Spell Songs

Spell Songs are back at The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Wednesday 20 January 2027, their first Glasgow date since they played CCFest22 and walked away to a standing ovation. It's a folk supergroup that brings together Karine Polwart, Julie Fowlis, Seckou Keita, Kris Drever, Rachel Newton, Beth Porter and Jim Molyneux, with artist Jackie Morris painting live on stage while they play.

The music grew out of the books The Lost Words and Lost Spells by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris, commissioned by the Folk by the Oak Festival. It's a mix of music, words and art, with kora, electroharp, cello and Indian harmonium, and influences that stretch from Orkney to Senegal. On stage, Morris conjures creatures and birds in ink and watercolour as the group plays around her.

Their latest album, In Thin Air, arrived in September, inspired by the authors' new work The Book of Birds. The show draws on that new material alongside their previous records, Spell Songs (2019) and Spell Songs II, Let The Light In (2021), so you'll hear the newer songs alongside the older ones. The venue is one of Scotland's most prestigious, home to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and known for an acoustically excellent auditorium that has hosted names like BB King, Johnny Cash and David Byrne.

It starts at 7:30pm, with tickets at £27.26, £32.86 and £38.46 — those prices include a 12% booking fee and a £1.50 restoration fund charge.