Three Chords and the Truth UK

The most profound attribute to this album is that numerous listens lead you to have a 100% belief in the music of Gem Andrews. It may have its roots in both the north east and north western parts of our land but any transatlantic drift westwards still retains that ultimate streak of Englishness. A touch of irony for an album titled VANCOUVER which is quite distinctly a movable feast of moody country and cutting folk, all sprinkled with a fragrance of Americana. While still a songwriter in development, Gem has assembled a collection of original compositions and cleverly selected borrowed tunes to what evolves into a lyrical emporium of darkness and melancholy. An eleventh hour check of 'who wrote what' revealed Gem as the source of possibly the strongest track on the album in ‘ Crimson Tide’ , best described as wondrous tale of fading love sung with deep passion within an impeccably structured song. This and the other five tracks to surface from the creative writing well ...

Each year a dreary British winter has a ray of spring hope with the Celtic Connections Festival and the Transatlantic Sessions tour. The knock effect of these two twin events embedded north of the border is the sprinkling of touring artists who seek a few dates in the more southern locations of these isles. Obviously the Transatlantic project hits a number of English cities in force in February, while artists such as Cahalen Morrison and Eli West call at numerous venues on their trek to Glasgow’s melting pot of majestic music. So for the first time, the duo hailing from America’s Pacific North West, found their way to the south Birmingham suburb of Kings Heath to showcase their talents to an anticipated Kitchen Garden Café audience. Eli West Cahalen and Eli have been attracting praise for a while now and it was good to embrace their brand of roots music close at hand. An unassuming and humble duo, the pair predominately let their songs and music do the preaching, or to be mo...

The phrase ‘water into sand’ may represent a radical transformation but the album of the same title by Porchlight Smoker eases along the roots spectrum with a far more sedate transition. While never settling on a single sound, the album retains a high impact to effortlessly make a case for instant projection up your listening list. After synchronising the title of their second album ‘2’ with its chronological status, WATER INTO SAND sees the Brighton based quartet tackle that all important third album with gusto, craft and guile to produce a super release fully encompassing the diversity of the band’s make up. Folk, Americana, bluegrass, old time and traditional country are labels pretty much relevant to this album with the classic combo of lyrics, sound and vocals expertly reflecting these styles. From the quintessential English sound of the South East, through the Celtic influence of Eastern Scotland via the wide open spaces of Wichita Kansas, the original locations of Porchli...

The true test of an artist flourishing at the mid-level of the industry is the flexibility to adapt to a variety of formats and surroundings. After excelling with his band last year, including a cracking Birmingham date, Blair Dunlop showed at this village hall gig how to conduct a solo show with enlightenment, flair, wit and an abundance of skill. It was almost a year to the day since Blair played the very same venue alongside his illustrious father, but this evening Ashley Hutchings was consigned to a few mentions as his son oozed with heaps of confidence and panache. With the help of something old, traditional, borrowed, newish and very new, Blair entertained a committed audience with a twin pair of symmetrical sets, reflective in both their length and quality. Not only pulling material from his two albums to date, this extended slot of a solo Blair saw more background chat about the songs which perfectly complemented the occasional outbreaks of dry impish wit. A precious con...

Quite often the origins of folk coverage on this blog are a live show and its endearing impact. True to form the names of Tracey Browne and Raevennan Husbandes first crossed my path back in the halcyon summer days of August 2014 and to be more precise, The Den stage at Cambridge Folk Festival. Supported by ace pedal steel guitarist B.J. Cole, Raevennan impressed in an exciting set of multi-genre music and for the final number had invited Tracey on stage to sing an accompaniment. Spring forward a few months and the pair confirm their partnership with the release of the excellent full length album EAST BY NORTH WEST. Named after the pair’s home locations at the time of Lowestoft and Manchester, the record contains eight originals and an arrangement of an existing poem. Collectively it hangs together with a thread of beautiful vocals, crafted musicianship and a natural chemistry for collaboration. The project had its own origins in a chance meeting between the pair at a residential mus...

Essential criteria when putting your head above the parapet of the deluge of singer-songwriters is to possess a vocal style to raise eyebrows. Such a style need not be flawless as one expressing the wornness of life can perfectly fit the mood of the song, especially on compositions digging deep into one’s inner thoughts. Miriam Jones is an artist who eased through an endless list of submissions with an album giving an enriched listening experience and presenting a performer equipped with the tools to make an impact in a crowded market. BETWEEN GREEN AND GONE is a fascinating collection of a neatly packaged set of ten songs, sharing an equal trait of similar length and effect but blessed with leaving a favourable impression. A sprinkling of releases have previously appeared under the name of Miriam Jones, a Canadian native who has been settled in the UK for a number of years. However this one may be your introduction to her as an artist and it has been capably assisted by Simon E...

In the week of their Brit award nomination, the supremely sublime Soderberg sisters showed that the mainstream might just be heading in the right taste direction. In the intervening couple of years since First Aid Kit last played a more intimate Birmingham venue, their international bandwagon has gathered pace cutting across both genre preservationists and more casual observers, residing for one evening only at a sell-out Symphony Hall. With a sound effortlessly floating between the alt wings of folk and country, while being briefly injected with a spiced up dose of pop and rock, the stage show of Johanna and Klara is awash with heavenly harmonies, memorable melodies and a reminder of the compulsive purity of roots music.  The four piece stage line up may be symmetrical in its stance but much of the First Aid Kit sound is driven by the atmospheric dulcet twang of the pedal steel and who better to display his maestro talents than Melvin Duffy, one of the UK’s foremost exponents...