In the last three years, HMS Erebus and Terror, Franklin’s two ships from his ill fated 1845 voyage to find the NW Passage were discovered at the bottom of the icy seas off Northern Canada. This brought the fateful events back into focus after they’d filled the international headlines in the second half of the 19th Century when all 129 of the crew disappeared without trace in the Arctic wastes. With the ‘Franklin’ album, Kings of The South Seas will bring to life the traditional and written music left by these events and their cultural fallout; from Canadian Voyageur paddling songs, English folk ballads and songs composed onboard ice-bound wintering ships to Victorian parlour pieces.

Kings of The South Seas are...

Ben Nicholls – vocal, concertina, organ, banjo
(The Full English, Seth Lakeman Band, Nadine Shah Band)

Richard Warren – guitar (Spiritualized, Mark Lanegan Soulsavers)

Evan Jenkins – drums (Neil Cowley Trio)

‘Franklin’ was produced and mixed by Ben Hillier (Blur, Elbow, Depeche Mode)