Tradfest 2025: Miwa Nagato-Apthorp, Parsisonic, Dlù Review

The ETF Spotlight concert is always something I consider a ‘can’t miss’ event at each year’s Edinburgh Tradfest. This year proved no exception with the three-act strong line-up of singer-songwriter Miwa Nagato-Apthorp from Hawick, Ex-pat Iranian supergroup Parsisonic, and rising stars of the indie/fusion trad scene, Dlù.

Miwa Nagato-Apthorp: Contemporary Ballads Rooted in Place

Opening proceedings, Nagato-Apthorp quickly established a winning rapport with the audience – a skill often undervalued in the digital age. Her opening number, ‘The Bonded One’, has the cadence of an old working song slowed to a more contemplative pace. It’s a pretty tune, inspired by Scotland’s (and the north of England’s) mostly forgotten female agricultural workers – and all the more effective for its singer’s smooth and sweet voice.

Taking to her guitar, Miwa moved on to ‘Hawthorn Song’, pairing another elegant melody with a home-inspired story, this time that of the hawthorn from which her hometown likely derives its name. Sliding into something close to folk-pop with ‘Abigail’, Nagato-Apthorp paid tribute to a departed friend through an elegant lyrical memoir of their school days together, before closing on an endearing rendition of the traditional Japanese lullaby ‘Takeda no Komoruita’ – easily capturing its homesick melancholy.

“This very strong selection of self-penned songs singles Miwa Nagato-Apthorp out as a 21st-century troubadour to watch.”

Parsisonic: Virtuosic Iranian Fusion at Its Finest

Moving on then to Parsisonic, comprising classically-trained singer and setar player, Aref Ghorbani and respected composer Amir Hossein Feyzi. Accompanied by outstanding percussionist Erfan Imandar on Daf, and Gerardo Cruz on guitar, the quartet produced a performance of superb quality.

From their opening rendition of Iranian revolutionary anthem ‘Morqe Sahar’ through a captivating ode to Friday Market, through a spine-tingling Hossein Feyzi composition, to a cracking take on Mohsen Namjoo’s pulsating ‘Jabr (Geographical Determinism)’ – the sense of outstanding musicianship was simply overwhelming.

It was also smart to give Imandar time to impress the audience with a stirring ride through the possibilities of one man and his drum. One imagines only their recent conception as a band as the only reason Parsisonic hadn’t acquired the statute to helm their own 2025 Tradfest concert.

Dlù: Gaelic Trad-Fusion With Festival Energy

Closing out the ETF Spotlight came Glasgow-born Indie-Trad band Dlù. This 5-strong Gaelic-speaking outfit, featuring Moilidh NicGriogair (fiddle and vocals), Zach Ronan (accordion), Aidan Spiers (guitar), Andrew Grossart (drums) and Seoras Chlad (bass), released their first album back in 2022, and their second ‘Close To’, last year.

A baby big belter band, lacing their trad numbers with funk sensibilities, they follow in the tracks of Elephant Sessions and Manran in making music good for jumping around in a field to. Opening their set with swelling electro-tinged anthem ‘Braighe Loch lall’, they moved into a rich set of toe-tapping numbers, the pick of which might be ‘Vitamin T’ – an ode to a very famous Scottish lubricant.

“There’s definitely space to make more of Ronan’s synth-like sounds, and NicGriogair’s propulsive touch with the bow.”

Nevertheless they were rightly dragged back to encore the audience, and saw the evening out in grand style with the quasi-symphonic ‘Close To, Pt.2’.

Spotlight Shines on the Future of Folk

All in all, the ETF Spotlight shone down on three acts with (hopefully) big futures ahead of them, providing reassurance – should it be needed – that trad music will never die.