I reckon part of the reason why there is such a bond between folkies is that -- even though our musical tastes might be different -- we share a music that's capable of having a real, visceral, hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck impact. It's that shared experience thing. I remember when I saw June Tabor in Oxford a few years ago, and she was absolutely on fire. I found myself talking to complete strangers (unusual for me) after the gig, along the lines of "Bloody hell, that was intense."