One of the region’s finest and most idiosyncratic artists, Faithful Johannes, returns in July with a splendid new album, ‘Durham, Come Save Me’, and he’s launching it with a gig in Durham too.

‘Durham, Come Save Me’ sees Faithful Johannes delving back in time to tell stories – from a first-person perspective – of all manner of interesting characters, from a neolithic settler to a doomed tightrope walker back in the 13th century (“Last week in Lincoln I had a wobble…”). But at the heart of the record, he says, “are the stories of Elizabeth Lee and Elise Crouch. The former a hounded, post-life celebrity witch who wasn’t a witch, the latter a lonely Second World War diarist, homemaker and aspiring writer.” All of these tales are brought to us via Faithful Johannes’ trademark spoken word/reflective rap, and on this release he weaves his evocative vignettes over the most plaintive of pianos and a nylon string guitar. It’s an album that shines a light onto forgotten, dusty corners of our past, and it succeeds in making these people and long-forgotten events feel absolutely vital. ‘Durham, Come Save Me’ is set for release on 3 July at winbigrecords.bandcamp.com and on CD with an accompanying lyric sheet featuring sketches from Lazy Dave that capture the spirit of the collection. The album will also be on streaming services from 7 August. DP

Faithful Johannes, Wednesday 8 July, The People’s Bookshop, Durham, 7pm, from £5, faithfuljohannes.com/live