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‘Anywhere Else‘ has Siv Jakobsen analysing her anxieties – not the little ones that can nag every few minutes or so through a day but the really big ones that can be overwhelming enough to restrict a life. Like having to walk everywhere even though you can drive because “I’m scared of dying, scared of breaking, scared of killing someone else along my way.” Continue reading “Siv Jakobsen “Anywhere Else” – Listen”
In more than forty years of recording Steve Forbert has released a phenomenal number of truly fine albums, appearing at first with a brash new take on folk-rock on ‘Alive on Arrival‘ and ‘Jackrabbit Slim‘, and evolving over the years into a more country-influenced style of storytelling. He’s produced a tribute album to Jimmie Rodgers and this – a few album tracks like ‘When You Walk in the Room‘ and the live ‘Starstruck‘ aside – is the extent of his excursion into the world of other people’s songs. Until now. Continue reading “Steve Forbert “Early Morning Rain” (Blue Rose Music, 2020)”
Chris Comper looks every inch the mountain man, making his stage moniker of Prinz Grizzley quite appropriate. True, in his case the mountains are those majestic Austrian peaks, but even so there’s no doubting his Americana heart. Continue reading “Prinz Grizzley “Drifting” – Listen”
Welcome to the second in our semi-regular advice column, which, it seems, might be running on a three weekly basis. Some problems are complex, and some problems are very straightforward – and this week we have a case of the latter. Messrs Simon and Garfunkel want to know why they aren’t getting all their mail. They’re desperate for a missive even if it’s “only to say that you’re leaving me.” Continue reading “What should I do, Americana UK?”
Ferris & Sylvester won the ‘Emerging Artist Award’ at the Americana Music Association UK’s Awards this year which should have set them up for a busy 12 months of touring, and then – well, we all know what happened next. The duo haven’t been wasting their time in lockdown – there’s been a flurry or song writing including today’s new song. Continue reading “Ferris & Sylvester “Everyone Is Home” – Listen”
We’re premiering ‘Gettin’s Good‘ today from the upcoming Beau Jennings album ‘Son of Thunderbird‘ due out on June 5th. And if it sounds at all familiar then it’s because it – like all the songs on ‘Son of Thunderbird‘ – is an acoustic take on a song that first appeared on last year’s full band release ‘The Thunderbird‘. Continue reading “Track Premiere: Beau Jennings “Gettin’s Good””
There was a time when a Dylan cover or two was almost obligatory on any folk or intelligent rock album. Anyone half established would likely do a whole album in tribute to the leading singer-songwriter of his or any subsequent generation. On their album ‘Tänk inte efter (Don’t Think Twice – Bob Dylan in Swedish)’ Vargen took a slightly alternative approach which they have followed up with a new release. Continue reading “Vargen “One Too Many Mornings” – Listen”
The biggest surprise on this new song from Sarah Jarosz, the second single from her upcoming album ‘World On The Ground‘ (on Rounder Records, out June 5th) is how much it sounds like the recent work of David Crosby. Not vocally, of course, but there’s a laid back and dreamy jazz sophistication to it. Continue reading “Sarah Jarosz “Orange and Blue” – Listen”
Ally Evenson’s new five-track EP starts at the end of the affair, or at least at the beginning of the end – which means that it is saturated with the sadness of romantic loss – from that first doubt that things aren’t where they were through the sudden realisation that there’s an absence, a physical removal of love. Regret and the false hope of moving on, putting that all in the past and thinking that a fresh start is beckoning finally gives way to the emotionally draining but more real acceptance that things aren’t going to resolve in a romantic-comedy way: there’s no mutual realisation that “we’re being crazy, we should be together forever“, followed by an embrace and roll credits. Continue reading “Ally Evenson “Not So Pretty EP” (Independent, 2020)”
There will be, at some time in the future, a genre redefinition which gathers as a new sub-genre all the songs inspired by isolation, social distancing, working from home and fear of a highly contagious and deadly virus. ‘Meanwhile in Winnsboro’ is Sofia Talvik’s contribution. Continue reading “Sofia Talvik “Meanwhile In Winnsboro” – Listen”