| NINOSKIKA, THE WATER FOLK OF FALMOUTH |
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 Illustration by Richard Dinnis Falmouth's harbour is inspiring a new force in the folk music world; water-inspired lyrics and improvised instrumentals, with parallels to the pop-folk scene in San Francisco's harbour district. Words by Georgina Brown Sam Leonard, Jess Wilson, Cally Gibson and Thomas Sharpe are all Falmouth-grown folksters and part of the graduate community. For years they have filled Falmouth's dens and taverns with their fresh songs and acoustics. They join forces, not so much to create a band, but a phenomenon - in the fluidly changing group, NinoSkika, delivering "joyous polyphony, harmonious folk and power skiffle". They hardly ever get together to practice, but instead bring improvised instrument bashing to each others' writing. A daring venture, but one that is true to folk spirit.  Illustration by Richard Dinnis The support acts were not as watery, instead showing the wide range of music that's evolving in Falmouth; Tem for zonked-out calmness and Zapoppin for wake-up-the-dead energy. Tem was a guy with an acoustic guitar and a Mac computer. He plucked strings and mixed in sounds, running short films in juxtaposition to the music he created. It was a real thought distilling chill-out with a distinctly snoozy effect. Zapoppin had enough discords and attitude to fill all the cracks in the walls. This band was fruity, with maybe a little Cajun flavour. At 10pm, on came NinoSkika. Their album, Captain, began with a song about a sinking ship, while other songs portrayed moody storms and the North Atlantic's smashing waves. Jess's voice trickled over the melodies. Cally, the violist, filled a gap in the group's sound - she constantly crafted her harmonies to fit in with what she heard "like getting feedback and filling in an imaginary line". Tom Sharpe had an electric double bass and ground out his notes and made noises like a ship's metal. All NinoSkika's sounds came together to form a kind of folk that both celebrates and mourns the sea. Sam took a cue from Bob Dylan when he said the music should tell a story, and every theme in the lyrics is personal to the players, the saddest one being "the worst thing about being here is knowing you'll have to leave, eventually".
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