'Stunning' guitarist is folk award-winner (From South Wales Guardian)

'Stunning' guitarist is folk award-winner

9:20am Wednesday 18th April 2012 in Leisure

EMERGING folk artist Ewan McLennan, winner of several awards including the 2011 BBC Radio 2 Horizon Award, comes to the Valley Folk Club in Pontardawe on Friday (April 20).

His music combines traditional folk with an inevitable focus on the music of Scotland, as well as his own selfpenned songs that are receiving critical acclaim in their own right.

BBC Radio 2’s Mike Harding has said of Ewan: “He sings beautifully, with great sincerity and great empathy. He’s terrific!”

Ewan’s guitar-playing, described as “stunning”, is influenced by the rigour and technique from his years of studying classical guitar, while retaining a unique and compelling sound in which his immersion in folk music is evident.

His debut album, Rags & Robes, described as “a collection of truly captivating songs” has been receiving glowing reviews and has won numerous accolades in radio and print media.

“At home in Edinburgh I grewup hearing lots of music, of all types,” he recalls. “My family sang as a matter of course – it was part of what you did, howyou told a story.

“Many of the folk and pop songs they sang, and the albums they played, which caught my attention, were about social and political issues, whether everyday struggle or broader moments – though there were also plenty of tragic ballads and love songs too!