Three Chords and the Truth UK

Some records encircle your senses before making their mark, while others don’t hesitate with the impact. Needless to say the brand new album from Jim Lauderdale wasted no opportunity with a straight off bulls eye appeal, but that will hardly be news to the legions of country and Americana fans endeared to this acclaimed legend. THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING ensures that Jim hasn’t rested on his laurels especially with the latest round of appreciative award giving at the recent Americana’s.Without any doubt the eleven tracks whisk you down Texas way and whirl around the state regardless whether you are a resident or live thousands of miles away. Before any further comment is made, attention must be drawn to the absolute gem of a track ‘ All the Rage in Paris’ nestling right at the album’s core. This Jim Lauderdale/Daryl Burgess co-write saw the light of day a few years back with multiple cuts and its re-issue in 2016 can bring it a new audience. Tongue in cheek maybe, far from subtle...

It has been a busy decade for Canadian artist Trevor Alguire from a recording perspective and it’s likely to get busier once the praise floods in for his brand new album PERISH IN THE LIGHT. This sophisticated yet accessible album raises the bar for band driven singer-songwriter releases in 2016 and it would be a massive injustice if the Canadian awarding organisations don’t come calling when the time arrives to formalise the year. Not a moment is wasted on the neatly rounded ten tracks as the sounds of country, folk and rock are explored within the expansive confines of a mind wandering troubadour. Comparisons with classic and contemporary Canadian singer-songwriters are bound to be forthcoming, but there’s a comparable voice simmering under the surface in the guise of Zac Brown delivering his stripped down material. This jumped straight at me in the exceptional opening track ‘ The Ghost of Him’ as Trevor announces his arrival with a confident number while opening his heart i...

Serial gig goers would be hard pressed to see a more impassioned and dedicated performance than what Michele Stodart and her band put on this evening at the Kitchen Garden Café. Throw in an almost mystical chemistry with lead guitarist Raevennan Husbandes and a venue usually the domain of the strictly acoustic melted in a haze of finely tuned folk rock. Spells of acoustic paradise were aplenty, but it was the moments when the controls were turned slightly up that raised the intensity of this show. The enhanced sound which was still sufficiently subtle to embrace the surroundings was aided and abetted by a vocalist exuding such depth and emotion in each chosen song. Michele left a truly favourable impression to suggest even greater levels than currently surmounted as an independent solo artist. Early into her set, Michele did re-assure the audience that the Magic Numbers were still active with album #5 set to feature soon. However this show was primarily about the two solo albums...

While Ags Connolly continues to seek his niche in the UK music scene, those listeners who tap into his distinctive style will reap the rewards of their wise artistic choice. If you want to wear the badge of country music in the UK then the unfiltered version purveyed by Ags is an essential schooling. Not only does this Oxfordshire based singer-songwriter rustle up some pinpointed songs, they are all sung in a gut driven spiral of absolute authenticity. Alongside his mission to preserve the ideals, a student, advocate and impressionist of country music shapes a performer dedicated and hell bent to a cause. 2016, especially the latter part, sees Ags in interim mode. Live dates are more sporadic rather than a structured tour. New songs are teased, supported only by the anticipation of a follow up album to his 2014 release HOW ABOUT NOW. Hopefully this will materialise in early 2017 and cement the embryonic relationship with South Coast music operation At The Helm Records, along with th...

Back in 2011 a small town in the Pacific North West state of Washington by the name of Morton played host to us for one night on a tour of the area. Nestled at the foot of Mt. St. Helens, it was your quintessential small town and not one designed to pamper to the needs of tourists. Two years later a striving singer-songwriter broke through the recording barrier with the release of her debut album. Coincidentally, it was revealed that Brandy Clark, the artist in question, also hailed from Morton giving added relevance to that specific travel memory. As the song writing and lyrical substance of Brandy unravelled over the course of two albums, the strong influence of small town America surfaced along with the hopes, fears, characters and a good ole dose of emphatic reality. The link between Morton, 12 STORIES and the subsequent ascension of an exceptional songwriter has now been further strengthened by the experience of Brandy bringing her live presence to the UK in an extended tour ...

It was a night of momentum, renewal and accomplishment. The latter is based on a personal odyssey of finally catching a Madison Violet show after unfortunate cancellations and the inconvenient interception of that rare British hindrance – snow. Renewal is the underlying inference of their current ‘The Back to The Roots Tour’ following an experimental period of artistic diversion. This fabulous show at Birmingham’s Glee Club took a few songs to get into its groove, but soon the Canadian duo of Brenley MacEachern and Lisa MacIsaac found the sweet spot and glided effortlessly towards a fitting finale of ‘ Small of My Heart’ and ‘ Cindy Cindy’ . 2013 was the year of missed opportunities to see the band live in the UK and also one where they released an excellent live album titled COME AS YOU ARE: LIVE which captured the band’s ascendancy following the release of 2009’s NO FOOL FOR TRYING. The success and acclaim that headed in the direction of Brenley and Lisa was no more than they...

Three artists bound by their Nashville calling. Three artists intrinsically linked by the concept of dreams. Three artists emotionally drawn to sharing their deepest personal songs. Sarah Darling – a stylish measured dreamer, Jenn Bostic – a therapeutic dreamer, Kyshona Armstrong – a spiritual dreamer, three independent artists making meaningful music and now performing collaborators in their deeply connective ‘in the round’ show. Maybe more rotating songs than literally in the round, this trio have hit the sweet spot on a short English tour taking in several keynote venues where serious content supersedes superficial surroundings. If you’re seeking that heady moment of pure telepathic interaction, a sold out Kitchen Garden Café absorbing the songs of this trio was the place to be. Bands were left at home, exposing the naked reality of sincere songs delivered in a range of styles from cultured pristineness to earthy soul. This music was far from free of ambition, yet retained a ...

Music is the voice of the soul and deep down where the soul resides you’ll find Danny and the Champs pouring their heart into a live show. That show won’t be large, pretentious and full of superficial content. It will resonate with a fulfilling sound, spirited musicianship and a set of guys who passionately care about the music they create. The audience will buy into the simple ideals of Danny George Wilson and revel in the moment. Filters such as phones and reviews are mere superfluous to the air of connectivity , Contradictions aside, Danny and the Champions of the World continue to be the worst kept secret on the UK live music scene, reaching out to a loyal fan base, courting industry acclaim and maintaining the highest possible standards. This evening at The Donkey, just outside Leicester city centre, was not revolutionary, but pure Danny and the Champs staple and a firm reassurance why music will always rule in its live environment. To the names of Ags Connolly, Trevor Mos...

The word immigrant and emigrant will always pose contrasting images, reactions, feelings and experiences. While forever being a theme of a changing world, they will often be the staple of song writing activity. Irish born Nashville based singer-songwriter Ben Glover has extracted his personal experience of the latter to spearhead a project drawing on a set of themed songs from a range of sources. In line with his two most recent excursions into the recording world – the solo album ATLANTIC and the collaborative effort THE ORPHAN BRIGADE – Ben once again submerges his whole creative being into a collection of songs wringing in the depth of emotive soul. The backdrop does veer away from his adopted home and the overall Celtic feel resonates with an outlook to peer into the distance. Through a journey of solo/co-writes, covers and traditional arrangements, THE EMIGRANT hooks in the listener and refuses to relinquish their attention until the task of extolling an imaginative experienc...

As summer gives way to autumn, do yourself a favour and tag onto the seasonal journey undertaken by Welsh singer-songwriter SERA in her brand new debut album LITTLE GIRL. The whole effect of this record is to glide you around a virtual landscape exploiting the sweeping serenity garnered by the production process. From tracks one to twelve, SERA hits on a winning formula to present an intoxicating release to music followers tempted by the process of checking out a new artist. Hailing from North Wales and also professionally active in the Welsh language, SERA is the latest female artist to benefit from the active strategy of the Folkstock team in promoting predominately gender based music. The sound and feel of LITTLE GIRL is a significant diversion for Folkstock who are more widely known for their work with the greater traditional leaning of Kelly Oliver. This movement in sound drifts to the outer alternative edges of the folk genre, while blending in small contrasting elements o...

Moseley Folk Festival, an idyllic delight within gritty inner suburbia. A place where with one swivel of the head you can digest a near continual diet of eclectic music over the course of thirty hours. A festival with a difference, reaching out across a broad range of clientele. It attracts the dedicated, the casual, the young and the seasoned, but most all it provides a fitting festival finale for the folks of Birmingham and beyond on the first weekend of September. The 2016 offering retained the blueprint precedent ensuring a spritely mix of the popular, the frivolous, the moving and the influential. It would be a tough ask to buy into the whole package, but that is likely not the organiser’s ideal. It is often wondered whether the high profile headliners are essential for festival viability and perhaps that notion will remain eternally unanswered. Anyhow the true spirit of Moseley Folk Festival from a personal perspective lies within a band of bookings threaded by an intense ...

Sharp wit, improvisation and audience interaction were all on the agenda when Ben Folke Thomas called into Birmingham’s Kitchen Garden Café on this latest short set of dates around the land of his second home. The dry charm of an artist, suggestively nomadically labelled as ‘Swedish Americana’, aligns well with his supremely crafted straightforward songs and a vocal style as deep as the subterranean substance of his lyrical material. Without hesitation this evening can be classed as a success. This return trip to Birmingham saw Ben cross the road from his last appearance at the Hare and Hounds, and the more intimate surroundings of the Kitchen Garden Café were more suited to this solo performance. The solo status was taken to the extreme that no support was allotted to the show thus presenting Ben with the two set opportunity to showcase material from both his albums and a few other songs lacking a recorded home at the moment. While the strength of Ben’s songs is the ultim...