Albums

Lael Neale’s ‘Acquainted with Night’ is steeped in Los Angeles nostalgia, sparse arrangements make for a smooth, unencumbered, effortless listen…beneath which there is an underlying tension that is strangely comforting.

The latest album by Jon Boden marks an elegant, profound, and thoroughly rewarding conclusion to a remarkably prescient series of albums. Last Mile Home is a genuinely heartfelt and beautifully structured listen. An exquisitely moving conclusion to Jon’s trilogy. This one will stay with you.

Those Shocking Shaking Days. Indonesian Hard, Psychedelic, Progressive Rock And Funk: 1970 – 1978 is an extraordinarily excellent re-released compilation that, musically, succeeds admirably in capturing the essence and magic of the time.

If you want to hear a fine example of the harp in the contemporary folk music of Ireland, then listen to Ocean of Stars, the new EP by Brídín who comes from a long line of musicians stretching back four generations.

For too many years this album was a buried treasure in the Paul Simon back catalogue. Danny Neill takes us on a journey back to 1965 to explore ‘The Paul Simon Songbook’. An innovator always in pursuit of new sounds…An LP recorded in a single day…it was a big deal.

While the album may seem to some like a travelogue, it is actually a journey inside the minds of Mahood, Dybvig and Nash. As Plankton Wat, Future Times lays out out a manifesto for change. We need to listen with open hearts.

If traditions are made to be broken, then Altın Gün has smashed them to bits. But what they have done is reassembled the bits, shaken them around and redeployed them within the framework of Yol. Folk music for the modern dance floor, what a concept!

The first release on Ryley Walker’s new Husky Pants label is a live jam between Ryley’s four-piece band and the Japanese psych-prog five-piece Kikagaku Moyo which has become a Bandcamp best seller – a free-spirited blast of tightly played, highly creative music.

An album of positivity in an uncertain world, The Hoth Brothers new album ‘Tell Me How You Feel’ makes for a damn fine listen with a delightful variety of shades from the Carter Family to John Prine and The Band.

An intriguingly powerful set and a welcome return from Firefay and Alison O’Donnell with a striking use of instrumentation. Embrace the noir.

Soaked is the latest offering from Brussels-based trio Las Lloronas – it’s cool, jazzy and has great harmonies. It won’t fit in a box so don’t try, and perhaps it may not be what you expect but this is an album for repeat play. Excellent.

Sometimes the boldest statements are least expected. Katy Kirby turns just about everything on its head. Cool Dry Place is the kind of statement that announces a new voice ready to be heard again and again.