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“‘When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was...the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart’ ”
— Johnny Flynn
Biographies and Quotes
For UK and Ireland bookings (including full band bookings) please contact Sarah Coxson at Alan Bearman Music - sarahc.abm@gmail.com
For international bookings contact The Brothers Gillespie - brothersgillespie@gmail.com
Page Contents:
- Short Bio
- Medium Bio
- Longer Bio
- Longest Bio/ Kingfisher Press Release
- Press Quotes/ Endorsements
Short Bio
Northumbrian alt-folk alchemists The Brothers Gillespie (siblings James and Sam Gillespie) are still something of a secret on the UK music scene and yet they have a dedicated following all over the land. Their music, with its fluid fingerstyle guitar and the ‘glorious tones of their blood harmony’ (Sam Lee), is renowned for its rich lyricism, spiritual heart and radical edge. The sound of their luscious new album Kingfisher (produced by Gus White) is steeped in analogue warmth and defined by intimate and spontaneous performances, recorded mostly live in the studio with a cast of brilliant Scotland-based musicians.
‘When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was...the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart’ (Johnny Flynn)
Medium Bio
Northumbrian alt-folk alchemists The Brothers Gillespie (siblings James and Sam Gillespie) are still something of a secret on the UK music scene and yet they have a dedicated following all over the land. Their music, with its fluid fingerstyle guitar and the ‘glorious tones of their blood harmony’ (Sam Lee), is renowned for its rich lyricism, spiritual heart and radical edge. The sound of their luscious new album Kingfisher (produced by Gus White) is steeped in analogue warmth and defined by intimate and spontaneous performances, recorded mostly live in the studio with a cast of brilliant Scotland based musicians including Jen Hill (producer of Songs of Separation) on double bass, Nick Jenkins on fiddle and Tim Lane (Hidden Orchestra) on percussion.
‘When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was...the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart’ (Johnny Flynn)
‘Over three albums and much touring, The Brothers Gillespie, two siblings from Northumberland, have won hearts with a combination of close vocal harmonies and songs carved from the rock, turf and skies of their homeland’ (The Guardian)
‘Our music is inspired by the still wild soul of the land in which we live, a land alive with presences, not owned by anyone. It is about seeing with the eye of the heart and recovering our imaginations. It is about finding home, belonging and each other in a world which is singing to us as we sing to it’ (The Brothers Gillespie)
Longer Bio
‘When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was...the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart’ (Johnny Flynn)
'Over three albums and much touring, The Brothers Gillespie, two siblings from Northumberland, have won hearts with a combination of close vocal harmonies and songs carved from the rock, turf and skies of their homeland’ (The Guardian)
‘Our music is inspired by the still wild soul of the land in which we live, a land alive with presences, not owned by anyone. It is about seeing with the eye of the heart and recovering our imaginations. It is about finding home, belonging and each other in a world which is singing to us as we sing to it’ (The Brothers Gillespie)
Northumbrian alt-folk alchemists The Brothers Gillespie (siblings James and Sam Gillespie) are still something of a secret on the UK music scene and yet they have a dedicated following all over the land. Their music, with its fluid fingerstyle guitar and the ‘glorious tones of their blood harmony’ (Sam Lee), is renowned for its rich lyricism, spiritual heart and radical edge. They draw inspiration from many currents, including their traditional roots, lineages of romantic and mystical poets and time spent wandering the land, sleeping out in all weathers. They are modern bards with a wild muse. As filmmaker Eamon Bourke puts it:
'Sam and James sing to the spirit of these times. In an amnesiac culture so scornful and afraid of magic, The Brothers Gillespie sing spells of remembering. There’s a defiance in their music that exists everywhere in nature and nowhere in the algorithm. A defiance that says we are here to love and be loved in return… they invite you into the ceremony of this life’.
The Brothers Gillespie’s luscious new album Kingfisher is a collection of songs borne of deepening into life and its terrain of love, loss, grief and longing. These are songs dreamed into being on the banks of two rivers of the northern borderlands, the Tweed and Tyne, and are suffused with riverine life, light and image. The album is a song to the old ways, to the quiet wisdoms of the wild, a rallying call to the praise makers.
Kingfisher was recorded in June 2026 in rural Wiltshire with producer/recording engineer Gus White and a cast of brilliant Scotland-based musicians including Jen Hill (producer of Songs of Separation) on double bass, Nick Jenkins on fiddle and Tim Lane (Hidden Orchestra) on percussion. The recordings are based around spontaneous and intimate live performances and contain the sound of the room, laughter, occasional birdsong and the wind through the trees. The sound is steeped in analogue warmth and the tracks were recorded using vintage microphones and instruments over ten bright and intense summer days.
‘Their music feeds the soul, shining like a light through these dark times’ (Jackie Morris)
Kingfisher Press Release/ Longest Bio
‘When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was...the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart’ (Johnny Flynn)
'Over three albums and much touring, The Brothers Gillespie, two siblings from Northumberland, have won hearts with a combination of close vocal harmonies and songs carved from the rock, turf and skies of their homeland’ (The Guardian)
‘Our music is inspired by the still wild soul of the land in which we live, a land alive with presences, not owned by anyone. It is about seeing with the eye of the heart and recovering our imaginations. It is about finding home, belonging and each other in a world which is singing to us as we sing to it’ (The Brothers Gillespie)
Alt-folk troubadours The Brothers Gillespie (siblings James and Sam Gillespie) are still something of a secret on the UK music scene and yet they have a dedicated following all over the land.Their music, with its fluid fingerstyle guitar and the ‘glorious tones of their blood harmony’ (Sam Lee), is renowned for its rich lyricism, spiritual heart and radical edge. They draw inspiration from many currents, including their traditional roots, lineages of romantic and mystical poets and time spent wandering the land, sleeping out in all weathers. They are modern bards with a wild muse. As filmmaker Eamon Bourke puts it:
‘Sam and James sing to the spirit of these times. In an amnesiac culture so scornful and afraid of magic, The Brothers Gillespie sing spells of remembering. There’s a defiance in their music that exists everywhere in nature and nowhere in the algorithm. A defiance that says we are here to love and be loved in return… they invite you into the ceremony of this life’.
The Brothers Gillespie’s luscious new album Kingfisher is a collection of songs borne of deepening into life and its terrain of love, loss, grief and longing. These are songs dreamed into being on the banks of two rivers of the northern borderlands, the Tweed and Tyne, and are suffused with riverine life, light and image. The album is a song to the old ways, to the quiet wisdoms of the wild, a rallying call to the praise makers.
Kingfisher was recorded in June 2026 in rural Wiltshire with producer/recording engineer Gus White. Alongside the multi-instrumentalism and vocal harmonies of The Brothers Gillespie, the recording sessions brought together a brilliant band consisting of Jen Hill (co-producer of BBC Radio 2 album of the year ‘Songs of Separation’) on double bass, Tim Lane (Hidden Orchestra) on percussion/ tongue drum and Nick Jenkins on fiddle. Following brief rehearsals that crackled with energy, the band hit the road down from the north and got straight into the studio. There it quickly became apparent that a spirit of celebration was animating the gathering. Kingfisher captures the festive coming together of a new band with just the right producer, a joyful meeting of comrades.
On Kingfisher the band and the producer are united by a shared devotion to much of the music of the folk revival and the beauty of the analogue age. The recordings are based around live performances and contain the sound of the room, laughter, occasional birdsong and the wind through the trees, and were recorded using vintage microphones and instruments over ten bright and intense June days. The addition of the luscious vocals of Jemima Thewes, Darla Eno and Daisy Martinez was the final thread in the weave of the album’s rich, organic sound. Gus White’s use of tape and analogue equipment during the mixing process steeps the album in a vintage warmth and intimacy that perfectly suits the music, and mastering engineer Alex Killpartrick gracefully added the finishing touches.
Kingfisher will be released on 10th October 2026 on digital streaming services, Bandcamp, CD and vinyl LP, featuring album art by renowned UK artist Cathy Fisher. A single from the album, The Worlds Unfold, is will be coming out on the 18th September.
‘Their music feeds the soul, shining like a light through these dark times’ - Artist Jackie Morris
‘This self-release is as good as anything with major financial clout behind it…there is much solace to be found in this masterpiece’ (RnR ***** review of The Merciful Road review )
Press Quotes & Endorsements
“When The Brothers Gillespie sing, a portal opens. Seeing them perform for the first time felt like I was reminded who I really was; there is a deep and delicate love in their connection to each other that we, as listeners, are invited into; the thread of their ethereal voices weaving a spell around the room. They sing with an ancient wisdom that is entirely for us, now - nothing feels more present. Their beautiful music will open your heart”. Johnny Flynn
“Over three albums and much touring, The Brothers Gillespie, two siblings from Northumberland, have won hearts with a combination of close vocal harmonies and songs carved from the rock, turf and skies of their homeland” The Guardian
“Their music feeds the soul, shining like a light through these dark times” Jackie Morris
"Anyone who has seen the brothers live will surely attest that it is an experience that will stay with you. There is a feeling of warmth that exudes from them and affects everyone in the room… I am not usually given to grand statements, but I think this will be one of the finest albums you will hear this year!” Nygel Packett, Folk London review of ‘The Merciful Road’
“Uncluttered, simply but intoxicatingly arranged and adorned by their magical harmonies, musically steeped in the earth, grass and leaves that mark the pathways, this is a road you really need to travel.” Mike Davies, Bright Young Folk review of ‘The Merciful Road’
“Pure magic” Dave Kidman, Living Tradition review of ‘The Merciful Road’
“They start with Pilgrim Song, taken from their latest album The Merciful Road, it’s dusted with silver dew and exquisite harmonies. Sam Gillespie seems to sing effortlessly, the rays of a golden sun dancing with motes, waiting for his brother, James, to join him. Together they are warmth and depth, home and hearth. They are a bridge over troubled water, the sound of silence. They are astonishing.” Gavin McNamara, live review of concert at Downend Folk & Roots, Bristol, 25th february 2025
“Hirondelle is the inspirational culmination of a shared vision of creativity and friendship, together with enrichment and enlightenment brought about through an exploration of different cultures, a “project of roots and wings”. It thoroughly deserves not only to fly but to soar.” Folk Radio UK review of Hirondelle
“The Fell shows off British acoustic music in its best possible light.” Folk Radio UK review of ‘The Fell
“An intimate sense of spiritual grace seeps through each of the 8 tracks on this album” Seán Laffey, Irish Music Magazine review of 'The Merciful Road'
“The Brothers Gillespie have finally arrived! And with them bringing a texture and spirit to folk songs new and old that captures all the earthly magic, shining with classic troubadourian wholesomeness so often attempted but rarely as genuine as you’ll find here. All of course marinated in the glorious tones of their 'blood harmony’ for there is no sound as sweet as when siblings sing” Sam Lee
“An album of brotherly bardic beauty” fRoots review of ‘The Fell’
“Not since the minimal chamber folk of Simon And Garfunkel has two voices and an acoustic guitar sounded so absolutely perfect.” Marc Higgins, Fatea review of ‘The Merciful Road”
“This album has the mood, style and quality of one that will be listened to for many years” Anne-Marie Kennedy, Irish Music Magazine review of ‘Hirondelle’
“The stars of the show were The Brother's Gillespie - more than an hour of fantastic musicianship. Imagine the guitar work of the early Nic Jones, the close harmony work of the Dransfields and the commitment and honesty of Bob Davenport rolled into two brothers and you'll get some idea. Their new album The Fell is totally brilliant.” Mike Harding
“This is a moving and surprising album. Stunning songs beautifully sung and played. Without doubt a classic in the making from a duo potent with potential.” Northern Sky review of ‘The Fell
“Weaving an especially compelling magic that is generated by its intrinsic wildness” Folk Radio UK
“Often fusion between traditions is attained at the expense of depth but here there is an ecstatic mutual discovery arising from the depths of the traditions themselves. Inspiring the record and bringing the musicians together is a vision of mutual enrichment and
friendship between people living in different cultures and different parts of the world.” Spiral Earth review of Hirondelle
“The Fell taps into themes and tunes that I feel I have known all my life (but haven’t because they’ve only just been written) and, like all updates to the tradition, are simultaneously part of the music of past centuries and also entirely new and relevant” Folking.com
“Every song on this album brings a separate and pertinent story which burns brighter with every listen. A definite musos album, 'The Fell' could be lost treasure from the British Folk Revival or a modern day contemporary Folk classic. An album of visceral beauty, striking for the heart and as part of the earth, land and landscape as the title suggests. Highly recommended” Fatea Magazine review of ‘The Fell’
“Well this is a rare treat… Music that seems to have been distilled from bracken and wild flowers” The Crack Magazine
“‘Over three albums and much touring, The Brothers Gillespie, two siblings from Northumberland, have won hearts with a combination of close vocal harmonies and songs carved from the rock, turf and skies of their homeland’ The Guardian, 2024”
— The Guardian
