Beth Orton

TONIGHT’S TIMINGS

7pm Doors

7.20pm Support – Do No Harm

8pm Support – Hinako

9pm Beth Orton

Estimated finish 10.30pm

“Sublimely beautiful, fragile vocals floating over synths and sparse keyboards” Backseat Mafia on Weather Alive (2022)

Beth Orton has long been regarded as possessing one of the most unique and expressive voices in music – a voice that has grown evermore rich and wise over time. Her 1996 debut Trailer Park pioneered a synthesis of electronic and acoustic sounds, while its 1999 follow-up Central Reservation garnered international success. Further albums like the Jim O’Rourke-produced Comfort of Strangers and 2016’s largely electronic Kidsticks deepened the breadth of her craft. Her stunning new album Weather Alive once again veers into new territory. Indeed, the foundations of its songs are nothing more than Orton’s voice and a “cheap, crappy” upright piano installed in a shed in her garden, conjuring a deeply meditative atmosphere that remains long after the final note has evaporated.

Orton explains: “Through the writing of these songs and the making of this music, I found my way back to the world around me – a way to reach nature and the people I love and care about. This record is a sensory exploration that allowed for a connection to a consciousness that I was searching for. Through the resonance of sound and a beaten up old piano I bought in Camden Market while living in a city I had no intention of staying in, I found acceptance and a way of healing.”