In the current country music world things can certainly get a tad over-earnest at times. A surefire antidote is Jonny Fritz. On Sweet Creep he’s recorded his finest record to date and found the perfect balance between heartache, humour, pathos and musicality. Produced my My Morning Jacket’s and with Joshua Hedley and Dawes’ Taylor and … Continue reading
It’s an intriguing premise – gather a group of some of the finest singers, songwriters and players on the Melbourne alt-country scene and record them singing each other’s songs backed by a studio house band. That approach ensures continuity of style and feel from a musical perspective but there are still plenty of pleasant surprises … Continue reading
Born of a fractured and unsalvageable relationship, yet blessed by the birth of a child, Freya Josephine Hollick’s second album is a deep emotional record that sounds at times desperate and fragile, yet often also defiant and optimistic. The album dials into a sound of pure, unadorned folk and lonesome country music. With just three … Continue reading
Time Is Golden is an often melancholic yet sometimes euphoric album, tragically shadowed by singer/songwriter Adrian Slattery’s diagnosis of terminal cancer and subsequent passing in May 2016, only weeks after he recorded his final guitar track for the record. Widescreen Americana is the best description of this set of songs that take in Wilco, The … Continue reading
PICKING UP WHERE WE LEFT OFF Back in the saddle after Danny Widdicombe overcame leukaemia for the third time, The Wilson Pickers have reconvened to celebrate the simple joy of making music together. Sime Nugent chatted to Chris Familton about the circumstances in which the new album came about. In 2012 The Wilson Pickers were … Continue reading
Across eight albums, Devendra Banhart has explored all corners of folk and esoteric pop music with both authenticity and free-form eccentricity. He’s played it straight and pure, joyous and playful; all the while pushing the boundaries, from instrumental ragas to songs with artfully obtuse titles such as ‘Tit Smoking In The Temple Of Artesan Mimicry’. … Continue reading
The term troubadour is bandied about as a kind of romantic notion of a songwriter riding the rails, traveling and singing for his supper. Josh Rennie-Hynes fits that description more than most singer/songwriters in Australia, regularly relocating to different cities and countries – all in the name of spreading his music and developing his songwriting … Continue reading
Out of a dreamy mist emerges ornately plucked notes and the heavenly voice of Lucy Roleff. That’s how her album begins and continues over the next beautiful 36 minutes. Classically trained, the Melbourne songwriter sits in the same haunting, autumnal territory as Nick Drake, Aldous Harding, slow motion gothic country and occasionally the European icy … Continue reading
It’s been five years since Gillian Welch released a new solo LP, though I guess we’ve been half-satiated with the recent Dave Rawlings Machine album. One hopes that this release is a stopgap collection to both celebrate the 20th anniversary of her debut Revival and reinvigorate her catalogue ahead of a new solo album. This … Continue reading
With a songwriters poise and a natural sense of folk and country musicality, Violet Road is a far superior collection of songs to Sam Newton’s debut Set In Stone, which hinted at his potential. Newton focuses on a couple of themes on the album. Most prominently there’s a trio of songs (‘Hold You Down’, ‘Homesick’ … Continue reading
Taking the leap from being part of a band to standing on one’s own feet as a solo performer had never occurred to Dear Orphans’ Nick Payne. When it was suggested, he decided to approach the Rise Up Like A River project with 100% commitment and passion. As a founding member (with partner Lyn Taylor) … Continue reading
Daniel Lanois has long been associated with some of the biggest names in popular music such as Bob Dylan, Neil Young, U2, Brian Eno and Emmylou Harris and though his own music is quite different in scope and form, it still shares the core aesthetic values of intellectual creativity and the desire to find something … Continue reading
There have been plenty of stories of albums recorded while holed up in cabins in secluded locations, often documenting and dissecting a failed romance. Krista Polvere undertook a similar process in a basement in Virginia but in her case the relationship was still in motion and the partner in question was also the album’s producer. … Continue reading
For the last decade Nick Payne has led Sydney folk and bluegrass outfit Dear Orphans across two albums and a ton of live shows. His debut solo album has him keeping one foot firmly in the Dear Orphans camp and the other heading into contemporary Americana. Payne presents the album as two halves, the first … Continue reading
With the recent release of his sophomore album Violet Road, Sydney Americana artist Sam Newton has certainly made good on the promise he showed on his debut Set In Stone. The new record is intensely honest and personal, the result of Newton’s focus and desire to become the best songwriter he can possibly be. With … Continue reading
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