The Filthy Six at Peggy's Skylight

The Filthy Six are playing Peggy's Skylight on Wednesday 23 December, as part of a specially curated Christmas Soul Special. It's a six-piece soul-jazz outfit fronted by trumpeter Nick Etwell, with Mark Brown on saxophone, James Fenn on guitar, Pete Whittaker on organ, Dan Drury on bass and Simon Lea on drums.

They describe themselves as one of the most exciting and authentic soul-jazz bands in the UK, and the sound they're after is the late-60s Blue Note and Prestige records — that hard-bop, organ-led groove that defined the era — but they bring in modern influences too. It's music that sits somewhere between a 1960s jazz club and a contemporary soul session, and having a full horn section alongside the organ and guitar gives them plenty of room to stretch out.

They've been around for a while. In the 2010s they put out three albums on the UK label Acid Jazz, and more recently they've worked with the Denver-based Color Red, with their second record for them being Return of The Swagger Junkies: Vol 1. Their EP Soho Filth picked up praise from Jamie Cullum, Craig Charles and Huey Morgan at BBC 6 Music. And the individual members have played with a real who's-who of music: Amy Winehouse, Tom Jones, Beck, Dionne Warwick, Mavis Staples, Jill Scott, Mark Ronson, Jack White, Noel Gallagher, Robbie Williams and Fred Wesley. That's a lot of different rooms and styles to draw from, and it shows in the way they hold their own as a band.

The gig is on Wednesday 23 December at Peggy's Skylight, 3 George St, Nottingham, starting at 6:30 PM. It's part of the Christmas Soul Special, so if you're looking for something to do the night before Christmas Eve, this is a good shout.