Mike Davies
Mike Davies
I wrote for Melody Maker and Sounds in the late 70s, have written for local, national and international music publications and have covered the West Midlands scene in Brum Beat for over 40 years. I currently present Alternative Roots on Brum Radio.
The Taxidermist is the fourth full-length album from Thirty Pounds of Bone, the nom de plume of Shetland born multi-instrumentalist Johny Lamb. It marks a departure from its predecessor in being an entirely one-man show with Lamb playing everything, recorded live (with no overdubs or edits) in a cellar in West Cornwall.
Once again there’s a strong indie pop sensibility informing the accessible, highly melodic tracks on Bonxie, though it’s less eclectic than its predecessor. Instead there is more of a direct connection with the summery, folksy roots of the debut, not least in rekindling their love affair with the shanty – and then there’s the birds.
Lubbock-raised songster Kimmie Rhodes has maintained a pretty flawless output, to which Cowgirl Boudoir, her 16th album, is no exception. A warmingly pleasurable listening experience on which she goes back to her roots for a so-called retro-cowgirl-hippie-chick sound, fusing traditional country with influences from the 60s, 70s and 80s.
Latter Day Sinner is the latest offering from Co.Down singer-songwriter Matt McGinn who has enlisted an impressive line-up of Northern Ireland musicians for this release. He also shares his name with one of Scotland’s greatest songwriters and a leading figure in the British folk music revival of the late fifties. With albums like this, he could easily achieve the same reverence.
Whilst many of his contemporaries have been content to just drop something into the contribution box from time to time Cameron Blake hasn’t hesitated in taking up the banner of 60s protest folk, giving voice to the victims through personal and intimate storylines. This one man show deserves a standing ovation.
Kelly McRae teamed up with fellow musician Matt Castelein in 2011, their new EP Easy On My Mind is a simple, uncluttered backwoods folk affair, involving little more than acoustic guitar and her crystal vocals, beguiling from the off. Regularly compared to Welch and Rawlings, the latter should take that as a real compliment.
If I Was A River is the latest offering from Willie Nile, now 66. It features 10 sparsely arranged introspective acoustic numbers with Nile accompanying himself on piano. Not just any piano either, but the same Steinway Grand he was playing in the same studio as Lennon the night he was shot. Maybe the melancholia of that evening seeped into its keys.
10 years on, Tom Heyman’s finally made a third album, one that showcases his fine work on acoustic, electric and slide guitars as well as his slightly grained and rasped baritone. We also have the European Video Premiere for Black Top, a B-movie inspired spoof made with director Steve Hanft and featuring a surprise guest from Dengue Fever.
Kyle Carey’s debut revealed her to be as impressive a storyteller as she is a musician and singer, something confirmed by North Star, her full-length follow-up which was produced by Seamus Egan, a founding member of Solas and featuring contributions from Josienne Clarke, Ben Walker, Pauline Scanlon, Natalie Haas and Craig Werth.