Joe Tilston has spent the last 10-plus years touring the world, tearing it up as bassist in UK punk/ska/hardcore legends Random Hand.

He’s seen the very best and worst of what is fondly referred to by bands on the scene as ‘the toilet circuit’.

But his past has left a powerful folk legacy and on October 31 Joe will be supporting his sister Martha at Bar 1:22 in Huddersfield.

Over the last few years Joe has also set out on his own, following in his rich family heritage of travelling troubadours and carving out a strong name for himself as a solo artist on the UK folk scene. Earlier this year he released his debut solo effort, Embers, to stunning reviews.

You can read a thousand stories by a thousand artists about their journey through the twisted world of the music industry but not many will have the knowledge and years of wisdom like Joe.

“I had one hell of a musical upbringing,” he said. “Having two touring folk singers for parents led me to be exposed to some incredible things.

“Amazing musicians and influences were present throughout my childhood although I didn't really realise how good I had it till much later.

“Approaching my teens my need for rebellion and escape from folk clubs and morris dancers grew at an exponential rate.

“By 13 I was fully indulging all the delights that (Channel 4 show) TFI Friday had to introduce to me. This inspired my descent into the UK underground of punk music.

After a few false starts and fall outs me and a three mates formed Random Hand. This very quickly became a touring outfit and we took on the world best we could.”

And take on the world they did – and still continue to do – releasing a whole bunch of albums and earning the admiration and respect of not just the UK punk scene but taking their name much further afield.

The band has toured anywhere and everywhere that has been put in front of them. From the bright lights of Berlin as well as highly successful tours of the USA and Canada and becoming a regular staple of the legendary Reading/Leeds Festival, playing them on numerous occasions.

Why then, when caught in such a scene, would someone take a sudden left turn and return to the folk scene he grew up around and decided as a teen to rebel against?

Joe said: "As the strains of being in a band and touring 200 days a year for eight years took hold, the need to express myself became a little more necessary.

“The music that became the album Embers was bubbling around and forming for about six years slowly developing and maturing. It had to take that amount of time to become something I was proud of. And the timing fell pretty well to when Random Hand stepped back.

“The transition is nothing more than a natural thing to me. They both exist in a symbiotic relationship although not many people understand that looking in. People prefer to think I've stopped one and started the other. Seeing someone indulge two types of music that completely conflict with each other does not sit well with many.”

Joe is from a strong family of respected folk musicians. Both his mother and father are still heavily involved in the scene and still touring. His father Steve Tilston has appeared on Jools Holland and had two albums in The Guardian’s list of 100 greatest folk albums. His sisters too are a major piece of the folk world and Joe is enjoying getting to share stages with both. Joe will be supporting his sister Martha in Huddersfield on October 31 at Bar 122.

So there it is. Joe Tilston is a man who gets to see two very different sides to the music world and has found a balance where he can continue to love both equally and express himself how he wants to.

Surely that is exactly the reason people get into the crazy world of music.

Joe concludes: “The fact I get to spend one night playing the Bush Hall in London playing to 400 fans of my sister Martha in pindrop silence and appreciation then the next night be in Holland playing to 150 punks screaming every word back at the band covered in sweat makes me happy beyond words. Not many people have both boxes ticked.”