Ryley Walker + Sam Grassie

Melting Vinyl presents: Ryley Walker (US) solo performance + Sam Grassie at Lewes Con Club onDoors 8pm / Start 8.30pm £20 + booking fee in adv / £24 on the doorStanding Age restrictions 18+Ryley Walker is an accomplished American singer-songwriter and fingerstyle guitarist who began his career after moving from Illinois’ provincial town of Rockford, and settling into Chicago’s independent scene. His recordings run the gamut from folk to rock to experimental music.Having toured with the likes of Richard Thompson, and with a supporting slot for Dinosaur Jr. forthcoming – as well as a tremendous Bert Jansch tribute show behind him, wherein his hero Anne Briggs called him the ‘c word’ – Walker has rubbed shoulders with the very best.While, in the past, his desire to be as great as his influences may have dogged and hindered him from bringing his own personality to his music, now, Walker’s music is undeniably his. A mix of Twitter and sobriety may be partially responsible. “Music is an exciting thing I get to do because I’m alive and well. I take every opportunity I’m given very seriously; I’ve gotta pay tribute to that by staying alive and being as good to the people who love me as I can,” he said.Sam Grassie Traversing both traditional and contemporary folk music, Scottish-born, London-based fingerstyle guitarist and songwriter Sam Grassie has been making a name for himself on the indie circuit as both a captivating player and potent songwriter. While such tenacity on the acoustic guitar owes much to the playing of Jansch et al, his debut EP Sandwood — a flurry of woodwind, sax, drones, and double bass — carves out a sound of his very own. The record has been championed by the BBC, NTS Radio, KLOF Radio, Wilco Band, Shindig Mag and Clash Music, leading to UK tours supporting Daisy Rickman, Gently Tender, Naima Bock, and The Babe Rainbow. Following a spring residency at Broadside Hacks MOTH Club Grassie was booked to perform at Latitude’s “In the Woods” and Green Man’s Walled Garden Stage. 2025 will see the release of his first album, where alongside original material he marries celtic melodies with the rhythms of desert blues.