Three Chords and the Truth UK

Duke Special  It may usually be the domain of the thespian crowd, but for one day only Birmingham’s Crescent Theatre went into full operational mode to present a near eight hour continuation of primarily local folk and roots music. This was a significant step up from the venue’s occasional Monday night experiment with live music in the bar as both this usual space and the main auditorium housed around a dozen acts on a seamless rotation. To borrow one half of the pun-induced title, a great time was had by those sharing their Sunday with the conveyor belt of artists on parade. Folkin’ Great held onto the ideals of its organisers to keep it mainly local by ensuring four of the six main stage acts didn’t have far to travel. The two exceptions did have pride of place at the top of the bill with East Yorkshire based Edwina Hayes returning to a venue where she played a successful show last summer. Shortly after Edwina finished her set, necessary stage adjustments were made to ...

The act is named after its founders Eleanor Underhill and Molly Rose Reed, but Underhill Rose has evolved into a fully-fledged trio with the full time participation of bassist Salley Williamson. Together, with the help of the assembled session musicians, the trio from Asheville North Carolina have made a sensual record reflecting the stripped backed basics of it roots and country core. THE GREAT TOMORROW is Underhill Rose’s third album release and is scheduled to be the centre-piece for the group’s first exploration into the UK. They will find an evolving market ready to embrace a soundtrack underpinned by the banjo and pedal steel, especially one sprinkled with enticing songs and the ever popular harmony approach to singing. Overall the album is a positive recording, quite often simplistic in its themes and gently drifting along in an unhurried timeless haze. The many qualities of this record start with both the vocals and the musical content before edging into more popular ter...

Taking its name from a gold coated thoroughbred is the first sign that Treetop Flyers are back and firing on all cylinders with the release of their sophomore album PALOMINO. This London-based band created significant waves with their debut release in 2013 and a hungry fan base is more than ready for another serving of classy guitar driven indie music heavily inspire by that classic West Coast sound and forever drifting into the realms of Americana rock. The good news is that the new record picks up where THE MOUNTAIN MOVES signed off albeit with personnel changes and much digesting of where to head next. Lead singer Reid Morrison is in fine form from start to finish lending his misty soulful vocals to a bundle of tracks undulating in terms of motion and pace, but consistent in finesse and exciting appeal. Treetop Flyers do not sway away from the six minute long song and all thirteen tracks in total on PALOMINO almost push the hour mark in duration. However the listen doe...

If you are wondering around the pop up stages on the Sunday of the Country 2 Country Festival at the O2 Arena, an essential look in should be Alice Wallace. The name may be new to many folks in the UK, but the sound will be familiar to those constantly seeking out the soul of country music. MEMORIES, MUSIC AND PRIDE is the third album release by the Southern California-based Alice and had its US debut at the back end of last year. Upon a solitary listen, this eleven track collection immediately grabbed the attention and invited many repeat plays. This was absolutely inevitable considering the music has the agenda of honesty, integrity and true to the desires of the soul. It is a record sharing the vision of travel broadening the mind and pinpoints an artist with impeccable taste. California country music has often ploughed down its own path, dating back to the Bakersfield Sound and the 60s/70s pioneering infusion of rock and folk. Alice is not shy on factoring in external style ...

You won’t read many gig reviews that start with a trio of Neil Young, Van Morrison and Kelly Oliver, but more of that later. Putting the first two aside, Kelly Oliver is a treasured young folk singer equipped with the three tangible essentials of great songs, beautiful vocals and fine playing. Add in her hardworking ethic, emerging stage presence and acute ear for influence, and you will see the portrait on the canvas beginning to take shape. However the finishing touch which makes Kelly such a special talent is that innate ability to captivate a listener’s attention, and for an hour tonight at the Kitchen Garden Café a privileged gathering succumbed to the charm of her artistry. To put a few facts down as a marker, Kelly hails from Hertfordshire, has only been actively involved in the professional side of music for a couple of years, but already has two critically acclaimed albums under her belt. A prolific advocator of taking her music on the road has seen Kelly play countless gi...

A twentieth anniversary has connotations of being in the coming of age bracket and the full band show of Gretchen Peters did just that during this current celebratory tour of Britain. Gretchen’s talent as a singer-songwriter is sealed in the vault and her musical relationship with Barry Walsh has been cast in gold for a long time. The live development of working with Christine Bougie and Conor McCreanor added an extra spring to the step of the stage show and now the introduction of Colm McClean has raised the band bar to the level of other pre-eminent artists. Gretchen’s ascendancy continues to re-define her peak and this evening’s show at a sold out Artrix Theatre in Bromsgrove drew many cries of the best yet. From a viewpoint of seeing her live in several formats and different sized venues over the last decade, it is difficult to argue with this claim, not just the pedal steel and electric guitar of Colm garnishing the songs, but Gretchen herself finding further incredible depth in ...

Photo Rob Bridge Redwood Photography Sitting comfortably at the heart of a thriving young folk performer scene is a singer-songwriter from Barrow-in- Furness by the name of Maz O’Connor. With a couple of albums under her belt, a BBC Radio 2 Folk award nomination in her bio and association with the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), Maz is set to make 2016 another memorable year in her developing career. Among countless shows, a new record is set to emerge and by the numbers turning up at the Kitchen Garden Café tonight, word of her talent is spreading around. It was a return visit to the Kings Heath venue for Maz, although this time booked direct rather than through an external promoter, and the securing of her talents for the evening paid off handsomely. This current tour is being promoted under the banner of the new album title THE LONGING KIND and sensibly Maz is using the dates to showcase many songs from a release which sees her for the first time solely rely ...

Partial compensation for missing the Transatlantic Sessions for the first time in five years has been catching up with three of the show’s stalwarts, as John McCusker. Michael McGoldrick and John Doyle head out on their own post-Sessions tour. Twelve months ago the trio made a pit stop to perform at Birmingham’s Midlands Arts Centre and the MAC was delighted to host them again this year. There was certainly a Celtic spirit in the air as a Scotsman, an Irishman and an Englishman delivered a feast of tunes and songs to warm the hearts of an audience taking a detour around any Valentine’s Day hype. For close on two hours, the trio threw a style of guitars, fiddle, pipes, flute, whistles and harmonium into the mix, with the output being a marvellous collection of music steeped in the folk tradition from around these isles. Despite a Manchester accent and base, Michael McGoldrick is every inch the Celtic performer, majoring on Uillean pipes, whistles and flute and being a significant...

If the term ‘saving country music’ can be considered an ethos rather than just a popular website, the new record by Austin Lucas not only shores up the defences, but re-loads the ammunition. BETWEEN THE MOON & THE MIDWEST is seeing the light of day through a collaboration between US label Last Chance Records and its UK partners At The Helm Records. Apart from eventually giving Austin Lucas a well-earned pay check, the other winners are those folks hooked on ‘how they used to make ‘em’ countryrecords as this ten track album unwraps in an aching vocal malaise of cliché free splendour. Using the bitter experience of reality and frustration, the record adopts a near-concept stance while offering a sombre serving to those seeking the solace of a sad song sanctuary. Austin’s path to making a country album echoing the vibes created across the industry by Sturgill Simpson came from his indie/alternative background via the last album STAY RECKLESS which laid down the twang marker. The...

The long wait for The Black Feathers debut album is now over as Gloucestershire based duo Ray Hughes and Sian Chandler announce their arrival as a fully-fledged LP producing act. The wait hasn’t exactly been inactive as the duo did put out an EP a couple of years ago, have won over many fans with their countless live shows and possess a high profile exposition in pushing their music forward. SOAKED TO THE BONE is one of the year’s most pertinent album titles to date as The Black Feathers get right to the core of what makes a record good. There are no fake credentials to the eleven tracks that make up this release, which was initially crowd funded before getting issued on Blue House Music. This is an exciting album packed full of great tunes, sumptuous harmonies and a writing style that aches with heartfelt sincerity. Ray and Sian have intimated at once dabbling at trying to crack mainstream pop with their writing, but regardless of any success in that direction, this album would...

Another year, another new venue and another opportunity to catch up with the music of Kim Lowings and the Greenwood. With that all important second album successfully in the bag, the challenge has been resumed to spread the word within the folk music and wider community. However, not a band to rest on their laurels, we were barely half way through the first set before Kim announced the ongoing writing and recording process with the first live playing of a post-HISTORIA song. This wasn’t the only surprise from Kim’s set list which rolled out to be an even spread from her recorded material, but more of that later. However what has now become a staple given, and far from a surprise, is the sheer quality and delight of listening to so many interesting songs in a live setting over an extended period. The venue this evening was a rare step into the Folk Club world, although the band are regulars in such accommodating places up and down the country. The Woodman Folk Club host their we...

Acquainting with the music of Jarrod Dickenson has been an intermittent activity over the last couple of years, but it can gladly be reported that appreciation is rocketing up the scale. After catching Jarrod play support shows in Birmingham for John Fulbright and Diana Jones in 2014 and 2015 respectively, this year he has made a return to the Glee Club to headline a date.  Of course one of the biggest steps that helped attract a highly credible number of punters this evening was the support shows he played with his band for The Waterboys towards the back end of last year including a sold out date at the Symphony Hall. Reports from that performance were extremely complementary, and although the funds weren’t sufficient enough to bring the band back for this latest tour, there was a marked degree of increasing assurance in how Jarrod presented his music. Headlining a show does raise the bar for an artist and Jarrod is equipped with the songs, voice, sound and banter to convey...

There are unimaginable differences between the life of a travelling musician and the vast bulk of us residing in a comparatively static world. This concept has no doubt been the topic and inspiration for many an artist over the years and 2016 is the turn of Amelia White to convey her feelings via the medium of music and song. HOME SWEET HOTEL is the figurative title of her latest album and compactly casts an inward glance at life on the road with more than one eye in the direction of the opportunity cost of what’s left behind. Ten original songs appear on this new record courtesy of Amelia and her team of writers, providing the focus for her equally adept ensemble of players to construct a soundtrack to complement. What materialises is an enlightening listen where Amelia successfully gets over her message with sustained swagger. Previous comparisons with leading American female rock singers have been forthcoming in past press for Amelia and no doubt associations will continue to ...

Put the brakes on, stop what you’re doing and reflect on the beauty of the basics. Seventies country song ‘Luckenbach , Texas’ proclaimed this notion and in 2016, stepping into the world of Applewood Road evokes a similar feeling. As if to take the simplicity to the nth degree, the international trio comprising of Amy Speace, Amber Rubarth and Emily Barker decided on the self-titled album to project their take on the three-part harmony to the wider world. The result is a shamelessly retro-laden thirteen track debut release sparkling in its beauty and perfectly formed to ease the listener into a perpetual state of sanctified emotion. Of course the three architects are well known in differing degrees to a multitude of listeners. Emily Barker, settled Brit but no doubt forever a proud Aussie, has the highest profile in the UK and currently is an artist you have to keep pace with as she veers in so many post- Red Clay Halo directions. Amy Speace is one third of Applewood Road and one...