Derbyshire band releases new album inspired by county's colourful history

‘County Fair’ by The Amber Band features 12 tracks recalling legends and stories from Derbyshire’s past.

The opening track, ‘Crooked Spire’, recounts one of the legends of how the famous parish church at Chesterfield came to get its crooked spire.

Another song recalls the famous 1932 mass trespass on Kinder Scout, which ultimately led to the creation of England’s first national park in Derbyshire.

Guitarist and lead singer Kevin Quinlan said: “We wanted to write an album

of original songs exclusively about Derbyshire where the band comes from.

"Derbyshire is a beautiful county lying right in the heart of England.

"There is so much history concerning the county and so many legends and tales that we were surprised to find that there are not more songs written about it.”

The story of Eyam village has a contemporary relevance as we struggle with the coronavirus epidemic and the song ‘Plague Village’ recounts the heroism of the villagers who selflessly cut themselves off from the outside world during an outbreak of bubonic plague in 1665.

By the time the epidemic had passed, 260 villagers had died but their sacrifice stopped the plague spreading throughout the county.

‘Dancing on a Sunday’ is based on the legend surrounding the Bronze Age stone circle at Stanton Moor, while ‘Pentrich Revolution’ tells of the last armed rebellion in England, which took place in 1817.

The band’s latest album is a departure from their more familiar sound.

Bass player Simon Martin said: “Normally we write indie/alternative material but the subject matter of the songs prompted us to explore a different genre.”

The Ambergate-based band formed in 2018 and have since released three albums and two singles.

The band has donated CDs of the new album ‘County Fair’ to the gift shop at Chesterfield Parish Church, where they can be purchased.

Alternatively, you can check out the band and hear all of their music at theamberband.co.uk, on Facebook or Spotify.

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