KLOF

As you may have picked up in previous articles Folk Radio UK is co-sponsoring this years Isambard Folk Award along with our good friend Songs from the Shed. The finals take place this evening when the judges, ourselves and Songs from the Shed included, will have the difficult task of choosing between the five finalists: Evening Chorus (from Cardiff) and London-based Common Tongues and Mishaped Pearls plus duos Solarference (Devon/Bristol) …

The next instalment from Simple Folk Radio will be broadcast this Saturday (March 31) at 5.00pm on Folk Radio UK. The show will feature Simple Folk Radio’s monthly resident host Daniel Green (Laish / Sons Of Noel And Adrian) who will be joined in the studio by Emma Gatrill, to share some of her favourite records and talk about her soon to be released first album. The show will also …

I‘ve chosen two songs today for ‘Song of the Day’ simply because they’re from a split 7″ double A side and I couldn’t decide between them and it didn’t seem right just choosing one seeing as this is their first joint release. The first is Rob St. John with Your Phantom Limb and the second is Ian Humberstone with House on the Hill.  Ian Humberstone and Rob St. John …

A meeting of hearts and minds: from London The Magpie’s Nest, Cut A Shine and the Midnight Specials: This year the Fire in the Mountain Festival will be held 1st – 5th June 2012, Cwmnewidion Isaf, nr Aberystwyth, Mid Wales and will welcome a host of bands from Bristol, Liverpool and London. Each day is loosely themed around headliners. Saturday is Celtic Day featuring the young Scottish pipers Ross Ainslee …

Back in January (article here) we mentioned that The Magic Lantern had been busy writing and rehearsing for a new album. You can now lisen to a demo recording of their new song ‘Hercules’ below: Vocals – Jamie Doe Piano, percussion, cello – Fred Thomas Clarinet – Dave Shulman Their seasonal residency at The Green Note is also nearly at an end. Their final show is on 25th April when …

First Aid Kit recently performed a great Tiny Desk Concert for NPR which you can watch below. All the tracks they performed were from their latest release The Lion’s Roar. Set List: “New Year’s Eve” “The Lion’s Roar” “Emmylou” Audio Session (mp3) The girls are overjoyed to announce that they are going on tour with JACK WHITE in Europe this June & July. Dates below. You can check out their …

Swedish folk artist The Tallest Man On Earth has completed work on a new album. ‘There’s No Leaving Now‘ will be out on June 11th (June 12 in the USA) on Dead Oceans. The early Bob Dylan influence on his music is unmistakable but it is his stage presence and energy that made him such a sensation when he opened for Bon Iver in 2008. Since then his fan base …

Curtis Eller prefers to be called a song and dance man rather than a folk singer. When you see him perform you’ll probably agree, his moves outmatch Elvis and borders on contortionism…he started in show business at the age of seven as a juggler…he moved onto banjo as ‘that’s where the money is’. He’s a regular on Folk Radio UK. Dan Wilby made this great mini-documentary which features live performances …

Earl Scruggs has died at the age of 88. He was born in the Piedmont area of North Carolina, an area that was rich in the banjo playing traditon. His father, brothers and sisters all played banjo but Earl had a gift that set him aside from others…his unique three finger style of playing caught the ears of many! Whilst best known for performing his Grammy winning ‘Foggy Mountain Breakdown’ …

alt-J (∆) have released a new captivating video for Breezeblocks…captivating because you want to know the motive behind the opening scene…the video runs backwards! Story behind the name alt-J (∆)’s name takes a little explaining. Pronounced “alt-J”, it’s creates the delta sign you get when you hold down the alt key on your computer keyboard and punch ‘J’, providing your computer is a Mac and not a PC, that is. …

With her second album, CYRK, hitting the shelves on 30 April, Cate Le Bon is set to release a Record Store Day exclusive split single with Gruff Rhys. Cate Le Bon and the Super Furry Animals singer have a long history: Le Bon was a major player in Rhys’s Neon Neon project. She toured extensively with Rhys after appearing on 2008’s acclaimed Stainless Style album. Rhys signed Le Bon to …

Cold Specks is the moniker of the young female Canadian singer Al Spx, despite having an incredibly unique and soulful voice that has been compared to Mahalia Jackson and Sister Rosetta Tharpeshe she didn’t get the hype in Toronto that she’s now getting in the UK. It wasn’t until she moved to London about a year and a half ago to record her debut album I Predict A Graceful Expulsion …