Izzie Derry at Sherbourne Valley Allotments
Review
As you know, with all this wonderful original musical talent around in Coventry & Warwickshire these days, I do worry about having sufficient suitable places for the artists to demonstrate it. Therefore attending a gig at a new venue is great news, though I was a little bit surprised to find myself reporting from one at Sherbourne Valley Allotments last Sunday. My first concert in any allotments. I mentioned this to Hannah Woof the previous day who congratulated me on being able to tick a milestone off my list, though to be fair, it had only been on my list since I knew a few weeks earlier that Izzie Derry was performing for Coventry Food Union at their base as part of their "Song & Soil" events.
It was a fine fit: her music was ideal for the space & the crowd (fortunately the weather was co-operative too) and also meshed tightly with her values. I've covered quite a few of her performances recently, so I haven't too much to add except how well it went down and to answer my own question from my review of her current single "When Will It End". I wasn't sure if she could play it live in solo format given the richness of the recorded arrangement but of course she could & it was revealed as a powerful blues in its stripped back form. Same song, same sentiments but a complementary perspective.
I'd like therefore to concentrate for the remainder of the review on Coventry Food Union & examine why artists (many of whom we've covered) such as Izzie, Wes Finch, Lauren South, Duke Keats, Diana Stefanescu & WorldSong, Sophie Hadlum & Jude Rees have performed at their Crypt Sessions under Coventry Cathedral ruins.
Well quite apart from the excellence of the Wyley Chapel for intimate expression, they all clearly support the philosophy of the organisation.
As the Food Union's Greg Muldoon told me "Coventry Food Union is a social activism program that connects people with the land through the communal language of food. They host an array of workshops, events and gatherings including seasonal open gardening sessions and monthly musical gatherings."
In fact the event Izzie was playing at was also a drawing workshop: 'Mapping What Matters' a workshop curated by Anna of Pigeonhole Studios. It was all very pastoral to the point of being idyllic. A very good way to spend a late Summer Sunday afternoon.
The very next Coventry Food Union gig is at the Harvest Festival celebrations in the Cathedral ruins on Saturday 13th September featuring ‘Hot Music Live Presents' featured artists Scratchy Beard plus Impact Steel Band, The Wassail Queen, Wolly the Clown Show and Les Caravanes.
The Crypt Sessions begin again in the Autumn & the first one will feature an artist very much suited to the space, one whom we hold in high esteem at ‘Hot Music Live': look out for the big reveal.
Please do check out Coventry Food Union social media pages for more information on how you can become involved.
