Rough as a badger’s bum, ready to punch you between the eyes with an edge that’s sharp as a razor. That’s Leatherat - probably the finest exponents of thrash folk in the UK. All their songs have powerful personal and social messages and refuse let go of your ears until long after they’ve finished.
‘Garden of Eden’ is a great drinking song that grabs you and hurls you into a maelstrom of Brett Nicholls’ supercharged guitar and Jono Watts’ flying fiddle, backed by a heavy artillery barrage from Hugh Edwards’ drumming. ‘Before’ is a song that tears at the heart of 
every stupid war that any idiot ever started. “They joined the army to protect our country and our rights, and one by one they’re dying in somebody else’s fight” – jagged words indeed, but so true.
Pete Bailey’s hard-edged vocals rip through it at a savage pace while the lyrics take you somewhere you may not want to go. ‘Altruistic Hedonist’ delivers yet more bite and fire with some savage fiddle work from Jono. No pleasure-seeking here, this man plays the fiddle as though he hates it. It’s like he’s constantly trying to force-feed the instrument with maniacal bowing and fingering.
I cannot imagine anyone sitting down to listen to these guys. Once Leatherat has finished, organisers must be ripping up the floorboards to repair the damage. They turned out a great set at The Brasenose in 2006 and there’s every chance their repeat performance at this year’s Cropredy Festival will be great. I’ll be there.
