Throwing Muses’ Kristin Hersh plays intimate tragicomedy secret session at End of the Road

Opening with “Kay Catherine” from the Muses’ 2020 album Sun Racket, Hersh sang aptly about rain in the forecast and apologised for having a “little house” – the Piano Stage – while the audience sat getting drenched in the woodland clearing.

Playing without a band, Hersh’s formidable vocal and crisp, resonant acoustic guitar sounded huge. She introduced “Bywater” with a humorous but heartbreaking tale of her late goldfish, Freddie Mercury, who lived far longer than expected, even surviving a bus crash on tour despite his pickle-jar home smashing to pieces. The track, also from Sun Racket, was an homage to Freddie.

Playing only three songs due to her Uncut Q&A, which started immediately afterwards, Hersh finished on an old standard, “The Cuckoo”: “The only lullaby my dad ever sang to me that’s not about a guy getting drunk and killing his girlfriend,” as she explained. Throwing Muses play the Big Top stage at 8:30 pm.

End of the Road Festival continues today with headline sets from Self Esteem, DIIV, and Viagra Boys.