Gig Review: Frankie Archer - Kitchen Garden, Kings Heath, Birmingham. Friday 11th October 2024

 

www.frankiearchermusic.com

Eleven months ago Frankie Archer opened the minds of a curious band of Birmingham gig goers. Plenty more had a brief exposure a few months later when this north-east based musician played a short opening set for Jim Moray, also at the Kitchen Garden. The style of blending trad folk with eclectic electro sounds was still exhibited, though in a slimmer content. The first turn of the annual cycle is almost complete and over the ensuing period Frankie Archer has grown an audience to just fall short of selling out the venue. Rough observation deduced a healthy mix of returnees, so there must also have been a contingent getting their first experience of something unique and intoxicating with respect to the staple folk circuit fare.

Where Frankie Archer's natural audience lies remains a conundrum. Twenty-minute opening sets for The Last Dinner Party offer one side, as opposed to frequenting venues healthily inhabited by folk stalwarts. Exquisite fiddle playing, sumptuous vocals and extensive trad songbook sourcing form one part of the equation: analogue synthesiser, sound tracking recordings, loops and innovative song building takes the listener and audience into an alternative stratosphere. Re-tune your mind, dust off preconceptions and therein lies a potential reach far and wide.

At the heart of Frankie Archer's cultural guidance is to re-imagine the role of women in traditional song. Challenging convention, pursuing a different approach to legions of archivists and revivalists reveals a headstrong artisan. You can deduce a lot about Frankie Archer - the person - by her stage presence, and where her musical path leads. Flexible mindsets will inevitably be coaxed to latch onto this innovative performer, yet the choice to retain a degree of convention may always choke off some curious observers.

The strength of her trajectory resides in a buzzing and connective live presence. The recorded content has recently been expanded to now two four-track EPs. Samplers when compared to the vast cannon of contemporary folk music, yet small seeds grow quickly in fertile soil. The eventual release of a debut Frankie Archer album will yield wider acclaim to capitalise on the existing media exposure secured from a limited base.

Pitfalls and bumps present themselves to all independent artists. Maybe things that don't quite go right can embolden performers. Having seen Frankie Archer on each of her three Birmingham visits, the one to enhance the listener experience is to avoid short second sets like the one delivered this evening. Four songs, though eloquently explained, plus a work-in-progress tune created an abrupt ending. Gig perceptions are often formed by lasting finales. A vague memory suggested it was different in 2023 with perhaps 'O Bonny Fisher Lad' being part of a climax. 

Everything else about the year discovering the music of this talented and perceptively evocative musician has been a treat. Electro-trad is a riveting concept and when presented so well is a compulsive listen. Frankie Archer remains one to watch. An engaging artist pressing new pulses to move boundaries and raise important issues of historical interpretation. 

Album Review: Lucy Isabel - All the Light

www.lucyisabelmusic.com

ALL THE LIGHT sees Nashville-based singer-songwriter Lucy Isabel re-board the recording train and set about engaging new and old listeners with a folk-inspired sound. Through ten original songs, the album's essence quickly finds its groove, smoothing out any noticeable dips or artificial highs. A consistent measured and articulate approach to songwriting, and its ultimate delivery, lures the listener into a comfortable zone. From this place, a theme of snapshot thoughts and pondering about the present guide the album into a sweet listening spot. 

Life and its many distractions had temporarily pulled away this New Jersey native from the spotlight. The return has played the modern game of digital drips, with four singles landing across the wires ahead of an October 11th full album release. The focussed quartet go a long way to defining the sound of Lucy Isabel with 2nd single 'A Hero's Welcome' probably the pick of the early offerings. The tender start is in line with the mood of the record and you really feel the longing in the lyrics. 'I’ve got time on my hands/ I’ve got no place to go/ I’m just sitting here/ waiting, by the open window.' 

What actually seals the deal is planting a cracking song in the closing spot. 'The Right Choice' is a stellar parting shot and moves things up a notch on the tempo scale. For those who like a touch of twang in their folk-Americana, a blast of steel at the end satisfies the soul. This side to the instrumentation occasionally pops up and faint tones drift in during the enticing second track 'Magpie' 

The pre-album release period began with the launch of 'Miles From Home', a track where the full breadth of a subtle band sound is used combined with a notable change of tempo mid-song. Probably more ubiquitous than the steel is the violin, in line with folk sentiments that tend to dominate the record. Third and fourth single 'Blind Ambition' and 'My Memory' exemplify this. The latter hones in on the personal moments with the phrases - 'my mother', 'my father', 'my partner', 'my daughter' - beginning lines in the lyrics. 

'The Edge' is another violin-soundtracked song, although like all its contemporaries, the overarching genial trait is the classy vocal style skilfully adopted. This is one of the later tracks, a collection opening several songs earlier with 'A Better Life', containing mellow vibes and philosophical leanings in 'So you’ve still got time/ to promise a better life.'

Of the remaining two tracks, 'Best Efforts' sees the album in its most upbeat tempo, with mixed messages come from the lyrics. 'Where it Lies' is probably the album's mellowest moment and the piano accompaniment puts a theatrical edge to the song, which you could envisage being part of a show. 

Cathartic undertones add to the identity of ALL THE LIGHT and Lucy Isabel has definitely made the 'right choice' to let loose her creative talents. Kicking your feet back to savour an artist find their voice from many angles sums up the response. Contemporary folk is in safe hands with albums like this.