Cloudbusting will pay tribute to the musical genius of Kate Bush in show at Derbyshire church

The band specialise in bringing Kate’s songs to life by performing them as faithfully to the original recordings as possible.

Running Up That Hill, Wuthering Heights, Hounds of Love, Babooshka, This Woman’s Work are among the vast catalogue of hits that Cloudbusting will draw on when they perform at St Peter’s Church, Belper on June 22, 2023.

Ahead of the visit, Cloudbusting’s singer Mandy Watson shared an insight into her love of Kate Bush’s music and what the audience can expect to hear in the band’s show.

Mandy told interviewer George Gunby: “I discovered The Kick Inside in my parent’s record collection as a young girl and fell instantly in love with its haunting melodies, unusual lyrics and... that voice! Singing The Man With The Child In His Eyes into a hairbrush in front of the mirror has evolved into performing in front of thousands of fellow Kate Bush fans across all corners of the UK.”

She sees her role in Cloudbusting as paying homage to Kate’s music rather than trying to ‘be’ her. “These songs tell stories from the point of view of so many different characters; when you perform them, that’s who you become. It’s quite an emotional journey!

"We tend to refresh our set lists quite regularly so there’s always songs in the set that I can’t wait for us to do as the evening progresses. I do always love ‘Cloudbusting’ as it’s so rousing at the end, plus it’s such a joy to see everyone so happy and to hear them all sing with us!

“I want people to leave our shows wanting more of Kate Bush. I want them going back out into the world and talking about Kate Bush’s music and playing more of her music and passing it on to other people. That’s what we are about. Sharing the experiences.”

Mandy has been singing since she was 18, starting with mates’ bands and then progressing to function bands with a few original music projects in between. “It was only in recent years with Cloudbusting that I took the plunge to do it full-time,” she said. “It is a labour of love though and the work doesn’t stop after the curtain’s gone down - it’s a full time ‘day’ job with constant admin to sort out: bookings, contracts, liaising with venues, working out logistics, creating set lists/tour concepts, contacting radio and press to promote shows, creating content for social media, responding to messages and posts – it’s endless.”

When she’s relaxing at home, Mandy enjoys listening to a range of music – from Debbie Harry to Debussy. She said: “I do listen to Kate Bush a lot though, as there are so many layers to unravel, both as a listener and fan after all these years and for also performing her work.”

Tickets cost £22 to see Cloudbusting at St Peter’s Church, Belper, on June 22. Book online at www.livetickets.org or at Derby Live, The Guildhall, Derby or St Peter’s Church, Chesterfield Road, Belper.