Callow Saints

The Camden Rocks Festival is crazy, crazier than Camden is normally, and Callow Saints’ set on the Vive Le Rock stage is absolutely no exception.

The band won a competition to be part of the bill, but they are every bit at home alongside acts like Ginger Wildheart and Peckham Cowboys, the latter on stage just moments before our Aylesbury favourites.

And wow, do Callow Saints have a big sound! Their sound is so big that my camera inadvertently takes a purple picture (see above), even technology is shocked!

So in short, Aylesbury has spawned a band that not only are right at home with stars including amazing roots punks Penetration and Glen Matlock, rock star Ginger and folk hero Billy Bragg; they are also pretty damn amazing and unique and certainly one to watch.

Here’s their set list from the day:

Haven’t Eaten in Days
No Worries
Hurricane
Musculoskeletal
Good Time
Music and the Love
Instigator
So Tired - The Bucks Herald

Summer festivities were in full swing at Christmas Common over the weekend.

The third annual Beacon Festival proved you don’t have to be one of the UK’s big name festivals to pack a musical punch.

The festival in Watlington is one of Oxfordshire’s smaller events over festival season.

Musicians from all over the south of England showed off their skills over three stages at the two day festival.

But it also embraced more than just music. A children’s area and a comedy tent also provided entertainment.

Acts such as Oxford country singer Nikki Loy, Sonning Common’s very own Fabulous Ukulele Club and covers group, The Band with No Name from Thame, entertained an audience of both young and old on Friday, June 17 and Saturday, June 18.

But for me there was one band in particular that stood out.

Aylesbury rock, grunge and alternative band Callow Saints performed tunes off their debut EP, ‘Live and Wired’, which had the Watlington faithful on their feet.

Lead singer Ruby Lewis said: “We have a fan base that will follow us to any gig and that is a really cool thing to have.

“If you’re a band that doesn’t have fans, what’s the point?

“But when you see new people at your shows dancing, and even singing along sometimes, you just go, ‘wow’, because it proves that the songs are catchy, which is what we are trying to do.

“We want the songs to stick in their heads and make them think, ‘who did that song’? They look us up and that’s how we get accidental fans.”

Originally a three-piece of Alex Chadwick on drums, Oran Green on bass and guitarist Seb James, the band was joined by Ruby six months later.

They have now been running for two and a half years.

The band’s energetic shows and feel good songs have helped them line-up a number of gigs, including a show at Oxford’s O2 Academy on July 22. - The Oxfordshire Guardian