the UK home for americana music
In 1970 British folk legend Michael Chapman released his second album, ‘Fully Qualified Survivor’. Nearly half a century and almost as many albums later no better phrase could describe him. Now 78 and still on the road, he’s made, if not his best album ever, certainly one that is on the podium. His age and … Continue reading “Michael Chapman “True North” (Paradise Of Bachelors, 2019)”
Leaving you this weekend dear dear readers with news that the Leeds born so-called “Godfather of Cosmic Americana” is back with a new album ‘True North’ recorded with close ally Steve Gunn and which features pals Bridget St John and BJ Cole. Chapman has been championed by (or collaborated with) the likes of Hiss Golden … Continue reading “The “Godfather of Cosmic Americana” Michael Chapman is back!”
Time for another in our series looking at the routes our writers have taken into Americana and just what it is that makes it our favourite genre. This week we are warmed by Clint West’s pathological dislike of country music and how the poacher turned a gamekeeper.
Spain-born, US-raised and UK-based singer-songwriter Sarah McQuaid is heading out on the road again for 12 solid weeks of touring, with 35 shows in the USA and 22 in the UK, starting on September 6th and winding up back in her adopted home county of Cornwall on November 30th.
“Had this arrived in a vinyl format we would not be surprised to see a small palm tree on a grassy island decorating the label. Crooked Weather, a Yorkshire based duo, are unashamedly influenced by the folk rock sounds of the late sixties and early seventies as purveyed back then by the likes of the … Continue reading “Crooked Weather “Are We Lost” (Independent, 2010)”
Maybe the best example of an “underground” artist coming to the fore that we’ve come across in recent years, Steve Gunn is perhaps best known as having been Kurt Vile’s guitarist. However, he has a healthy back catalogue of solo and collaborative recordings and with ‘The Unseen In Between’ gathering a great deal of media … Continue reading “Steve Gunn “The Unseen in Between” (Matador Records, 2019)”
The cover of her fifth album shows a guitar morphed into a spade. Whilst Woody Guthrie wrote “This Machine Kills Fascists” on his guitar, Sarah McQuaid may as well have put “This Machine Kills Fracking” on hers. The title track opens with McQuaid warning her son not to go too deep in the garden with … Continue reading “Sarah McQuaid “If We Dig Any Deeper It Could Get Dangerous” (A Shovel and A Spade, 2018)”
Nick Ellis is a Liverpool based singer/songwriter and guitarist performing a style of streetscape narrative-noir blended with a modern British acoustic approach. No nonsense, song and melody are the order of the day. Some people call it ‘folk’, some just call it good old fashioned song craft. Using a blend of rhythmic attack and finger-quick … Continue reading “Dirty Dozen: Nick Ellis”
The line-up has just been announced for this year’s End of the Road festival has been announced and it looks pretty spectacular, certainly better than last year’s wash out in more ways than one (Teenage Fanclub notwithstanding dear americana fans). Father John Misty and Mac DeMarco have been confirmed as headliners but also on the … Continue reading “Lucinda Williams to play End of the Road 2017”
The AMAUK conference is now into its fourth year and one of the highlights is the two nights of showcases which take place before the awards ceremony featuring the best of americana talent, both homegrown and from around the world. At five venues across Hackney, all within walking distance and for the price of one … Continue reading “AmericanaFest UK 2019 Conference Showcase preview – part five”