Folk festival lures up-and-coming band Admiral Fallow north

Hotly-tipped Scottish band Admiral Fallow have been booked to perform at Shetland Folk Festival at the beginning of May.

Last month the band opened for Snow Patrol at the Glasgow SECC in front of 10,000 people and staged a sell-out Celtic Connections gig.

The folk festival has booked them for a one-off gig on Thursday 3rd May, part of the 32nd annual four-day event.

Following Admiral Fallow’s sell-out Glasgow show on 27th January, a five-star review in the Herald proclaimed: “There are very few occasions when one is lucky enough to be present when a band takes the step into the big league. Friday night was one of these.”  

A group formed in 2007 by Scottish singer-songwriter Louis Abbott (formerly known as Brother Louis Collective), Admiral Fallow’s richly distinctive mesh of acoustic and electric textures has gained a fast-expanding fan base including BBC2’s “Whispering” Bob Harris.

With their orchestral indie folk-pop repertoire, the band continues to attract admiring comparisons to Arcade Fire. The single Squealing Pigs from their debut Boots Met my Face album was performed live on BBC television’s Hogmanay Live show on 31st December.

As part of the Year of Creative Scotland, the organisers have received investment from Creative Scotland specifically to expand the festival’s innovative programming in an attempt to deliver additional audience numbers from Shetland and further afield.  

Mhari Pottinger from the organising committee said: “We are always looking for ways to enhance what the festival has to offer and we hope that by booking a big up and coming, more mainstream group that this will grow our audience further.

“Admiral Fallow have already secured a significant following in the central belt and won favourite new band status across a swathe of folk, pop and indie opinion. Being able to market an act that are poised for the big time, as part of our visiting artiste line up, is a really exciting development for us.”

Awarding the investment, Iain Munro of Creative Scotland said having Admiral Fallow perform was “a fantastic coup” and would draw “more people than ever” to the festival.

Meanwhile, the festival organisers have added another Scottish act to the mainstream line up – Ross Ainslie & Jarlath Henderson. Arguably the most dynamic double-act on today’s Celtic scene, this Scottish/Irish piping duo have won huge plaudits for their 2008 debut album, Partners in Crime, as well as for their live performances.

Advance festival membership is now on sale and until 2nd March, with membership forms/information available on the festival website. Tickets for all concerts will go on sale to advance members in the middle of March and to the general public from 6th April. On that date a booking form will be downloadable from the website and enclosed in every copy of The Shetland Times.