The redwood forests of northern California are home to Alec Lytle. While there is a picturesque quality to the surroundings, just like everywhere else people have their problems. Those joys and sorrows that make up life are on display on…
Rarely is a ‘difficult second album’ quite this difficult. Forced to regroup after the whirlwind around her debut release back in 2012 – which saw her play on Jools Holland and secure a top five single – was cut short…
In these strange, unprecedented times, we reach for what we can rely on. So what better gift this Easter weekend than the early release of Laura Marling’s seventh studio record. Where several other artists have postponed release dates, wary of…
There is not much doubt that we live in strange times and M. Ward’s Migration Stories is the perfect chance to travel the globe, examining what was, what is and what might be. If there’s a sense of dislocation to…
On the cover of her new album Katie Crutchfield is sitting on the roof of an old Ford truck, the bed filled with red roses and an Alabama license plate that reads STCLOUD. The shifts that have occurred on Waxahatchee’s…
The tongue in cheek title to Jennah Barry’s new album Holiday belies the tortured eight-year path to this follow-up to her 2012 debut, Young Men. Depressed from spending too much time on the road alone, her voice began to shut…
Though times may be uncertain, we may be approaching an apex of self-discovery. As such is the general theme of Sophia St. Helen’s hypnotic ‘Like a Fog’ — a tune written in the wake of the crumbling of a long-distance…
Blues is far from dead. In recent years, it’s actually had somewhat of a resurgence. While greats from Buddy Guy to Taj Mahal are still kicking, the next generation have begun sowing the seeds of traditionalist and modern blues alike.…
We live in a time unlike any other. The spread of COVID-19 has made for a time of togetherness in separation that can’t quite be compared to much else in recorded history. As a result, musicians have begun to adapt…
From the early days of Rachel Unthank and the Winterset to their configuration as The Unthanks, one of the constants has been the fiddle and vocals of Niopha Keegan. On Diversions Vol. 5 – Live and Unaccompanied, she joins Becky…