As
an
avid
reader
and
walker,
Wes
takes
his
inspiration
from
stories,
characters
and
landscapes
of
Old
England.
His
songs
offer
a
great
deal
of
insight
and
observation
and
do
not
shy
away
from
the tougher
experiences of
life.
“There
are
a
few
songs”
he
points
out “
that
are
inspired
by
some
of
my
reading
over
the
last
year
or
so
(Ronald
Blythe,
Robert
Macfarlane,
Alan
Warner),
a
few
that
mix
personal
experience
and
personally
collected
stories
and
some
just
purely
made
up
tales.
There
are
some
dark
themes
running
through
the
songs:
loss,
tragedy,
depression
and
death.
Not
to
worry”,
he
laughs,
“I'm
feeling
pretty
good
myself!
“I
brought
all
these
lyrics
to
the
table
and
Gerry
and
I
worked
on
the
arrangements
of
half
of
them
together. We
both
agreed
we
wanted
to
Anglicise
this
record
a
little,
if
that
makes
sense;
to
avoid
the
Americana
influences
of
my
previous
recordings
which
can
often
lead
down
easy,
and
overly
trodden, musical
paths.
It
felt
right
to
approach
the
songs
in
this
manner
as
so
much
of
the
subject
matter
is
English
in
origin
and
outlook. ’Widow
Thomas’
is
about
the
wife
of
Edward
Thomas
going
to
meet
the
dying
Ivor
Gurney.
’Man
of
Bones‘
was
written
with
the
tradition
of
Death
And
The
Lady
in
mind
‐
someone
pleading
with
the
Grim
Reaper
for
more
time,
trying
to
bargain
for
life. ‘Red
Coat‘
was
inspired
partly
by
a
story
related
to
the
writer
Ronald
Blythe
about
a
newly
recruited
soldier
returning
on
leave
to
his
family
and
partly
by
a
story
told
to
me
by
an
artist
I
was
apprenticed
to
about
her
brother
on
leave
from
the
navy. 'Jackie's
Stone‘
was
sparked
off
by
reading
a
passage
in
an
Alan
Warner
novel
and
is
a
story
about
the
often
unsung
Irish
navvies
who
built
the
roads
and
canals
of
this
country. ‘Handfast’
is
about
the
pagan
version
of
marriage."
“Genre
barriers
seem
to
be
less
and
less
important
to
listeners
now”
Wes says.
“People
like
what
they
like.
Modern
music
is
more
about
what
elements
you
are
bringing
together.
I'm
without
a
traditional
folk
music
upbringing;
it
was
never
present
when
I
was
growing
up.
I
came
through
metal,
rock,
punk,
blues
and
country
before
I
got
to
folk
music
and
I
hope
I can
perhaps
bring
something
with
a
unique
new
flavour
to the
table
because
of
that. I
think
a
lot
of
what
we
do
as
writers
and
musicians
is
to
make
interesting
combinations
of
the
many
things
that
have
come
before.
True
originality
is
rare
if
not
impossible
today
but there
is
always
a
fresh
new
way
to
approach
and
contextualise
anything."
“Some
musical
forms,
the
folk
tradition
especially
can
sometimes
be
resistant
to
any
kind
of
evolution
but,
as
with
language,
it
inevitably
will
change
and
I
think
that's
a
healthy
thing.
Know
the
'rules'
and
the
tradition
and
don’t
be
afraid
to
break
from
it
and
bring
your
own
interpretation. “Someone
like
Gerry,
steeped
in
traditional
Irish
playing
but
also
with
a
vast
knowledge
and
experience
of
other
styles
of
music
and
production,
is
an
incredible
person
for
an
artist
like
me
to
work
with.
Gerry
isn't
scared
of
taking
risks,
getting
edgy
sonically
and
working
in
different
ways.
Partnering
with
him
on
a
project
like
this
really
feels
like
a
potent
combination
at
the
edge
of
modern
music
making.“
