“We originally booked Loreley on the basis of their demo CD. When we saw them live, we really liked them (and so did the audience), so we’re delighted to welcome back this fab duo.” – The Goose is Out
About Us
It was not long until Loreley had amassed enough material for a short EP, entitled “Two Blind Mice” (released March 2015), and a full-length album release followed in December the same year (“Fortified”). Both albums received fantastic feedback in local press, with the Southern Daily Echo calling them “one of the UK’s top up-and-coming duos” (9th April 2016), and this position was cemented in 2016 with numerous shows at some of the folk circuits top festivals and clubs, a tour supporting critically-acclaimed songwriter Reg Meuross, BBC radio interviews, award wins (Best Duo – Graham Steel Music Awards), and even a few performances down in New Zealand.
"The most dramatic performance I've ever seen at a folk club!" - Loughton Folk Club
"Loreley played a fantastic set combining authentic traditional folk music with a 21st Century edge." - Colin Williams, Hall of Sound
“They have the correct approach and approach everything in a professional and enthusiastic manner.” – Graham Steel, Graham Steel Music Company
From their humble beginnings in Reading during the closing months of 2014, Loreley have gone from strength to strength, already turning small ripples into waves in the folk scene both locally and nationally. The duo of Maddy Glenn (vocals, percussion, whistles) and Simon James Chisholm (guitar, mandolin, dulcitar, concertina) came together whilst studying completely different subjects at Reading University through a shared love of folk and traditional music; inspired musically by the likes of Show of Hands, Bellowhead, Emily Portman, and Seth Lakeman, the duo began to play and compose together. However, it was not until a chance encounter with the EFDSS’s Full English project that the vision for Loreley was formed, as a project with the aim of exploring archives of mostly-forgotten folk songs in order to breathe new life into them with a variety of new tunes and arrangements completely composed by Loreley themselves.
Alongside being a professional musician, Simon is an MA student at the University of Sheffield and a journalist for Noizze.
Simon James Chisholm
Outside of Loreley, Maddy is also an aspiring novelist (writing a fantasy novel), and a blogger.
Maddy Glenn
Awards:
- Graham Steel Music Awards 2016 - Best Duo (Winners)
- Artree Live! Emerging Talent 2016 - (Second Place)
- Graham Steel Music Awards 2017 - Best Duo (Finalists)
“One of the UK’s top up-and-coming duos” - Southern Daily Echo
“A dark, progressive exploration of traditional folk music, but with a modern twist.” - Noizze Magazine