Concert by Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage, a cult anti-folk act known for illustrated songs and urban indie-rock-folk.
Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage play The Castle & Falcon on Wednesday 21 October, starting at 7:00pm. It's a full band night: Lewis is joined by Mallory Feuer on violin and keyboard, Kait Pelkey on bass, and Brent Cole on drums, who you might know from The Moldy Peaches.
If you're not familiar with him, Jeffrey Lewis is a New York songwriter and comic-book artist who came up through the city's anti-folk scene. He started recording homemade cassettes back in 1998 and signed to Rough Trade in 2001, and since then his live shows have built a bit of a cult following. He describes his own style as a 21st-century mash-up of Sonic Youth, Pete Seeger and R. Crumb — scuzzy urban indie-rock-folk that sits somewhere between the noise of the city and a folk singer's songwriting. Over the years he's opened for The Mountain Goats, Daniel Johnston, Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Dinosaur Jr, The Fall, Dr. Dog, Pulp and Roky Erickson.
One of the things that sets his shows apart is the visual side. He weaves illustrated songs into his sets, which he calls 'low budget videos' — essentially his politically subversive cartoons and artwork projected behind him while he plays. It's as much a comic strip as it is a gig.
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There's new material to hear, too. His 2025 album, The EVEN MORE Freewheelin' Jeffrey Lewis, was recorded in Nashville by Roger Moutenot, who has worked with Yo La Tengo and Lou Reed. Tickets are £24.20, which includes the booking fee, and the show kicks off at 7:00pm at The Castle & Falcon, 402 Moseley Road, B12 9AT.
