Folk
Track: Band of Holy Joy – When a gift is a curse
Out digitally on June 16th digitally is the new single from The Band of Holy Joy. For nigh on thirty years the band have been releasing records – including for legendary Rough Trade label, and the band continues to trade in the sort of outsider folk-punk that made it popular all those years ago. On …
Album Review: Wye Oak – Shriek
So what do I know about Wye Oak? Well, I know Jenn Wasner has one of those voices you want to hear sing just about anything. It’s a dark and breathy kind of voice. It’s the kind of voice you want to crawl into and take a nap in. There’s an all-knowing maturity in her …
See: Nerina Pallot announces Autumn UK Tour, plus stream of new track “Free Man”
Fresh from performing with McAlmont and Butler at the Union Chapel on May 1st, and following on from the recent release of her latest EP as part of her project to release an EP every month of 2014, Jersey born – London residing Nerina Pallot has announced a 17 date UK tour in the Autumn. …
Feature: Cheerio Jethro Tull – thoughts on the ending
Following a particularly demanding day at work, I wandered into Sheffield branch of HMV on Tuesday. As I walked through the doors, my eyes inevitably flicked to my right and across to the new release display. Ninety percent of the time I don’t even recognise the name of at least half of the acts on …
Track: Ben Watt to release new album Hendra, and listen to the title track
There are things we all either put off, or keep meaning to get round to. I’ve been meaning to paint my garden shed for quite a while now, while the borders need weeding. One thing is for sure though, it won’t take me the thirty years its taken Ben Watt to get round to it. …
Album Review: Tom Brosseau – Grass Punks
There are certain records that seem like they are nurtured, almost organically, like a gardener in his allotment allows things to grow. North Dakota songman Tom Brosseau’s new record, his first in five years, but his seventh overall, certainly has that feeling about it. That was perhaps expected in his music to a certain extent. …
Album Review: Suzanne Vega – Tales from the Realms of the Queen of Pentangles
The new album from Suzanne Vega is a mixed bag. The themes of the songs are fascinating, calling on aspects of Tarot, the Bible and feelings about a playwright and politician Vaclav Havel amongst other subjects. She refers to her songs as stories and parables, and the lyrical content is always diverse, even if we …
New Music: Hudson Taylor – Weapons
It seems there is a wealth of acts coming out of Ireland, with people like Kodaline and Gavin James leading the charge in 2013. This year though, it might be Hudson Taylor, a pair of brothers from the suburbs of Dublin, that could be coming to the fore. We’ve written about them before, but they …
Video of the Day: Until the Bird – Nightingales
I’m sure it was shot in the autumn, but it’ll do. Brighten up your Winter morning with the (faux) Spring light and the arboreal fecundity of “Nightingales”. You can enjoy strong, ardent vocals, virtuoso folk musicianship, the sun rippling over bark, and a lovely moment where the camera takes a dip (in the Thames ?). …
A buyers guide to Jethro Tull
Jethro Tull are a band who are special to me. They’re the first band I saw live, the first band that I felt a genuine connection to, the first band where my adolescent mind went ‘Yep, this is for me’. Given that my peers at the time were obsessing over Nirvana or the contemporary hiphop …