We like the dark side of folk music, the weird and wonderful sounds that conjure up spirits from the shadows of the heart and mind. Underworld Orchard are a group featuring Hannah Olivegren (Zomes), Steven Strohmeier (Arbouretum, Beach House) and Baltimore experimental music fixture Liz Downing. Together they weave a magical, hypnotic sound, a serenade … Continue reading
Here’s our mid year list for 2020. In alphabetical order, the albums (and one EP) that have hit our musical sweet-spot over the last six months. Big hitters and newcomers cosied up together in a smorgasbord of country, folk and Americana goodness. Dig in and have a listen… Andrew Tuttle Alexandra Andy Golledge Namoi EP … Continue reading
Here’s the authentic country sound of Arlo McKinley, taken from his forthcoming debut solo album, Die Midwestern, out August 14 on John Prine’s independent Oh Boy Records. It’s a fine opening shot, with that line “I don’t wanna get high anymore” and a classic balladeer sound, part straight country , part outlaw, mostly just a … Continue reading
We’re digging the sound of this track from Molly Maher, a song that blends western and Mexicali styles in a way that tumbles and clatters around with a loose and graceful quality. It’s like Tom Waits, light-headed on tequila, jamming with Calexico in a dusty backstreet on a sunny afternoon. Lovely stuff and there’s more … Continue reading
Charley Crockett has released a beautiful new video, for the song ‘Run Horse Run’, from his forthcoming new LP Welcome To Hard Times – available July 31st 2020. “The video is part of a cinematic series of music videos, where Crockett plays the same lonesome character traveling through the American wilderness. This episode features Crockett … Continue reading
It’s been six years since Sydney songwriter Dave Favours released his solo album Wet Suburban Sunday, but he’s spent those years building up the roster on his label Stanley Records, releasing the Australian alt-country compilation Take Me To Town and honing the sound of his band The Roadside Ashes. Having a solid group of great … Continue reading
The delightfully named Scurvylicious concoct a wonderfully vibrant sound on this new song ‘Wiser‘. The Melbourne band open the track with a slow, swaying jangly guitar sound – like an afterthought at the start of the song. Near the minute mark it kicks into first gear with prominent bass driving things along and the mantra … Continue reading
Here’s a great, ramshackle country song that rolls along on the momentum of its melody, sung by a certain Evan Dando. As songwriter Nic Dalton explains, the song came about when ex Lemonheads bassist Jesse Peretz asked Dalton to compose a song for a short film of his. From one Lemonheads bassist to the next, … Continue reading
Lilly Hiatt Walking Proof New West Records, 2020 With her famous surname and the album’s opening shimmering tremolo guitar chords you’d think you were in for a straight country trip. There’s certainly a strong country streak, of the Nikki Lane kind, that runs through Walking Proof, but just as equally there’s an indie rock aesthetic … Continue reading
Rod Smoth is the nom de plume of Mississippi songwriter and guitarist Reed Smith who recently released his self-titled album. Continue reading
Melbourne alt-country/Americana songwriter Mitch Dean released his debut solo album Holding Back The Levee last Friday. “I wanted to make something that sounded like all the albums I love to listen to. From Neil Young through to The Jayhawks.” Evocative storytelling, rich musicality and the heartfelt conveyance of human emotion. Those are some of the hallmarks … Continue reading
Melbourne’s Dan Brodie has directed a clip for a new single from his fine 2019 album Funerária do Vale. This track has a gentle, meditative quality. Sombre and sad, it paints sweet and tragic moments, fragments of memories wrapped up in a poignant portrait. “You were impossible to possess, an aberration, an emptiness, our love … Continue reading
We’ve always got a soft-spot for that point where country and folk meet slowcore. There are elements of that in ‘Love On Repeat’, the latest single from UK group Shattercones. The song comes from their EP Oppenheimer, which is out now. You can here the sound of acts like Tindersticks, albeit with a heavier gothic … Continue reading
Lucinda Williams Good Souls Better Angels Highway 20 / Cooking Vinyl Australia After a year spent looking back with her Car Wheels On A Gravel Road 20th anniversary tour, Lucinda Williams has now turned her mind to the modern world in the here and now, from internal battles of individuals to the heartless idiocy of … Continue reading
‘The Lonely Hunter’ is the third track released from The Wine of Youth, the new album by San Diego-based singer-songwriter Zach Phillips. Based around a simple repeating guitar motif, Phillips weaves some sublime vocal melodies that rise and fall, circling those exquisite guitar notes and the subtle rhythm section. Lovely stuff. “The Wine of Youth” is … Continue reading
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