Kacy & Clayton and Marlon Williams Plastic Bouquet New West Records A chance Spotify encounter with the music of Kacy & Clayton led Marlon Williams on an adventure that ended up in sub-zero Saskatoon in Canada and Nashville, TN to record this wonderful collaborative album. There’s a clear simpatico between the three of them, with … Continue reading
THE SEEDS OF COLLABORATION Marlon Williams talks about Plastic Bouquet his new album with Kacy & Clayton and gives an update on some of his other upcoming projects. by Chris Familton In 2017, New Zealand songwriter Marlon Williams was on tour across Europe when the algorithms of Spotify dropped a Kacy & Clayton song in … Continue reading
Caitlin Harnett & The Pony Boys Late Night Essentials Evening Records Caitlin Harnett’s 2014 debut album The River Runs North was an accomplished exercise in confessional, acoustic-based contemporary folk with a strength of songwriting at its core. As part of a an established collective of movers and shakers in the Sydney Americana scene – aiding … Continue reading
LATE NIGHTS IN THE INNER WEST Caitlin Harnett & The Pony Boys dish up a sonic smorgasbord of soulful country-rock on Late Night Essentials. by Chris Familton Sydney songwriter Caitlin Harnett knew from an early age that music was what she wanted to pursue and as an 18 year old she was quickly thrust into … Continue reading
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
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 … Continue reading
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 … 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
‘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
‘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
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