Honest, in-depth album reviews by KLOF Mag – championing and curating intelligent, uncompromising voices in contemporary and experimental music since 2004.
Albums
by Mike Davies
Elliah Heifetz certainly made it out of Bustleton, but in chasing the American Dream, ‘First Generation American’ makes it abundantly clear, he never forgot his roots in the process.
by Bob Fish
Ultimately, as The Ciderhouse Rebellion, Murray Grainger and Adam Summerhayes illustrate that despite the music being created in the instant, Genius Loci 2: The Valley of Iron preserves moments of timeless, haunted beauty.
by Mike Davies
The Struggle is Michael Weston King’s first standalone recording in ten years. It’s a hugely welcome return to the solo spotlight and I’d venture to suggest his finest album yet.
by Mike Davies
On their covers album ‘Songs Of The Recollection’, featuring songs from Neil Young, Bowie, Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Gram Parsons, Vic Chesnutt and more, the Cowboy Junkies have put together a highly engaging stop-gap while we wait for the follow up to Ghosts.
by Mike Davies
The Hanging Stars’ last three albums saw them teetering on greatness. Wearing their cosmic country and late 60s West Coast folk-rock influences on their sleeve, Hollow Heart should rightly push them over the edge; it’s their best yet.
by Mike Davies
On River Fools & Moutain Saints, Ian Noe takes inspiration from autobiography, the Appalachian community and observations of the characters that inhabit it, but the emotions he touches on and the stories he tells have a universal resonance.
by Peter Shaw
Simon J Jones’ ‘How Things Work’ is a delight from start to finish, celebrating simpler times but with the pioneering spirit of the Ladybird books. Creating stories and soundscapes that seem very current but are somehow timeless, this album is a significant artistic achievement.
by Mike Davies
While Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves’ debut rightfully saw them critically acclaimed as a shining new force in string band music; Hurricane Clarice shows their light to be even brighter.
by David Pratt
Analog Africa’s latest compilation explores the rebajada scene of Mexico, unearthing and making available musical treasures deserving of a worldwide audience. The album includes a riveting history of Mexican pitch control, (Radson tube amps, heavy-duty Garrard decks), alongside superb archive photographs.
by Mike Davies
Ink of the Rosy Morning showcases the dexterity of Hannah Sanders and Ben Savage’s guitar playing and the unaffected beauty of their voices, both individually and in harmony. This is their most immediate, beguiling and, dare I say it, finest work yet.