January 2022

Norma Waterson one of the greatest voices of the British folk scene has died, age 82. We look back on her rich musical life and her enduring legacy. The intimacy and connection she made with an audience stayed with you long after she left the stage. There will be no …

The live performance of Ordinary Giants, Robb Johnson’s highly acclaimed song-suite was exceptional entertainment, captivating, mesmerising, heartening and distressing, constantly assailing the range of human emotions. The musicianship and vocal contributions were top-class.

The variety and quality of Old Blind Dogs latest album pretty much demanded I write about each track…it has reignited an evangelical flame; Knucklehead Circus is an album that can change lives.

Simon Emmerson returns with Weirdy Birdy II. Along this sonic journey, we hear Marry Waterson, Afro Celt Sound System, The Imagined Village, Martha Tilston, a duet with a Mistle Thrush, red deer bellowing on a starry night by the River Tagus and so much more.

These two discs will cause a lot of head-scratching as people try to figure out why they’ve missed the glories of Fruit Bats. For those that haven’t, there’s also plenty of delights in store.

Featuring the striking and contemplative work of visual artist Amelia Kosminsky, watch ‘Seekers’, the latest video from Freedom to Roam featuring Eliza Marshall, Catrin Finch, Jackie Shave, Dónal Rogers, Kuljit Bhamra & more. Don’t miss their Spring tour which begins on 22 February 2022.

Le Vent Du Nord continue to champion the vibrant and eclectic culture and music of the Québécois. 20 Printemps demonstrates how their music has continued to develop and places them at the helm as one of the very best proponents of this genre of music.

We talk to NYC-based musician and folklorist Derek Piotr who recently released two folk music compilation albums of mountain songs from North Carolina featuring Child ballads and local murder songs that sit alongside dulcimer & close harmony singing.

Brad Barr’s ‘The Winter Mission’ is a complex recording with densely structured pieces entwined with almost eerie sparseness. It is a carefully considered and intelligent album featuring riches that need to be given plenty of listens and plenty of time. It will certainly reward you.

Watch “After the Rain”, the lead single from Dean Owens’ forthcoming “Sinners Shrine” album, recorded with members of desert noir Latin rockers Calexico. His music captures the very essence and spirit of the wide-open vistas of the American Southwest in splendid technicolour.

Steve Gunn releases ‘Nakama’, an EP featuring reinterpretations of tracks from his latest album ‘Other You’. Featuring close friends: Mikey Coltun and Ahmoudou Madassane, Natural Information Society, as well as remixes by Circuit des Yeux and Bing & Ruth.

After celebrating their 15 years together in 2021, the Madrid-based foursome Track Dogs return on 18 March 2022 with “Where to Now?”, their most collaborative album to date. Watch their video for ‘Carolina in my Mind’, a great James Taylor cover.

Jana Horn creates the aural equivalent of what a novelist writes, exposing the flaws and the heartbreak that reside in each of us. Optimism may be the answer, but there are going to be a lot of mysteries along the way.

Produced by Phil Cook, Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves announce new album ‘Hurricane Clarice’ and share ‘The Banks of the Miramichi’, a driving energetic lead single from an album that interprets our uncertain times and offers new perspectives.