I first became aware of Faversham-based folk rock band Green Diesel and two years ago when I reviewed a CD of theirs Wayfarers All for the Bright Young Folk website. I was immediately impressed [“Green Diesel do folk rock and they do it superbly well”] and I’ve been meaning to try and catch them live ever since. When I saw that they were performing in Lewisham the night before I was due to visit London, I decided there and then to come a bit earlier and make them part of my itinerary.

I have a theory about English folk rock, a genre that’s been around now for coming up to 50 years. While there is nearly always a certain timelessness about the ‘folk’ element of folk rock, my observation has been that the ‘rock’ element usually tends to take the form of whatever rock influences were in vogue at the time the band was formed. Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span unmistakably come from an era of Traffic and Deep Purple and Status Quo, whereas Oysterband channel the vibe of early 80s alternative rock while The Levellers absolutely capture the spirit of early 90s Indie rock. This is exactly as it should be in many ways. Bands don’t form in a vacuum. For those of us who have that deep love and insatiable appetite for the folk rock sounds of the early 70s, however, it is a delightful surprise when we find a new(ish), young, contemporary folk rock act whose every note played pays eloquent tribute to that golden era of English folk rock (roughly starting with the release of Fairport Convention’s Liege & Lief album in 1969 and ending with Steeleye Span’s ‘All Around My Hat’ becoming a top 5 chart smash in 1975).

A bunch of six really talented musicians, Green Diesel, are now on to their third album. As in all of the best early 70s folk rock acts (of course!) they have a superb female lead vocalist in Ellen Clare but great additional vocals from Greg Ireland (who also acts as the band’s main songwriter) and the other male members of the bands. All the other ingredients are present and correct: beautifully melodic fiddle, mandolin and dulcimer, loud pumping bass, hard rocking guitar riffs and proper full-on rock star drumming. Material-wise, they perform a handful of notable traditional staples tonight (like the brilliant Mad Tom of Bedlam) but there is also a great deal of original material, showcasing the wealth of creative talent that exists in this band.

More Fairport than Fairport and more Steeleye than Steeleye this band are an absolute must-see for anyone with a love of early 70s folk rock. They went down brilliantly in Lewisham tonight and I’d love to see them going down a storm at some of the major festivals. This band are excellent and deserve to be much bigger.

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Photo credit: band publicity

Related review: Green Diesel – Wayfarers All CD Review