USA singer-songwriter Juliet Lloyd to play York, Leeds & Sheffield on debut UK tour

Juliet Lloyd: Debut UK tour

AMERICAN singer-songwriter Juliet Lloyd will play FortyFive Vinyl Café, Micklegate, York, on July 10 on her debut British tour.

The ten-date itinerary will take in further Yorkshire gigs at Café No 9, Sheffield, on July 6 (7.30pm) and Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds, on July 7 (8pm), supported by Zoe Cure.

Drawing on influences ranging from Laurel Canyon-era singer/songwriters to Lilith Fair rockers, confessional country/folk balladeers to indie pop, Washington DC musician Lloyd released her latest album Carnival in 2024.

The UK tour was preceded by her May 16 single Wild Again, a song born out of a New York Times podcast about efforts to return the whale that played Willy in the 1993 film Free Willy to the wild.

“It’s an insane, heartbreaking story that asks all kinds of thorny questions about human responsibility and humility, and what’s the ‘right’ thing to do and is that the same as the ‘kind’ thing to do,” says Juliet.

“There was a line that one of the trainers said in the podcast, explaining that they were trying to ‘train him to be wild again’. The complete absurdity of that statement hit me in the moment, and I immediately started jotting down lyrical ideas.”

Raised in rural New York, Juliet was a classically trained pianist and jazz trumpet player from an early age before studying songwriting at Berklee College of Music and becoming a fixture in the Boston singer-songwriter scene.

The artwork for Juliet Lloyd’s latest single, Wild Again

Lloyd released her debut album, the heavily jazz-influenced All Dressed Up, in 2005, although she rejected the “jazz” label at the time. “I am a piano player and a woman, so I was immediately compared to Norah Jones—and I bristled at that,” she says. “Listening back now, I can totally see that it was true, and it of course wasn’t a bad thing.”

After the slick piano pop of her sophomore album, 2007’s Leave The Light On, elicited five of its songs being placed on reality TV shows on MTV and VH1, in 2009 she walked away from writing and recording for more than ten years, feeling burnt out and unhappy with her career progression, like so many other independent artists.

She switched to a lucrative corporate job, but after going through a divorce in 2019, in the midst of the global pandemic, Lloyd found herself pulled back toward the siren call of songwriting, whereupon she made the leap to pursue it full time.

In 2022, she released High Road, an EP of five Americana/soul-tinged songs produced by Jim Ebert that earned her songwriting awards both in Wasahington DC and nationally.

Next came her first full-length album since her return. Recorded in an unhurried process over nearly 15 months and produced by Todd Wright, Carnival’s nine songs are a study in contrasts.

Light and dark, devastating and self-deprecating, apologetic and angry, conversational and conceptual, they weave elements of pop, folk, soul and rock to create an often unexpected platform for Lloyd’s unflinching storytelling.

“These songs have helped me make sense of emotions and experiences that have happened both recently and those that I’ve buried for 20-plus years, to confront truths about myself and about others that I’ve been afraid or unwilling to say out loud,” Juliet says. “I’ve never been a confrontational person. But this is definitely a confrontational album – and I love it.”

The cover artwork for Juliet Lloyd’s 2024 album, Carnival

Carnival is full of deeply personal songs drawn from Lloyd’s experiences and relationships. “Coming out of that album cycle, I was feeling a little exhausted by my own navel-gazing and I was craving inspiration elsewhere,” she says.

“So, a lot of the songs I’m writing now are an evolution of sorts – focused more on external stimuli and finding the personal stories and humanity in that.”

Carnival’s songs are marked by urgency and honesty. “I’ve always been envious of writers who say they write songs because they have to, because they had these things they just had to get out of themselves,” says Juliet. “I had never really felt that way until this album. I’ve become someone who writes because they have to.”

Take the song Sorry Now, for example, written as an interrogation of her divorce. “I had a really visceral memory of sorting through our shared stuff when I moved out, boring things like kitchen utensils and towels, and what felt so mechanical at the time now feels coloured with sadness,” says Juliet.

“I wanted to pose questions in the lyrics, to myself and to whoever needs to hear them, because I still don’t have everything figured out, and that’s okay.”

Carnival marked a shift in her songwriting too. “Though I still primarily consider myself a piano player, I write and play more guitar now,” says Juliet. “That definitely influences the kinds of songs I write, because I’m so limited by the chords I can play right now. It’s forced me to be simple and to put more of an emphasis on lyrics than I may have in past.”

Lloyd performs 150 shows a year, both solo and with her band, at clubs and listening rooms across the United States. Now comes her debut UK tour. Doors open at 7pm for her FortyFive Vinyl Café show; tickets are on sale at fortyfiveuk.com/events/juliet-lloyd. For Sheffield, wegottickets.com/event/650457; Leeds, seetickets.com/event/juliet-lloyd/hyde-park-book-club/3322164.

‘No-one sings like Stella Prince’, as Nashville’s Americana & folk teenager books Nov dates in York and Filey cafés

Stella Prince: Nashville folk/Americana/roots teen talent on her way to York, Filey and Sheffield

NASHVILLE singer-songwriter Stella Prince will play FortyFive Vinyl Café, Micklegate, York, on November 3 and Thirty Café & Eatery, Belle Vue Street, Filey, on November 6 on her 12-date autumn tour.

Still in her teens in and seeking to progress her career in the UK as well as the USA, she has booked these tour dates herself, including a third Yorkshire gig at The Greystones, Sheffield, on November 2.

Born and raised in Woodstock, New York, Stella is now based in Nashville, Tennessee, where she hosts a monthly all-female Americana/folk showcase at The Underdog; the only one of its kind in Nashville. 

Founded in May 2023 with the aim of creating a space for women in music to perform and meet other performers, specifically in the Americana and folk field, each bill features four or five women, Stella included, singing up to three songs each and introducing themselves. The events are sponsored by the legendary organisation changetheconvo.net

Stella is the only child of creative parents – a painter/photographer and a writer – and was immersed in music from an early age, thanks to her parents’ extensive, all-genre CD collection and her frequent attendance at concerts, where she first encountered Levon Helm, Amy Helm, Pete Seeger, Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul And Mary fame), Tracy Bonham and Natalie Merchant.

Growing up, Stella was influenced by pop and oldies music too. She began taking voice lessons at the age of four, piano lessons at six, guitar lessons at nine, and wrote her first song aged ten. From 12 to 14, she hosted her own 1930s–1940s’ oldies radio show.

She graduated from high school at 15 (during the early months of the pandemic in 2020) and earned her two-year associates degree – with a focus on music – at 16.

The pandemic pushed her into deciding to focus on a career in music. In 2021, she began to release songs and play live, travelling to Nashville and Los Angeles. Four singles emerged that year: The Rain Might Fall, Scared, Before You Leave and Alone For The Holidays

2022 was groundbreaking, marked by Stella’s first international run in the UK and an 18-city tour of the American Southwest. Her first single to be aired on the radio, Crying On A Saturday Night, charted on the Americana Singles Chart; her July follow up, Eighteen, debuted on the Folk Alliance International Charts and the Alternative Country Charts.

Closing Doors, produced by Professor Louie (who did likewise for three albums by The Band), was released in November 2022, debuting at number 15 on the North American College & Community Radio Chart. The accompanying video has received more than 118,000 views on YouTube since its launch in May 2023.

The artwork for Stella Prince’s latest single, Two Faced

In February, Stella was awarded a First Timers Scholarship at Folk Alliance. She has  been performing around Nashville since her move there and has a busy autumn diary ahead.

For her latest single, Two Faced, out now, she had the pleasure of working with Steve Fishell, Nashville pedal steel guitarist, Grammy-winning record producer and educator, whose stellar credits include Dolly Parton, John Prine, Mavis Staples and Emmylou Harris. “No-one sings like Stella Prince,” he says. “I was transported the first time I heard her and I bet you will be too.”

Accentuated by Fishell’s pedal steel, the song opens with the harrowing lines: “You got her right where you wanted… Lonely enough so she’d take the bait… Blinded by words that were only an empty promise… Desperation paves way for mistakes.”

The chorus asserts: “There’s all kinds of empty… but the hardest one to take… is lies that seem tempting… Loneliness is two faced.”

Stella says:“My big goal is for someone to play my song and think, ‘That’s exactly how I feeI’. I want my songs to resonate with everyone, every generation, every issue: loneliness, fear, all of that.”

Self-produced, Two Faced was recorded at the legendary Sound Stage Studios on Music Row in Nashville, where the likes of Johnny Cash, George Strait, Miranda Lambert and Buddy Guy have held recording sessions.

“It was an amazing experience: my first time ever recording with a full band”, says Stella. “Actually, this song specifically is the first ever song I recorded with more than just me. It was wild and incredible.”

Joining her at SoundStage, along with Fishell, were Nashville players Ben Garrett (keys, guitar), PJ Schreiner (drums), Mike Dunton (electric guitar) and Father Phillip (bass).

Should you be wondering, Stella names her era-spanning influences as Judy Garland, Karen Carpenter, Patsy Cline, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton and Taylor Swift.

Box office: York, fortyfiveuk.com/whatson; Filey, wegottickets.com/event/590339; Sheffield, wegottickets.com/event/589263

Fancy a cuppa at FortyFive Vinyl Café? Not to drink but to view or buy in Lotte Inch’s exhibition by a cracking set of makers

“I’ve been a huge fan of Ali Tomlin’s work for some time now,” says Cups and Such curator Lotte Inch

DESIGNED to be a hug for you, or for someone else, the Cups and Such pop-up exhibition of beautiful, handmade drinking vessels promises to offer comfort and solace for all, says curator Lotte Inch.

Working in tandem with exhibition hosts FortyFive Vinyl Café, the welcoming haven of music, coffee and comfort food in Micklegate, York, Lotte Inch Gallery has selected cups, mugs, beakers, tea bowls and more, made by hand by Rebecca Callis, Reiko Kaneko, Ali Tomlin and the Leach Studios.

“After two years of not really being able to be close to our nearest and dearest, I imagine that I’m not alone in saying that the search for warmth and comfort in other objects and experiences has become an essential part of our every day,” says Lotte.

“Providing a sense of connection and an opportunity to embrace, we hope that through Cups and Such, you will all find something that offers that hug-in-a-mug feeling from the selection of deftly curated pieces.”

“The search for warmth and comfort in other objects and experiences has become an essential part of our every day,” says Lotte

Here CharlesHutchPress asks Lotte Inch for her thoughts on mugs, cups, tea, coffee and cafés.

How and why did you select Rebecca Callis, Reiko Kaneko, Ali Tomlin and the Leach Studios to take part in this exhibition, Lotte? 

“Rebecca, Reiko and the Leach Studios have exhibited with Lotte Inch Gallery since the early days, and I’ve always loved their work, each one being so different from the other.

“It’s been a joy to see how Rebecca and Reiko’s work has developed over the years and I’m honoured to have been witness to this while collaborating with them.

“I’ve been a huge fan of Ali Tomlin’s work for some time now too, and when planning this show, I decided to ask if she’d like to be a part of it. Thankfully for me, and York’s ceramics fans, she said ‘yes’!”

A handmade tea-drinking vessel by Ali Tomlin at FortyFive Vinyl Café

What are the “and more” items in the exhibition?

“Some of the makers in the show have some beautiful jugs that complement the drinking vessels on display. And there are a few items from other makers that might have caught my eye and crept into the exhibition too – although once they have sold, they’re gone, so I’d recommend getting down there soon to see for yourself.”

After mounting Jonny Hannah’s Songs For Down Town Lovers exhibition in February 2020 and now Cups and Such, what makes FortyFive Vinyl your favourite York café ?

“It might be something to do with being married to one of the owners! Or perhaps the amazing grilled cheese sandwiches! But on a serious note, it’s just such a welcoming, easy-going and adaptable space. I love the combination of music and art and the large walls offer a brilliant backdrop for exhibiting work.

“It’s been a joy to see how Reiko Kaneko’s work has developed over the years,” says Lotte. Picture: Cat Garcia

“I love that it’s also open in the evenings at weekends for gigs or just for a beer. It’s that flexibility of the place that makes it an ideal venue to collaborate with on projects or to just visit in a more everyday capacity.”

What is your favourite cuppa? Tea or coffee?

“Tea. I can’t start the day without it. And it’s the last thing I drink before I go to bed at night.”

Milk first or teabag and water first?

“This depends on how much of a rush I’m in and if I’m making it just for me or for someone else. Inevitably, the milk goes in first, with the teabag, these days! Toddlers and opportunities for relaxed tea-drinking don’t really go hand in hand.”

Mug for coffee…teacup for tea…Or aren’t you fussy?

“A bone china or fine stoneware mug for either would be my preference. As long as it isn’t a polystyrene cup, I’m happy!”

A mug by Reiko Kaneko in the Cups and Such exhibition

How do you feel when you break a mug or cup?

“Generally, pretty devastated. If it’s salvageable and can be used in another capacity, I will try and find another use for it. Otherwise, I try and take it as an opportunity to replace it with another mug from one of my favourite makers.”

Favourite biscuit to go with a cuppa?

“Dark Chocolate Digestives. Definitely something chocolatey.”

Do you have a favourite mug in your home?

“I have a porcelain mug that I bought before I opened Lotte Inch Gallery, made by Irish maker Adam Frew. I would be heartbroken if this one got smashed. I think it was buying this at Ceramic Art London that sparked my love for collecting – and selling – ceramics. I’ve always wanted to work with Adam, but it’s never quite worked out. One day maybe?”

Cups and Such…or, A Hug In A Mug, a pop-up exhibition by Lotte Inch Gallery, runs at FortyFive Vinyl Café, Micklegate, York, until March 6. Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, 10am to 5pm, Friday, 10am to 8pm; Saturday, 10am to 6pm.