Spencer Cullum finds comfort in retellings of folk narratives that seek to make sense of the present day. With Spencer Cullum’s Coin Collection 3, he’s provided us with a richly satisfying conclusion to his trilogy of albums, firmly establishing him as an artist with a unique vision.
With the release of Coin Collection 3, Spencer Cullum, pedal steel maestro and band leader, brings to a conclusion his triumvirate of creative forays into the British folk and psychedelic sounds that raised him.
Seeking some kind of escape from the noise of the present day, Cullum used his garden shed in Nashville as a makeshift recording studio, a space that also doubled as a sanctuary from what he calls “the spew of hatred and vitriol that has come to soundtrack the present day”.
What marks something of a departure from its predecessors is its lack of the more jazzy and psychedelic inflections that were the hallmarks of the first two albums; instead, Cullum appears to be reaching back to more primary British folk influences such as Bert Jansch, Davy Graham, and Fairport Convention, while its lyrical references also draw heavily from British folklore.
In advance of its release, Cullum spoke to KLof Mag (read the Off the Shelf feature) about how the book, ‘Damnable Tales: A Folk Horror Anthology’ – a gift from his brother – was the anchor for many of the songs on the record. Although far from political with a capital ‘P’, the songs on Coin Collection 3 speak to the greed and evil of mankind – and the havoc resulting from modern civilisation having separated itself from the natural world – with nature, in turn, capable of wreaking her own terrible revenge. This is ably expressed on opening number, Rowan Tree, the first single, in which our protagonist and his compatriots pay a heavy price for felling a sacred tree renowned in British folklore for invoking the anger of the spirits when cut down. The soothing tones of Cullum’s trademark voice and the song’s fluttering strings and supple rhythms are at odds with the fate of the greedy men who are pulled in at the tree’s roots and swallowed whole. “She killed us all, quite rightly so / We deserve our fate for how little we’ve known”, he sings. “Never chop down her, never disagrees / ‘Cause I waged my war on a Rowan Tree.”
Gavon’s Eve demonstrates Cullum’s particular love of the folk horror genre. He’s trodden similar ground previously with a Halloween horror fun night in Nashville with Erin Rae and Skyway Man, where he covered ‘The Wicker Man’ soundtrack, which also provided him with inspiration for the song, ‘Betwixt and Between’, from Coin Collection 2. The title of ‘Gavon’s Eve’ derives from one of Edwardian writer, E.F. Benson’s Scottish “spook stories”, in this case a terrifying tale of witchcraft and a pagan ritual with a fatal outcome, on a night when malign forces and evil spirits are at the peak of their powers. In this song, Allison De Groot’s intricate banjo work provides a rhythmic underpinning to Cullum’s lush, psychedelic-folk arrangements. The album’s broad cast of contributors — Dom Billett on drums, Adam Bednarik on bass, alongside Sean Thompson and Ethan Ballinger on electric guitars, and Jim Hoke on flute and sax — reflects the generous, collaborative spirit of the Nashville scene that Cullum now calls home.
The hypnotic-sounding repetitions of follow-up song, Easy Street, has its origins in Cullum having seen an image of an ICE agent smoking a cigar in celebration of a day’s work detaining and deporting people. Sometimes, modern-day reality can be more frightening than any horror story.
Coin Collection 3, however, doesn’t restrict itself just to the Jungian conflict between man and nature, the abuse of power, or folk horror. Jackie Paints, the album’s final single (and released just before Mother’s Day), is a gentle paen to his mother, a Cornish-based painter, in which he expresses his regret at missing both her art and conversation from thousands of miles away. It expertly marries pastoral folk with tinkling piano, skittering drums, flute, and pedal steel. In a similar vein, Look At The Moon extols the virtues of domesticity, a song written as an affectionate tribute to his wife, who runs a Nashville bookshop. This song has Cullum looking to the skies, while its lyrics are firmly grounded in the specifics of his home life; its repeated refrain, “Days might feel gloom / Look at the moon,” is something of a mantra for the virtues of persistence. Erin Rae’s ethereal vocals here overlay Cullum’s pedal steel and infuse the track with a complementary warmth, their two voices finding equilibrium as the song circles around its central image: when it feels like the world is spinning out of control, lift your eyes to the heavens to experience something constant and beautiful.
The theme of nature prevailing over the evils of mankind is revisited on Old Paul Hill, on which Annie Williams’ vocals are expertly interwoven with Cullum’s own. The song references a steep, historic route from the Cornish fishing village of Newlyn up to Paul. The natural landscape here feels like a constant, forming a bridge between the physical world and the world of mythological belief. It’s followed by the more modern-day setting of Don’t Go Downtown which has some mournful-sounding saxophone from Jim Hoke and Oisin Leech’s harmonising vocals.
Penultimate number, the piano-led Washed Upon The Shore, a miniature masterpiece, hints at the pleasure to be found in surrendering to something larger than the self (“what’s the point of celebrating when there’s nothing left to say?”). Music on the Hill brings matters to a fully satisfying close, another song inspired by the aforementioned folk anthology, a story of someone being enticed by music emanating from the woods, only to become its sacrificial victim. It’s apparent throughout this record how much pleasure and peace of mind Cullum has derived from blending folk horror stories with current affairs, as a means to express his frustrations at the ills of the present day.
If Spencer Cullum’s aim with this trilogy of albums was to establish his own artistic identity and musical voice, while also paying homage to the British folk and psychedelia that formed his earlier musical influences, then it’s one he’s more than ably achieved. Born from a need to reconnect with the place that shaped him, the trilogy has also become a platform for the generous, collaborative spirit of the Nashville community he now calls home. Coin Collection 3 is the most assured instalment yet — and a deeply satisfying close to the chapter.
Spencer Cullum’s Coin Collection 3 (March 27th, 2026) Full Time Hobby
Order: https://spencercullum.ffm.to/cc3
UK Dates
29/4 – The Golden Lion, Todmorden
30/4 – Just Dropped In Records, Coventry
01/5 – MOTH Club, London
03/5 – Kilkenny Roots Festival, Ireland
04/5 – The Church, Ipswich
05/5 – South Records, Southend