John Vaites

Deep Dark River “King of the Forest” (Independent, 2019)

August 22, 2019 John Vaites 0

Self-described as artsy, folksy, classical “Deep Dark River” are a Toronto based duo comprising Morgan Rider on guitar, piano, synth and vocals and Nathen Morrison on cello. “King of the Forest” is their second album, though the […]

Norrie McCulloch “Compass” (Independent, 2019)

June 17, 2019 John Vaites 0

As many of you will no doubt appreciate early Americana is deep-rooted in traditional Celtic folk music that emigrated over to North America from Scotland and Ireland. No surprise then that Ayrshire born Norrie McCulloch is […]

Secret Emchy Society “Mark’s Yard: The Campfire Covers” (Independent, 2018)

May 28, 2019 John Vaites 0

This is the second full length offering from Oakland, California’s “first lady of queer country” Cindy Emchy and her spirited band of folky musician friends. As the title suggests it’s an open air politely rambunctious lo-fi […]

JJ Cale “Stay Around” (Because Records, 2019)

May 21, 2019 John Vaites 1

‘Stay Around’ is a posthumous collection of previously unreleased JJ Cale tracks curated by longtime friend and manager Mike Kappus and Cale’s musician widow Christine Lakeland Cale. Rarely can there have been such a rich treasure […]

Kelly Hunt “Even the Sparrow” (Rare Bird Records, 2019)

May 3, 2019 John Vaites 0

Kelly Hunt’s debut album ‘Even the Sparrow’ is exceptionally good. The wistful soulful voice, the mellowness of the vintage calfskin tenor banjo, the frugality of the arrangements all combine to produce an album that is near […]