Joe Tilston has a punk heart, but his music has a different heartbeat. It’s Folkish, it’s beautiful, and at times cutting and direct. Tightrope is full of songs of Death & Hope, and is unashamed to bare all. The music takes influence from a childhood brought up in smokey, beer swilled folk clubs, where his parents, renowned folk artists Maggie Boyle and Steve Tilston held court and shared their music. Offering echoes of his roots and a nod to his previous album “Embers”, new album “Tightrope” still bears the mark of teenage rebellion, that has taken Joe on a journey through the world’s punk and ska scenes, for nearly two decades.

In this interview spotlight, I chat with Joe about the latest music, adapting during a pandemic, technology and more.

Full Q&A along with links and music below.

Where are you from and how do You describe your style of music?

I’m currently living in the delightful village of Oakworth, in West Yorkshire. Famous for hosting the Railway Children. The Album ‘Tightrope’ is a collection of songs that sit in a strange place, not quite folk, not quite rock, but with strong influences from those areas. 

How did you get here? As in, what inspired or motivated you to take on this journey through music and the music biz?

I’ve known nothing else, my parents were touring as folk singers, all my formative years, and while my teenage rebellion led me to Punk Rock, folk music has always played a part in my creativity.

More recently this album has taken shape over a long period of time. Partly due to me having to change my expectations of a career in music, and in part due to dealing with grief, from the loss of my mother, who’s influence and guidance in music was a massive part of my life. 

How does your latest project compare/contrast with your previous release(s)? Were you setting out to accomplish anything specific, follow a specific theme, or explore different styles of creation?

This album took time, and I think that is really evident in the progression from my first album ‘Embers’. Grief put a hold on my creativity, and by the time I was ready to start making the record, there didn’t feel like any shadow or lingering expectations to meet. Arguably I’d lost any momentum I had along with that, but writing this album as a personal marker to where I’ve found myself, and the journey through loss, became the focus, rather than hoping to find success with it. This was liberating.

Name the biggest challenge you faced as a creative during these unprecedented? How did you adapt? How have you kept the creative fires burning during all this?

I confirmed that I’m a very target based musician… Regular practice doesn’t happen for me, it needs to have a tangible purpose. There needs to be a gig, or a recording session, or a band. The loss of all expectations did not do well for me at all.

What was the last song you listened to?

This Time – DJ Shadow

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? 8-tracks? Cassettes? CDs? MP3s? Streaming platforms?

I like to own vinyl, as it encourages me to indulge the ritual of enjoying music as it was intended. But I consume most of what I listen to through streaming.

Where is the best place to connect with you and follow your journey?

Any of those social websites will give you a window into what’s going on, I suspect Instagram is the best place. I may eventually add some detail to my website, after the album drops, so always worth giving that a look, joetilston.co.uk

I really appreciate Your time. Anything else before we sign off? 

I made some videos I’m very proud of, and seem to have impressed a few people, I’d be eternally grateful to anyone reading this, if they gave them a spin