Gig review: Kathryn Williams & Withered Hand

Why should anyone care about small music venues? This is why. It’s a Tuesday evening in Durham, and the “sold out” signs are up. The Holy GrAle, one of the city’s classier bars, is welcoming Kathryn Williams and Withered Hand (Dan Willson’s stage name) as they promote their recent joint album. Both have played bigger venues than this, both have headlined on the folk festival circuit, so tonight is a rare chance to explore some new music in a different ambience.

“Intimate” is the over-used term for this kind of show, commonplace to the point of cliché. But, like so many clichés, it remains apposite. There’s no stage, so our artists plonk themselves on barstools between a couple of speakers. Far from a Swiftian spectacle, the backdrop consists of beer bottles and packets of crisps. In the student flat above, occasional footsteps thump our ceiling. Tonight’s special guest star is a life-size cardboard Elvis, introduced to an appreciative crowd ahead of a song about Elvis Costello.

The vibe is laid-back. A couple of fluffed notes in a new song can be laughed off. Even a fumble in a concert standard is treated indulgently by the crowd. Phones are a merciful rarity: nobody tries to video the whole show, most of us are content to grab a souvenir snap or two (guilty, see above) before pocketing the gadgets and enjoying the music. The one exception is a lady carefully producing a pencil sketch of it all (I wish I’d got to see the finished product, but our paths didn’t cross).

But don’t mistake the casual feel for a lack of professionalism, or a performance akin to your mate doggedly strumming his way through “Wonderwall” after four cans of Stella and a barbequed burger. From the first seconds, Kathryn seized everyone’s attention with a spellbinding unaccompanied rendition of “All” (from her 2008 album “Two”, recorded with Neill MacColl). That was just the support act, a brief solo set from each artist, but it had the room hooked and the spell was never broken.

The meat of the evening was a full performance of the 10 songs from “Willson Williams”, the joint album released last month. It already has some devoted fans. One of them had travelled from Japan to hear the Durham gig (“And some people thought they’d come a long way from Middlesbrough,” joked Dan). Vocal writers might easily sympathize with “Shelf”, a quirky tale of putting up a new shelf before being swamped by another deluge of books, readers might recall my enthusiasm for “Weekend” ahead of the tour.

But the whole show is something special. Two voices, two guitars (plus occasional Mellotron), a steady flow of anecdote and some terrific songs ensured a great evening’s entertainment. These two have long admired each other’s music, and the partnership feels incredibly natural. Their voices complement one another effortlessly, their songwriting meshes effectively. And, in a small space, it was easy for the audience to feel part of the show; a quieter partner in a conversation, rather than a passive consumer gawping at the spectacle. The fireworks may be figurative rather than literal, but they sparkle no less brightly for that.

And that’s precisely why we should cherish and care about our small venues. At a time when alarming stats suggest that these rooms – often tucked into pubs, cafes or even launderettes – are under increasing threat, it’s more important than ever to support them. There’s a frequent appeal to the music snob in this, a call to rush out and hear the next big thing before they’re famous. But this slightly misses the point: smaller venues stand on their own merits. So thanks also to the Holy GrAle for having the courage to put on regular live shows alongside some of the best beer in town.

The Kathryn Williams / Withered Hand tour continues through May and June, at venues of varying sizes. Look out for tickets here. The album, “Willson Williams” is available via bandcamp.

Thanks for reading. For more thoughts on the music scene in the Northeast, check out my playlist series: Folksy flavours / Politics / Stockton Calling / Russia / Aelius / #6 / Border Crossings / #8