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Lewes Guitar Festival
- Joe West
Anyone who witnessed Joe West’s Halloween gig in the
Lansdown a couple of years back will be itching to see him
again. Joe is a singer/songwriter from Santa Fe, New Mexico,
who is a legend in his own state and is making an increasing
reputation for himself over here. He bills himself as being
a ‘trailer park crooner’ and a ‘time travelling
Mark Twain gone punk’ which paints quite an accurate
picture of his amusing, intelligent and at times highly danceable
style.
“I may be working out my own demons here,” comments
the singer, “my subjects have a kind of spiritual desperation,
and they try to find salvation in all the wrong ways, through
drugs and alcohol. I make fun of our own failures as humans:
our pretences, our greed, our dependency. But personally,
I have an optimistic outlook.” ‘Joe West is for
all underdogs, losers and lovers… his wicked mix of
pathos and humour is laced with a deep respect for humanity’s
vulnerabilities and weaknesses, especially its addictions,’
says the blurb on his website. ‘West finds no subject
unworthy, no tunnel too dark. Luckily his respect for life
and his brilliant sense of humour reassure that there’s
always a light at the end, even if it’s just a naked
bulb.’ Expect a bluegrassy punk-folk gone honkytonk.
Expect to be entertained. Expect to laugh. Maybe even expect
to shed a tear. DL |
