Levon Helm and Mavis Staples were always a match made in heaven, from their first meeting at The Last Waltz in 1977, to their final performance in 2011, captured live on Carry Me Home. Despite that fact that she was born…
In some ways Jenny Berkel is wrapped in mystery – These Are the Sounds Left From Leaving is her first album in almost six years. Along the way she concentrated on her poetry while still performing live and creating a set of…
Since the release of Yesterday Is Gone in 2020, Dana Gavanski has been through the wringer, making When It Comes virtually a new beginning, albeit one that almost didn’t happen. During the pandemic Gavanski lost her voice. With no tours, writing a new album…
There’s not a straightforward narrative to Abigail Lapell’s new album Stolen Time. It courses a path that wanders a bit, not because straight lines don’t make sense, it’s just that quite often our paths seem to avoid the straight and narrow.…
Listening to Father John Misty it’s easy to get confused, Chloé and the Next 20th Century goes in two different directions at the same time. Musically, the initial moments of Chloé sound like something out of the 30s, bouncy muted horns and piano lead…
Combining Hannah Peel with Paraorchesta is one of those feats of attraction that cannot be denied, and The Unfolding, the fruits of their labour, is a masterpiece that defies genres. Peel began her career as something of a folk artist, although…
Jerry Leger knows how to write a song, and the 11 on Nothing Pressing clearly illustrate a man with a sense of humor, a sense of taste and a sense of just how weird the last two years have been. Though recorded…
In the same way that Joni Mitchell reflected the California vibe on Blue, Lia Ices mirrors a similar consciousness on Family Album 50-some years farther down the road. Her 2014 album, Ices, marched to a synthetic beat with layered electronics and loops. Having moved…
You have to play the hand you’re dealt, and Simone Felice has played his cards despite a life that hasn’t always been the way he’d have wanted it, which is what makes All The Bright Coins so fascinating. Having spent the last…
Aoife O’Donovan can surprise you, as she does on Age of Apathy. For a singer who often uses quiet rather than trying to bowl you over with the strength of her voice, some of her thoughts can be a bit disconcerting.…