Every Sunday, I enthusiastically read 'The Observer' for mentions of the latest CD/concerts of the new wave (and old wave) of what's hot on the folk scene. I mean, of course, The Unthanks, Jim Moray, Emily Portman - those that grew up with and despite the folk scene over the last 10-20 years.
Increasingly, I'm finding this august newspaper reviewing work by people I've never heard of, whose names you might just about find at Larmer Tree and many more indie festivals (should any of the organisers know of them) such as The Magic Numbers, Mumford & Sons, etc.
No axe to grind, believe it or not. But within what parameter do these people or others justify the tag 'folk', bearing in mind that Ian Anderson dropped the 'folk' when FolkRoots became fRoots because America had a different definition of the word? Alternatively, are we to leave fRoots and ED&S to be sole arbiters of what is deemed 'folk' in the second decade of this century? Should the organisers of cherished UK folk festivals such as Sidmouth be sitting up and taking notice?