A band who are drawing huge attention across the UK are playing at The Blue Sky Cafe in Bangor on Friday, January 12.

Trio The Trials of Cato were recently highlighted by Mark Radcliffe of BBC Radio 2 as: “One of the real discoveries on the folk circuit in recent times”

The band were formed in Beirut in the summer of 2015 - while the three members worked as English teachers there - and spent a formative year performing on the Lebanese music scene and developing their sound.

Following their debut at Radio Beirut in September 2015, they went on to regularly fill some of Beirut’s foremost music venues. Since returning to the UK, their feet have hardly touched the ground as they are booked up at clubs and festivals across the country thanks to a formidable live reputation.

Their eponymous debut EP has been well received, and was described as ‘one hell of a calling card’ in FATEA Magazine earlier this year. The Trials of Cato are now hard at work developing their debut album alongside their busy gigging schedule.

The band’s live set includes both original and traditional material, featuring fretted instruments alone to achieve a musical presence not often heard. With tight instrumentation and rousing harmonies, the music is firmly rooted in the traditions of Ireland and Britain, yet the source material is decidedly contemporary

Tickets £10 are available from the Cafe - just off the High Street in Bangor - in person, online at http://www.wegottickets.com/event/426444 or on the door on the night.

Doors open 7pm and the gig starts at 8pm.