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Club Débris are a joyous Quebec-inspired folk band based in London. Its members will be known to many who are familiar with the London session scene. They are (see more detailed bios below): Maisie Greenwood (fiddle, podorhythmie), Will Allen (accordion, fiddle, podorhythmie), Duncan Menzies (fiddle, banjo), Will Chamberlain (Piano) and versatile and virtuoso percussive dancer Jess Collins. They seem incredibly well-matched and there’s an undeniable joy in their execution of the Québécois tunes they’ve all come to love. The tagline: “high-energy trad/folk music in brazenly major keys: no-nonsense tunes with a pro-nonsense attitude“, sums them up well…never a truer word said, and you can see this in action for yourself below. There is something very warm and genuine about them that makes the music feel more vibrant and real…a Quebecois-style drop of the pure.
Filmed by Sam Webb at The Harrison, the band play two tunes that also feature on their forthcoming debut album, Ricochet, due for release on Friday, 27th September 2024 (pre-order: https://clubdebris.bandcamp.com/album/ricochet).
Like most of the tunes on the Ricochet, these two were picked up by Maisie Greenwood, Will Allen and Duncan Menzies at sessions and given new life when the band came together and started to put together their first few sets. Marche des Élèves was written by self-taught fiddle player and composer Richard Forest, who is highly regarded as a mainstay of today’s traditional music scene in Quebec. Peas Breakdown is a popular session tune, also known as ‘Pete’s breakdown’, after its composer Emilien “Pete” Couture (1903-1977), a fiddle player from Alberta, Edmonton.
Maisie shared the following:
“We tend to gravitate towards infectiously jolly, major-key tunes, so we put these two together in an attempt (perhaps a futile one..!) to bring in a hint of moody darkness to our sets. Will C had fun adding some chunky chords to the first tune, and we played around a bit with the moody tension… but it doesn’t last long as the second tune creeps back into a jollier mood, and even breaks away into trusty old D-major when we get to the B-part. Eventually Jess jumps in on the percussive dance and there’s no escaping the party”
The album will be launched at The Jamboree, Sunday, 29 September 2024 as part of the Harrison All Day Folk Festival, Kings Cross, London WC1X 9HH.
Band-members bios:
Maisie Greenwood (fiddle, podorhythmie): Established fiddle player in the London session scene, former member of Band of Burns, and well-travelled, multilingual musician playing a wide repertoire of tunes from England, Ireland, Scotland, Scandinavia and North America, including many learned from playing at sessions in Montreal and Quebec City.
Will Allen (accordion, fiddle, podorhythmie): Kent/London-based accordion and fiddle player, one half of instrumental duo Brown Boots, and regarded as one of the top box players on the English trad music scene.
Duncan Menzies (fiddle, banjo): Scottish multi-instrumentalist and Doctor of electronic bagpipes, performs regularly around the UK and Europe as a member of Americana trio Copper Viper, pagan speed-folk pioneers PerKelt, and banjo-wielding purveyors of general silliness Banjöverkill.
Will Chamberlain (Piano): Piano player hailing from north-east England, member of the powerhouse Brown Boots Boogie Band, ceilidh band Dodging Pheasants, and one half of folk-dance duo WillPower, Will brings his signature eclectic harmony and rhythmic style to Club Débris.
Jess Collins: Versatile and virtuoso percussive dancer from London, dancing a mix of styles including jazz tap, Appalachian flat footing and Irish sean-nós. Member of Sally in the woods, a trio radically retelling the stories of the English folk tradition, and Mná, an all-female traditional Irish quintet.
Extra notes: Will Allen & Will Chamberlain also play together as folk-dance duo WillPower, and in the expanded dance band version of the duo Brown Boots, known as Brown Boots Boogie Band. Will Allen has released two solo albums: English Fiddle and English Fiddle II. Jess regularly teaches beginner and intermediate percussive dance lessons at her studio in London, and recently released her own album of songs, percussive dance and tunes, entitled Take Me Back to London, with Charlie Wheatley. Alongside being a musician, Maisie is also a professional freelance conference interpreter and translator, working with French, Spanish and Arabic.
Richochet will be self-released on 27 September 2024
Pre-Order via Bandcamp: https://clubdebris.bandcamp.com/album/ricochet
Club Debris will be playing LIVE at The Harrison All Day Folk Festival on Sunday, 29 September.
The Jamboree, Kings Cross, London WC1X 9HH
The all-dayer also features Flotsam Orchestra, Julie Abbe, Jack Pout, Leonie Evans, Club Debris, Nick Hart, Whiskey Moon Face, Tantz, Duncan Disorderly and The Skallywag.
Instagram: @club.debris
Facebook: Club.Debris
