Three Chords and the Truth UK

The immaculate surroundings of Birmingham Town Hall and the music of Gretchen Peters are the perfect fit. A hushed environment absorbed every word from the most meaningful array of songs you are likely to hear in a single set. This was Gretchen Peters in absolute control, cashing in on a lifetime of experience, association and striving to pen the momentous song. The success of the latter set the tone at the outset of a lengthy career, yet growth has been organic and a testimony to an artist pursuing a multitude of avenues in maximising the depth of their talent. The West Midlands, and its outer area, have been kind to Gretchen Peters over the years, whether playing host in Birmingham, Bilston, Bromsgrove or Leamington Spa. This evening saw a return to the grandeur of the city centre Town Hall and the faithful were repaid with another priceless performance. 2018 is the year of DANCING WITH THE BEAST, an album recently unleashed on another fruitful and exciting journey. It is also...

A combination of a room swimming with positive vibes and the last night of a successful tour reaped hefty rewards as Simone Felice sent out a timely reminder of his sterling credentials. Freshly equipped with the riches of a new album refusing to cool down, this powerful singer-songwriter from the wilds of New York State made sure that a vibrant atmosphere of mutual love celebrated the mystique of the cultured song. From a degree of recollection, this was the fourth time in the last few years that Nottingham based promotion Cosmic American had scheduled a Simone Felice show a short hop down the M42 in Birmingham. This return to the Hare and Hounds offered a different perspective to the first of this quartet in 2014 when a band format operated in the venue’s main room. The solo format seems the de facto touring mode recently and a slight downgrade to a re-configured smaller room worked wonders for a packed audience pushing three figures. Essentially, the love of many of those ...

When an American beat poet from Columbus Ohio passes through your hometown, it is rude and remiss not to lend them an ear. Even when scheduled to play past eleven o’clock in the cellar bar of the town’s quirky left field pub, an itch that something compulsive would surface gnawed away. In an ideal world, forty minutes of Micah Schnabel just gets you into the mood and lays the foundation for a greater serving of sparky folk punk poetry delivered from the sharpest of minds and a beat up guitar clad with the slogan ‘art or die’. This performance binned every media fuelled notion of Americana and took the term back to its rawest form. Micah Schnabel is best known as the front person for indie band Two Cow Garage, but his solo work is bubbling under the surface waiting for that breakout moment when the masses hang onto every word spun out. This current short run of UK dates, the first as a solo artist, has spawned from an invite to play a Frank Turner bash in London, and includes a di...

The legacy may lie in the songs hooked up by country music in the 1990s or in a trio of dominant albums blossoming in the 2010s. Maybe though, the legacy is still to come such is the trajectory in the quality of output from Gretchen Peters. The most important thing about a new release is that it is just the start of a cycle. In essence, DANCING WITH THE BEAST will be effectively born on May 18 th , with several years of burgeoning appreciation set to follow. While the discography stretches back twenty plus years, the cycle of slow growth began with 2012’s HELLO CRUEL WORLD, which reached full bloom here a couple of years later. That is symptomatic of a Gretchen Peters record, it is not designed for the ‘here today; gone tomorrow’ society. There is stamina, staying power and subtle variances that await discovery. The case for reviewing her albums twelve or twenty four months down the line is compelling. At these points, different perspectives are certain to exist rather than cobbling...

Wherever your personal preferences lie, few records can be as hard-hitting and profoundly impactful as the new album from Michael McDermott. Like an unleashed creative force, this Chicago-based artist rips through the tough singer-songwriter landscape with an abundance of folk rock infused lyrical essays as he ultimately comes to terms to a life in some remnant of control. Burying yourself into the avalanche of OUT FROM UNDER rewards the brave and provides credence to the proverb ‘no pain no gain’. Faint-hearted fantasists may need a warning, but immersion in this record toughens the mind and clears the passage for powerful song writing to etch a distinctive mark. It helps that a voice as rugged as the stories told pours gut drenched emotion into each song. A sense of liberation flows from artisan to partisan as these eleven solo-composed tunes take hold. Although Michael has been an active performer and writer for many years, it is mainly through his work as half of The Westies...

If this is to be the breakthrough moment for Kashena Sampson then there will be few complaints from many music lovers taking a chance on a new artist. Doors may be opening and helping hands offered, but success ultimately lies in the strength of the product and its ability to make an impact. WILD HEART is perfectly at ease with any slice of actuated hype and is happy to fight its corner in the evolving world of country and Americana music. Fundamentally, this album oozes a classic country sound from each pore and groove. An open door policy to embrace soulful influences boosts the mix, while resistance qualities ensure any impurity attack is repelled from taking hold. The energy, integrity and intensity of the architect rinses through each of the ten tracks, all but one being an original composition. Not surprisingly, East Nashville is the base where Kashena operates from and the fusion elements of the record spin it on an Americana axis. Fortune sees it get a European focus in ...

In her evolving seasonal classic ‘ Christmas in Paradise’ , Mary Gauthier drew on the concept of not judging the afflicted, just dealing with the here and now. This philosophy extends to her involvement in the Song Writing with Soldiers project, which is the theme of her new album and centrepiece of a current tour of the UK. This record has been in circulation since the turn of the year, but the presentation of its ethos, emotion and heart-wrenching content in a hushed room dismantles any prefaced assimilation of what it means to all concerned. This Nottingham Glee Club show may have included a mix of old favourites; the introduction of a virtuoso violin/viola accompaniment by Italian musician Michele Gazich and the most inclusive of uplifting finales, but casting a defining shadow across the night were five compulsive stories and the songs born from each painful situation. Any Mary Gauthier show brims with idiosyncratic and quirky tendencies that lure the audience into a state of to...

The jigsaw puzzle of Ben Glover’s music continues to edge towards completion, although the grand picture is ultimately likely to be a fluid one. So maybe the journey of fitting all the pieces is where the true treasures lie. From an enhanced listener perspective, the journey picked up the pace around half a dozen years ago with an opening slot for Gretchen Peters; an alliance that continues to blossom. Subsequently, several strands of his work have fermented into a bubbling pot of collaboration, inner and outer discovery, soul-searching and forging a bond with a growing audience on a multitude of platforms. The latest piece added is to take the brand new album SHOREBOUND out on the road, particularly back to the old country. The Kitchen Garden in Birmingham has been kind to provide a canvas for the solo live output in the past and there was no surprise in it cropping up again on the itinerary. As previously, Colm McClean joined Ben on electric guitar resulting in the night probably ecl...

The entity of Carter Sampson: the singer-songwriter, is a compelling proposition and a wonderful find for anyone with a smart mind. A high degree of composure, warmth and assuredness reflects a performer at ease with life’s calling and epitomising the spirit of their surroundings, wherever they may be. This evening the dusty expanses of Oklahoma were traded for the gritty compactness of suburban Kings Heath; an apt location for the self-anointed Queen of Oklahoma to share the wealth of her wares for a night. The most engaging of voices adorns an impressively curated arsenal of song selection. The rich texture of a vocal honed in the land where the South spills into the West possesses the capability to melt the heart of a listener, made even more effective in the confines of the acoustically perfected Kitchen Garden. For around an hour this evening, being transfixed and in awe was a non-negotiable journey bookended by the ‘Queen’ in semi-autobiographical mode. From opening with her tr...

Hattie Briggs is a young English singer-songwriter gathering increased acclaim on the UK folk and acoustic scene. As part of her 2018 strategy, she has undertaken a run of live dates that was approaching the end when she made a return visit to the Kitchen Garden in Birmingham. Another impressive turnout greeted Hattie and her musical companion Matt Park as she set about sharing a bunch of songs reflecting a productive start to a recording career. Whether accompanied by guitar or piano, a renowned song writing capability oozed from a sculptured voice. This latter trait aligns Hattie closer to the folk community than her approach to song writing, musicianship or outlook. Indeed, the pedal steel output proved the most ear catching part of the instrumental soundtrack. Prior to Hattie and Matt taking to the performing area, an artist active on the local scene by the name of Esther Turner shared a selection of her original songs with the audience. These numbers possessed an indie-po...

Birds of Chicago start with a basic blueprint before an eclectic and innovative streak stretches the content to wherever you want it to go. The assets begin with the primal rock ‘n’ soul qualities of JT Nero and Allison Russell. The juxtaposition of the rugged and the beautiful blends and twists in epic proportions to bring a raft of boundless songs. Throughout the meandering journey with an open invitation to enrol, a tight production provides the checks and balances to ensure eleven gift-wrapped original efforts flood out to form a third full-length release from this American duo. LOVE IN WARTIME is an album requiring care and attention, but rewards the diligent listener. JT and Allison have kept Birds of Chicago productively active since the inception in 2012. Prior to that, JT and the Clouds and Po Girl ensured both were respectively and individually busy in previous bands. Po Girl in particular spawned at least two later successful follow on careers for Awna Teixeira (solo...

For an evening of therapeutic folk music, tapping into the gorgeous tones of Kitty Macfarlane is the place to be. The only trappings required are a beautiful voice, delicate guitar playing and a well-equipped songbook. The inaugural album from this West Country performer may yet still need some extra impetus to see the light of day, but the solo delivered ninety-minute live performance is well on the way to be sealed. This date at the Kitchen Garden was Kitty’s Birmingham debut show, which closely followed one a couple of months ago at the nearby town of Bromsgrove. Indeed, it was a support slot at the Artrix there in 2016 that first alerted me to this talented artist and a keen eye subsequently kept on her career since. If Devon is the domain of the Lakemans and Dorset of Ninebarrow, then the folk tales of Somerset are going to be safe in the hands of Kitty MacFarlane as she develops her fledgling career. Admittedly, she is now located in Bristol following a university stint in...

If ATLANTIC and THE EMIGRANT represented the journey, the case for SHOREBOUND being the destination is compelling. You can ask no more than an artist to keep moving forward in their creative output, and Ben Glover has achieved this with his new record. The Anglo element to his work has long been a feature and it is once again prevalent as the lengthy list of collaborators is revealed. Whether tapping into the darker sides of Mary Gauthier and Gretchen Peters' writing to reaching out across the pond to new collaborations with Ricky Ross and Robert Vincent, the standard of composition remains substantially high. This cements a growing reputation of being one of the most perceptive songwriters across the borderless roots/Americana scene. While Ben Glover is an artist that you associate with working with others, there are two moments on the record where he takes the solitary writing route. By far the strongest of these is ‘ Kindness ’, a song title and sentiment for eternity. Add...