Category: Reviews

Album | The Mountain Goats – Dark in Here

The Mountain Goats are a little different than most bands, rather than taking on one project at a time they actually took on three. In between recording Songs for Pierre Chuvin and Getting Into Knives, they went into FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals…

Album | Lady Nade – Willing

Let’s talk about Lady Nade, UK Americana Award nominee, showcased at the Folk Alliance International and the International Live Music Conference, performing at many online festivals in the UK and USA – including Thriving Roots and Folk on Foot. Recently…

Album | Marry Waterson & Oliver Knight – The Days That Shaped Me (10th anniversary edition)

Dive in deep to the wonderful, traditional and ever surprising sound world of Marry Waterson and Oliver Knight’s The Days That Shaped Me and you won’t be disappointed.  Here we have English folk-smithery and deep-rooted tradition at its idiosyncratic and…

Album | Ringlefinch – Tall Tales

In Tall Tales, Ringlefinch have created a delightfully self-assured soundtrack for a world doing the hokey-cokey with the Covid 19 pandemic. Intelligent catchy song-writing, imagination, good humour, heart, hygge, and folk politics abound and flourish in this aural delight. I’m…

Album | Chloe Foy – Where Shall We Begin

The voice is disorienting, pure as a bell, yet the subject matter of Where Shall We Begin by Chloe Foy is often decidedly downbeat. At first it seemed like a great lost Virginia Astley album. That lasted all of about…

Album | David John Morris – Monastic Love Songs

David John Morris was asked to give up his guitar for nine months in order to enter Nova Scotia’s Gampo Abbey, which actually resulted in the creation of Monastic Love Songs. Along the way he had to work, study and meditate with the Buddhist…

Album | Iron & Wine – Archive Series No. 5 – Tallahassee Recordings

In the creative landscape there’s something quite unfashionable about looking back. Whether you’re an artist, a novelist or a songwriter, you’re constantly training yourself to think that the next thing you create – the next song, novel, painting – will…

Album | Gruff Rhys – Seeking New Gods

Inspired by the ancient Mount Paektu, Gruff Rhys’ latest solo album finds him exploring fertile territory while remaining both familiar and fresh. The Super Furries’ frontman has ploughed a rich and varied seam under his own steam for 15 years. Seeking…

Album | Oliver Wood – Always Smiling

Always Smiling, Oliver Woods first solo album, is a testament to not having a plan. He didn’t even know he was making a solo album. Being creative, when folks came to Nashville, he invited them over to write and jam…

Album | Frøkedal & Family – Flora

It’s amazing what you can do in 10 days – it took just that long to record Flora by Frøkedal & Family. The Family part is something new, up until now it had just been Anne Lise Frøkedal. The new title reflects the communal…