Since his departure from folk-rock pioneers Steeleye Span at the end of 2013, legendary fiddle player Peter Knight has turned his full attention to his trio Gigspanner, and in the process has firmly established their burgeoning reputation as one of the most innovative acts on the folk/roots scene.
A glance at the band's Guestbook page offers an insight into the emotional impact their performances exert..."spellbinding" "sublime" "blown away" "inspired" and "magical" are familiar themes.
Hailed by Songlines as "another milestone in folk's rebirth of cool", there is however far more to Gigspanner than meets the eye, and to categorise these virtuoso performers purely as folk musicians would be to significantly undersell them, and to deny audiences the full scope of their musical embrace.
As expected, British traditional music forms the bedrock of the trio's repertoire, but the approach is what sets it apart...leaving enough room with the arrangements to spread and stretch the music in the moment.
In Peter's own words "there is nothing more exciting than finding yourself lost in a new layer of inspiring and spontaneous music". But taking it even further, subliminal, multicultural influences are fed into the mix, flirting audaciously with French, Cajun, Cuban and even Eastern European traditions.