by Jacob Wingate-Bishop

Behold the folkish psychedelia of The Wanton String Band, bringing dance and fiddles to the world with their upcoming, self-titled debut.

‘A hypnotic repetition of the old time canon,’ is how onstage powerhouse The Wanton String Band have described their sound and it couldn’t be more accurate. October 2022 marked the release of the group’s debut single, ‘Deb’s’ – a six-minute, sprawling masterpiece in the art of dance and string arrangements. Through the use of fiddles, mandolins and cellos, the group have shown they can merge oldtime folk with the swagger and swing of modern dancefloors. With ease.

Following sets at Fire in the Mountain, Wilderness and Shambala Festival, November 10th marks the release of the group’s first full-length album, eponymously named. A collection of seven tracks – totalling forty minutes of unbridled, club-folk joy – masters of their craft Nathan, Stuart, Chris, Ewan, Richard and Jess reimagine traditional favourites to craft something wonderfully unique.

From a truly enthralling rendition of ‘Great Big Taters in the Sandy Land’ (‘Taters’) and ‘Waterbound’ – which hails from the late 1920s – through to a Victorian murder-ballad (‘Bloodstains’) and barn-blazer ‘Glory’, the Wanton String Band’s first studio release is punctuated with blistering string solos, dreamlike harmonies and moments of banjo brilliance.

Like Avicii with a bouzouki, the album conjures images of Dionysian banquets and dance-fuelled hysteria in fields of wildflowers, it’s a worthy debut. The group have created their own Midsommar without the darkness, as folky and psychedelic as it need be. A testament to the carnal pleasure we all seek in music.

The Wanton String Band’s first album, The Wanton String Band comes out November 10th. You can listen to their single, ‘Deb’s’ here: https://open.spotify.com/track/6OAAtotSOisf52haohV5VJ?si=1ce025ab381f4cf8

Or watch the music video here: https://youtu.be/gas3Mm_Sf1Q

You can get all the latest from their website here: https://wantonstringband.net/