I think in many ways we’d all like to erase 2020 and start again, but still with the release of the many great albums that came out this year. I’m guessing, like me, most of you found solace, escape, distraction and comfort in listening to music – new and old – to get you through …
Lists! We have a couple for you as usual as we wind down at the end of another year. I won’t rabbit on about the trials and tribulations of 2020, the good news was that the music still came down the pipeline with the same amount of quality and reward. We’ll have our overall list …
Carver released their new single ‘At The Harbor’ last month and it’s one of those tracks that sits right in the pocket, not trying to carve our a new variant of Americana music, just comfortably hitting its marks in terms of melody and playing. There’s an unassuming quality to the music but by the midpoint … Continue reading
Simplicity done well makes for powerful music and this song from Nashville-based songwriter Henry Conlon grabbed us the second he started singing. One of those voices that sounds both powerful and emotionally wrought at the same time, it reminded me of the dark drama of Townes Van Zandt and more recently, Tyler Childers. ‘I’m Coming … Continue reading
There’s some exceptional playing on this new track from Nashville, TN artist Shane Scarazzini and his band EightFingers. Check out the guitars that spark and fly amid fiddle and pedal steel on ‘West Virginia Girl‘. The fluidity and energy in the playing is what nails this as a superb track but without the strength of … Continue reading
There’s some great playing on this new track from Alison Self. Electric twang and a quick-fire shuffle make for a rippin’ good honky-tonk sound for Self to sing over in her rough and raw voice. Self is based in Portland after time spent in Nashville, Denver and Austin and her new EP is her latest … Continue reading
There’s a strong John Prine sound and vibe on this new track from John John Brown, taken from his second album Americana Comics. He even references Prine in the song, a gently drifting and softly propulsive slice of country folk that hits the spot between laidback and warmly poetic. Lovely stuff. The song “tells the … Continue reading
This Frontier Needs Heroes have been releasing music for over a decade and you can hear that lived-in feel in the playing and the maturity of the arrangement and sublime vocal melodies of singer-songwriter Brad Lauretti on this new song ‘South Dakota’. It’s a mix of gorgeous, folk-tinged vocals, the grit and electric twang of the … Continue reading
‘Halfway To Mexico’, taken from Abigail Lapell‘s 2019 album Getaway, is a beatifully languid and humid folk song that eases along on the back of her wonderfully expressive way with melodies that dance through the song. The Toronto vocalist, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist has released two acclaimed solo albums – Hide Nor Hair, her sophomore LP, … Continue reading
Like Tom Petty jamming with Cutting Crew circa 1985, Aaron Lee Tasjan has fully embraced synth sounds, alongside his power-pop guitar aesthetic on this slice of cosmic pop. It works in a playful way too, with hooks aplenty. Kaleidoscopic Americana? Discussing the song, Tasjan says, “‘Up All Night’ is half party anthem, half cautionary tale. … Continue reading
‘Fortune’ is the closing track on Norwegian singer-songwriter Juni Habel‘s new album All Ears. The folk artist has a beautiful folk tone and temperament which is balanced between the twee and arcane. She shares similarities with the bewitching sounds of early Aldous Harding as well as Big Thief and Tiny Ruins. The interplay between her … Continue reading
Drayton Farley (Woodstock, Alabama) is a new name to us but his voice caught our ear right off the bat. The lyrics fell into place pretty immediately too. Never over-forced, he balances the poetry and direct political commentary with a tasteful touch of melancholic country. The song definitely calls into the same camp as the … Continue reading
Hot nights and a sultry blues rock groove are the order of the day on this new track from Indiana-based David Quinn. We last wrote about Quinn when he released his excellent album Wanderin’ Fool last year. This year’s new album Letting Go finds him broadening his sound and continuing his rich vein of songwriting. … Continue reading
Lately I’ve been listening to and writing about the sound of ambient country music. I guess it’s the state of the world – but quieter, more ruminative and relaxing sounds have become even more important than ever of late. There are the traditional ambient go-to’s such as Eno, Harold Budd, Jon Hassall, Williams Basinski and … Continue reading
We’re excited to be able to bring you the video premiere of the new single and opening track from Australian-American singer-songwriter and poet Natalie D-Napoleon‘s brand new album You Wanted to Be the Shore but Instead You Were the Sea. Just prior to her permanent return to Australia late last year, D-Napoleon, recorded her fourth … Continue reading
We love traditional folk and country music but when something comes along that puts a twist on the old and adds new textures, moods and flavours then we’re immediately drawn to their fire. Chris Portka does just that on this new single “A Candle Is A Raging Fire!” With the parched and emotive harmonica that … Continue reading
This killer tune from Robert Connely Farr had us straight from the opening lines… “If it was up to me I’d burn this fucker down, hit the road and not look back on this godforsaken town.” His delivery – burnished and brusque, forlorn and on the wrong side of good intentions – is perfectly placed. The … Continue reading
