Jazz & Pop Reviews : Manic British Folk From the Levellers

Traditional British folk music has traditionally been useful to non-traditional British rockers. In the late ‘60s it provided some, like Fairport Convention, with a home-grown antidote to their peers’ obsession with American blues; to burned-out ‘80s punks, like the Pogues, it was a source of new inspirational passion; and more recently it’s given restless questers, like Mike Scott of the Waterboys, ready-made roots.

Now come the Levellers, a young quintet that used folk styles for all three of those purposes in its show at Bogart’s on Tuesday. Favoring folk’s manic rather than rustic qualities--with Jon Sevink’s demon fiddling leading the way--the vibrant, electrified music is a contrast to current technocratic styles and a fiery vehicle for the band’s hippie-punk idealism/indignation and individualism/communalism.

Those philosophical and musical contrasts (visually reflected in the pairing of hippie-troubadour singer Mark Chadwick and Mohawked guitarist Simon Friend) are hardly new--check out the veteran Oyster Band for a similar approach. But they seem to have a timely resonance.

It was there in a song about a recent case of police brutality at Stonehenge (a perfect blending of ancient mysteries and modern horrors) and in the enthusiasm of the Bogart’s fans (slam-jigging?). It’s made the Levellers--who also play the Roxy tonight--something of a phenomenon in England, where they seem to have picked up a baby Deadhead following. Time will tell if the same happens over here.