After the success of 2008’s festival tent, we packed our wellies and sunhats and returned to Leicester for the Summer Sundae Weekender. (14th-16th August 2009). Once again we dished up our quirky blend of words and music as songs, poems, readings, conversations and whatever else you want to call it.
You can see our special festival film here:
The P& C programme included Newcastle songstress Beth Jeans Houghton, gentle and beautiful folk collective Woodpigeon, sugar-rush pop purveyors Skint & Demoralised, and singer-songwriter and ardent lyricist Jeremy Warmsley.
We had poets fronting bands, and in-your-face Salena Godden with her Boutique Club band. Lyrical wordsmiths included poetry’s answer to the Arctic Monkeys, Byron Vincent; the awesomely talented Inua Ellams; Francesca Beard; Ross Sutherland; Stuart Silver; Tim Clare; Tamsin Kendrick; Stephanie Leal and Jonny Fluffypunk. All in all, 46 artists took to the Phrased & Confused stage over the three days.
Our 2009 commissions programme included fantastic new material by KateTempest’s storming band Sound of Rum, Hannah Silva with percussionist Alexis Kirke. a new folk-inspired trio, The Pencil String Horn Project, from the mercurial Joshua Idehen.and mother and son duo, slam poet Sifundo and 15 year old MC Jamal Msebele.
Our New Voices strand featured emerging live lit performers John Osborne, Michael Edwards, Lorna Meehan and Alyson Stoneman and Liv Torc.
We had lots of great audience contributions to the Phrased & Confused tent, in the form of workshops with some of our poets, poetry bingo and Fridge Poetry, and once again around 1800 of you came and checked us out. We also produced our first poetry podcasts.
Friday
Saturday Podcast
Sunday Podcast
And during the festival we also took time out to speak to Emma of Emmy the Great – heres the video evidence!