High & Lonesome is back. At least it will be, come the second Saturday in November. Following on from the tremendous success of last year’s inaugural event, the festival that embraces all things Americana, acoustic and beyond, will return to Leeds for its second annual edition.
And in what is a wonderful coup for High & Lonesome, the event organisers have just announced that one of this year’s headliners will be Josh T. Pearson. Four years ago the Texas-born songwriter and former Lift To Experience band member released one of the albums of the year in Last of the Country Gentlemen. It’s battered and bruised account of the breakdown of his marriage remains a classic of its genre and was recently afforded a rightful place in Uncut magazine’s 50 Best Singer-Songwriter Albums of all time. It will be a real treat to see him back in Yorkshire once again.
Also scheduled to appear at High & Lonesome in November will be two other highly regarded songwriters, Neil Halstead (a man with the most estimable Slowdive and Mojave 3 associations) and the Hastings based musician Tom Williams. At Wakefield’s recent Long Division festival, Williams impressed with a performance that spoke of great assurance and emotional maturity.
Lewis & Leigh, Harry Mundy & the Mules, Cottonwoolf, Simeon Walker, Olivia Naio and Fitzwallace form part of what is already a very strong undercard. Expect many more announcements in the coming weeks and months.
In other breaking news, it was revealed that High & Lonesome will this year move out of the city centre and into two new locations in west Leeds. The first of them, and one 
that needs no introduction is the legendary local live music venue, the Brudenell Social Club. Both of the Brudenell’s music rooms will be utilised for High & Lonesome. The other is the neighbouring Left Bank Leeds; in the last few years, the former St Margaret of Antioch’s Church and Grade II listed building has been completely repaired, restored and reinvented as a beautiful, developing arts and events venue.
High & Lonesome festival is an all-day event and will be held on Saturday 14th November 2015. Further information about the festival, including details of how to buy tickets (priced at a perfectly reasonable £20 plus booking fee), can be obtained here
Photo credit: Simon Godley
