles as the irresistible beat of ‘Just A Little Bit’ took on a life of its own. Stodart’s funky bass lines set Taylor off in a frenzy of gyrating dance moves as the chorus echoed through the windows down the streets and across the recently harvested Lincolnshire fields, the hall now more reminiscent of some southern state gospel choir, quite unlike anything it had previously witnessed. It truly was a “You had to be there moment”.

A recent recipient of ‘The King’s Medal’, awarded to individuals who have made a significant contribution to Canada, their province or region, Taylor, along with his band, had delivered such a high level of intoxicating entertainment that for a few hours this evening all the world’s troubles seemed banished, replaced by a sense of unified joy and renewed hope. As the local congregation spilt out onto the streets, the verdict of the regular attendees was one of unified agreement that this evening’s concert was most definitely the best yet.

The evening’s proceedings kicked off with a short five-song acoustic set from Stodart. The past year has proved to be something of a roller coaster for her. On the plus side, her latest album, “Invitation”, was awarded “Album Of The Year” at the AMAUK Awards while she was also their Artist Of The Year. However, a debilitating back problem during much of this period curtailed numerous musical projects, and though personal assurances regarding her well-being were given after the night’s show, Stodart did admit that her choice of bass guitar this evening, visually smaller and lighter, was a direct result of last year’s issue and the need for a little caution. That said, those of us who witnessed her dancing around the stage during the second half of Taylor’s set would be forgiven for believing that there had never been a problem. Long may that continue.

Her own short acoustic set was somewhat more serene in pace as it focused primarily on her most recent award-winning album, with its emotively raw songs that invite the listener to a darker place. Opening with ‘Tell Me’, Stodart’s distinctive vocals traverse a delightful and at times unexpected melodic path against a narrative of infidelity, a love affair in denial, on which her vocal delivery perfectly captured the fear of betrayal. ‘Push & Pull’ maintained the quality as it touched on themes of motherhood and relationships, while the laid-back rhythmic pulse of ‘These Bones’ helped to disguise the sinister undercurrent of Stodart’s poetry and wonderfully intense vocal delivery. Despite the limitations on time, there was still an opportunity for a track from her 2016 album “Pieces” with a gorgeous rendition of ‘Ain’t No Woman’ before closing the set with a new track entitled ‘Dismiss Me’. Due to be released shortly as a single, this quite exquisite song was one of the highlights of the whole evening, and whets the appetite for more new material.