Simon Holland

When Ross Cockburn met Jay Brown something clicked and Dark Green Tree was the happy result. Adding the voice of Cera Impala to the dream-pop-Americana of Secret Lives proves a further stroke of genius. A record that fulfils a dream and sets in motion whole new flights of fantasy and imagination of its own, wrapped up in a set of blissful tunes and honeyed harmony.

The mighty Bellowhead bandwagon is about to make its final journey. One last rev of the engines and one last climb to the highest peaks and the curtain will finally fall on the astonishing party that has been running for almost 12 years.

Looking for a new sound to match his visions of England Wes Finch had a notion Gerry Diver might steer him there and the wonderful, wildly creative Awena proves him right. If a record could be a page turner then this is it.

Laura Victoria is a powerful, original voice well established on the folk circuit and her glorious full-length debut Head Above Water proves her “Fearlessly adventurous” talent. She has a unique sound that certainly benefits from the chemistry she shares with her friend and accompanist Jo Cooper, but has she also has a magical ability to the shift musical shapes to cover the broad range of her emotive songs.

It may have taken almost 25 years and a sharp thinking festival booker to light the fuse, but Eliza Carthy and Tim Erikson have finally brewed up a Bottle of rare vintage. Here they tell Folk Radio all about it.

Having made her mark with The Duke & The King, Simi Stone taps into her Upstate Catskill roots for a debut album of bright, vivid soulful sounds as fresh as the sun-kissed mountain air. Plus watch the premiere of her new video for ‘Got It All’.

Building on the acclaim for his debut, Rhythm & Reason finds Bhi Bhiman hitting a socially conscious, soul groove and combining the political and the personal with trademark wit and wisdom. Don’t miss his UK and Ireland Tour in June.

Living in Italy, but born in San Fransisco, the globe-trotting Lucia Comnes has returned to her Americana roots for the passionate and sophisticated new album Love, Hope & Tyranny. Lucia is also getting set to make her UK debut in June with a CD Release Concert at London’s Green Note, one you don’t want to miss.

Having released one of the best albums of the year so far, we caught up with Jackie Oates to talk about her musical journey from her early days of singing at Topsham Folk Club to pursuing her solo career. We also talk about the making of The Spyglass & The Herringbone.

Eliza Carthy and Tim Eriksen finally found the means to combine their extraordinary talents and a couple of UK tours created the opportunity to open the Bottle in celebration. This is a great record, as accomplished and surprising as you might expect from two of the folk world’s most complete musical artists.

With new album Emerald, Dar Williams really does live up to her tag as one of America’s best singer songwriters and with tour dates imminent there’s cause for double celebration. Emerald also includes several notable guest appearances to further enhance its credentials. It channels the heartfelt, the honest, the vital and and the poetic into one electrifying whole.

We caught up with Fabian Holland for a quick chat about his exceptional second album ‘A Day Like Tomorrow’ and the way his narrow boat life is starting to influence his work. Whilst life is not all plain sailing there are plenty of upbeat moments as he admits “…there are times when you just forget that you’re living in London, which is probably why I like it so much.”