New album from Wake Festival organiser

Jo Bartlett, who runs The Wake Festival in Loxwood, has got her own album out, a collaboration with Neil Haydock.

It is called North Sixteen – which is Stoke Newington where she and her husband Danny wrote the songs.

Neil was previously in Submarine who played live with the Flaming Lips and Radiohead in the 90s along with recording two Peel Sessions.

And it was as Submarine's press officer at Ultimate Records that Jo first got to know him around 30 years ago.

As for Jo, she has been releasing music since she was a part of the C86 movement as a teenager, through to folktronica, (It's Jo & Danny), psychedelia (The Yellow Moon Band), solo and beyond.

“Neil played guitar in a couple of bands that I was in,” Jo says, “and we just kept in touch over the years. We released an EP last year. The way we do it is that we ping the tracks between us. I bring the songs. I play mainly acoustic though I do play some electric. He plays mainly electric but he does do some acoustic, and we get a great sound with our two guitars bouncing off each other. We get some great effects with the two guitars chiming across each other.

“I guess the sound is folky. It's based around an acoustic sound in the first instance but he plays a very alternative indie shoegaze electric guitar over the top of it, and I don't think that has been done before. There are no beats as such. I do some very gentle percussion but there is such an energy to it that it just feels full of rhythm.

“The lyrics are by my husband Danny. Danny writes the lyrics and I do the music, and there is a positivity that runs through everything. There is a real determination to get up and carry on. It is about stuff that we've been through when life has felt really hard but fortunately so far we've always had a happy ending and got through things! It's about positivity. It is also about that if you work on something then very often the right person will come along to work with you on it at the right moment.

“And I absolutely love it. From my point of view, I get very, very focused when I'm working on music. I get obsessive! But when you're in the zone you are in a kind of meditative state. You think that something doesn't sound good then it suddenly comes together and everything sounds great. And I just can't stop listening to the album. I'm really pleased with everything about it. I make perfect music for me to listen to! And the response has been really brilliant. We have had some great reviews.”

They are doing a number of gigs in support of the album including September 26 – The Hive, Crowthorne and September 27 – The Cabin, Camberley.

“After which I am really, really looking forward to some downtime!”