BACK-TO-WORK SKULLS!

So who the hell are Jo Carley & The Old Dry Skulls ?

We’re Jo Carley & The Old Dry Skulls — a voodoo-soaked, rootsy collision of blues, rock ’n’ roll, British skiffle, vaudeville, rattling Calypso rhythms and a little bit of the macabre. We're multi-instrumentalists - on vintage instruments - archtop guitar, baritone sax, washboard, upright bass, mandolin, crazy woman on vocals with horror inspired lyrics.

Maybe a little more grounded than what you might think but we are unmistakably original.

Describe your sound in 3 words...

Dark, roots, rhythm...

And now you are about to visit 12 spots on your U.K tour. What can we

expect?

We’re bringing great music, dirty rhythms, twisted characters and a sideshow that doesn’t give a shit about fitting neatly into a box. It’s not a novelty act, it’s not dressing up for the sake of it. Come for the music. Expect the unexpected and have a bloody good night.

You've just come back from a tour of Europe. How was it and do the Europeans connect with you?

The European tour was fantastic. We've been going their in various guises since 2017. What really strikes us is how completely Europeans connect with what we do, even when there’s a language barrier. Our music isn’t necessarily something that needs to be explained - it’s something that needs to be experienced. People seem very willing to let themselves be swept up in the performance, and that’s a huge part of what we love about playing in Europe. It’s difficult to explain exactly how our music is channelled and filtered and somehow understood, regardless of the language. I think it must come down to the delivery. There’s something in the way we perform it that communicates beyond the words. The audience just gets it —  and they come along for the ride.