THE FINNISH slide goddess is coming to Keighley to perform with her fellow Ladies of the Blues.

Erja Lyytinen will take the stage at the Octagon club on March 29 to show the talent that won her Best Solo Artist in the Blues Matters writer’s poll of 2015.

Erja was also voted Artist of the Year in her own nation’s Blues Awards in the same year.

Keighley Blues Live is hosting the gig at the venue on Bradford Road, Sandbeds, with fellow blueswomen Connie Lush and Kyla Brox. KBL described singer-guitarist Erja as a blend of blues traditionalist and forward-thinking music academy graduate, displaying both musical skill and Nordic beauty.

A spokesman said: “Since first setting foot in a recording studio 15 years ago, Erja Lyytinen has become a bona fide star in her homeland and a celebrated fixture on the international music scene.

“She has recorded nine studio albums in locations as diverse as Helsinki, Memphis and Clarksdale, Mississippi, earning numerous awards and honours along the way.

“Lyytinen is equally at home in traditional and modern blues and has never been afraid to incorporate styles like jazz, pop and soul. Her 2014 Elmore James tribute album The Sky Is Crying – recorded shortly before she gave birth to twins – was universally hailed as her best and bluesiest to date.”

Born into a musical family in the town of Kuopio, Lyytinen signed with Germany’s prestigious Ruf Records label in 2005 and recorded her international debut Pilgrimage later that year.

Her participation in the 2006 Blues Caravan tour gave audiences outside of Finland a first taste of her spirited live performances and led to a string of successful appearances in the United States.

Visit theoctagonlive.com or call 01274 562252 to book tickets.