I remember hearing the Lakeman Brothers playing in a session at Edinburgh Folk Festival a good few years back. They were getting quite hyped up in the folk press at that stage. I was quite impressed as to their musical ability at the time.

I saw Equation at Cambridge a year or two later and was impressed. Part of that was down to their virtuoisity given their age, a lot was down to the fact that they were a very good band.

Cambridge 2006 was when I got to hear Seth next. I thought his set was enjoyable enough, I was impressed by the fiddling and singing at the same time proficiency. There was little or nothing in the set list that I found very inspiring. However it is clearly folk inspired music. While describing any of it as traditional is probably stretching a point, Seth is clearly influenced by the tradition.

I didn't buy a copy of Seth's CD, which means I wasn't that impressed with what I heard. But, does Seth's music belong inside the boundaries of Folk Music? .. undoubtedly. Does he have potential to ?bring a newer audience to folk music? Of course.

There is no doubt in my mind that there is a mindset in the folk world that means that anything commercially sucessful is unacceptable. This is particularly true in my experience of the English Folkie, through direct contact and through this and other forums.

My advice to Seth, although he clearly doesn't need it, is to continue along your own musical path, and to paraphrase Brendan Behan, give the begrudgers the weight they diserve in determining your future career direction.