Farmer Phil’s Festival is delighted to announce that THE TRIALS OF CATO are confirmed to play the festival in 2019.
A band that arrived fully formed and functioning from Beirut in the winter of 2016, The Trials of Cato have since torn a shape very much their own into the canvas of the UK folk scene.
Originally from North Wales and Yorkshire, whilst living in Lebanon they spent a year boiling down the roots of their sound into a hybrid of traditional influences that intrigued Lebanese audiences in the country’s biggest venues.
They moved back to the UK and spent a tireless year performing up and down the country, leading to BBC Radio 2’s Mark Radcliffe hailing them as “one of the real discoveries on the folk circuit in recent times.” Their musical development in the run up to their debut album proper – Hide and Hair – has been swift and sure. The trio may inhabit the folk genre with a grateful respect for its history, but with this album moving all the way from 18th century ballads to stomping dance tunes; they hope to twist its old bones into something febrile and contemporary.
Praised for the diversity of their material and influences, The Trials of Cato live show “invariably stuns audience wherever they play” (FATEA Magazine).
Whether plying their trade busking, performing in front of thousands at festivals across Europe, or frequently selling out their own club shows, The Trials of Cato have the wind behind them.