Three Chords and the Truth UK

  Dean Owens has had many different performing and recording entities over the years. The latest one when viable and accessible is the assembly of a four-piece outfit known as the Sinners. You can be a long term Dean Owens live admirer and only ever see the solo or duo format when he comes to town, so any opportunity to savour this recent band construction is welcome. OUR FAVOURITE SINS shines a light on a fresh sound created with the special recording of sixteen existing songs plus the unveiling of a brand new one.   The Sinners went into the studio under the commission of Dutch record boss Bert Pijpers with the aim of recreating a single take live experience for release on his label Continental Record Services. The result is a different slant to many well-loved songs without losing the Owens' kitemark of distinctive vocals and explorative lyrics. The new song ‘ Road of Diamonds’ opens with Owens’ trademark whistling before gently easing out a thoughtful tune crafting a refle...

  The music equivalent of football’s famous saying ‘but can they do it at Stoke on a wet Wednesday night’ has to be ‘Bilston on a wet Thursday’. The odds weren’t exactly stacked in favour of Robert Vincent as he made another stab at playing a West Midlands venue. Joining the Kitchen Garden, Sunflower Lounge, Actress and Bishop and Stourbridge Town Hall, we can now add Bilston Town Hall. Vincent is not alone among his compatriots in finding it tough to establish a foothold in this 2 million strong conurbation. Undoubted interest in an artist of his calibre has yet to be harnessed. The answer lies in innovative promotion, engaging venues and the forging of a community. On the upside, each prospective venture brings a local glimpse of the qualities of one of Britain’s foremost singer-songwriters. An artist weaving Scouse insight onto a Laurel Canyon canvas. We are in the formative stage of Vincent’s next phase. ‘The best so far’ he impishly boasts. Trajectory is in his favour across f...

Plain and poetic, Sally Jaye lyrically harnesses the basics of life in a collection of songs oozing with sweet connective melodies. This Georgia native may not have hogged the limelight as a solo singer-songwriter, preferring other performing routes, however all the credentials are evident to place her at the pinnacle of this craft. YOU’LL BE OKAY, BABY is a tight array of cleverly mastered songs shining a light on ordinariness in a style only a fabled songwriter can convey. Working with accomplished musician Brent Cobb, who undertook a co-production role, has handsomely paid off with an optimum sound spilling out of ten lean songs smoothed without a lack of substance.  Jaye’s principle playing partner is Brian Wright who co-wrote nine songs with her and plays guitar on the full set. The outlier in a writing context is perhaps the one track that burns the brightest. ‘ Love on the Road’  is a recent song written by Aaron Lee Tasjan packed with guile capturing the essence of sev...

What’s not to love about a jangle guitar band operating on the fault line between US alt-country and British pop rock. From the often undiscovered outpost of Carlisle emerges an outfit with the sound to travel far and the chops to etch another mark on the great tree of like-minded bands stretching back from the mid-60s to modern day architects. The Dead Religion made a long journey in English terms to play the Maverick Festival in Suffolk on a hot July afternoon. Amidst the dust, heat and plethora of competing sounds, they left a most adorable calling card in a song going right to the core of what makes music special. The good news is that song is not alone as the band send a further gift into the wider world with the release of THE GREAT UNKNOWN. The track in question, ‘ Guitar Pickin’ Man’ resides in the latter stages of this debut record formed of ten songs and lavishly decorating a precious 38 minutes of your valuable listening time. It provides a conduit to a raft of similarly ap...

As nights draw in across the Northern Hemisphere, there is a warmth surrounding this new recording from husband and wife recording partnership, The Heists. More pertinent when you discover they hail from a tight knit roots music community in Juneau Alaska. BREAK & MEND is a short six-track collection weaving threads from old time, folk and bluegrass into a wholesome and cathartic listening experience. The theme is a juxtaposition of the natural environment in the duo's home locality, which can be both brutally unforgiving and heartily invigorating. This is harnessed with a core sense of community in an outpost where the collaborative energy of shared playing enacts an important role. Title track and story song ' Break & Mend' kicks things off in the guise of a traditional folk tale with Andrew Heist taking lead before passing the vocal baton for Erin Heist to take the helm for most of the release, This starts with the uptempo second track ' Buck Up Buttercup ’ w...

  A couple of bars into Susannah Clegg’s full length debut record and you know you are in capable hands. All emotions, influences and callings come to the fore in a deft display of interpretative excellence. GOOD TIMES ARE COMING OUR WAY unequivocally plants one foot in a timeless arena pouring songs from the canyons of heart and soul wrapped in a voice plucked from a dusty barroom. In a true sense of tradition, the band play the supporting role to a tee, just enough to add substance and structure to the songs, while allowing vocals that ache with intent to prosper. Living proof that Lancashire lies on the fault line of heartache and misery etched in a fully stocked story song, The ten tracks forming this long awaited release merge into a montage of illustrated characters and feelings. A simple combo of definitive fiddle, binding double bass and constructive guitar frames the musical landscape easing off for Clegg’s voice to release its purposeful endeavour. A voice that has form t...

  On his second album, London-based artist Jack Browning has thrown all his artistic might into creating a record bringing tradition up-to-date. PAINTED SKIES is an exhibition how to put the pieces of a country album together and spin something wholesomely authentic. Bar a couple of name drops, Browning steer clears of cliches while intelligently dissecting a state of mind within lyrics bestowed with a tasty structure. Meaning traverses from explicit outpouring to introspective musing using a broad soundscape underpinned by pedal steel. The country core draws influences from the blues pairing heartfelt ballads with stompers ripe for the wooden floor. A rich Stateside association blends with a studious outlook applying touches aligned with his other creative pursuit of painting vivid images of the West.  Twelves tracks parade the wealth of Browning’s musicianship with the bonus offering ‘ Muhlenberg County Stars ’ getting an acoustic version cut on some formats. Even with a mi...