Albums

Bassekou Kouyaté’s fifth release sees him in a more lugubrious, reflective mood, ‘an album about love, friendship, family and true values in a time of crisis.’ Extraordinary and beautiful music.

Fifty years on, Shirley Collins returns to London’s Roundhouse… It is hard to imagine anyone who deserves to be on that stage more than Shirley Collins, as the ovations and cheering voices tonight will attest.

Ian Carr and Niklas Roswell’s new album will grab your attention and keep it. With lots to explore and savour, Time Flies is, like this duo, a real treasure.

It’s so rare to hear a duo that are this good across the board, and especially on a debut collaboration. The songwriting, performing and production of Songs by the King Heat Ensemble is quite astounding.

This year’s impressive guest line-up for the Transatlantic Sessions included Tim O’Brien, Gretchen Peters, Molly Tuttle, Cara Dillon and Paul McKenna. The tour kicked off at Celtic Connections with a hugely entertaining evening.

Rowan:Morrison’s latest offering is an ambitious and necessarily thought-provoking work and makes an important and powerful statement that proves both irresistible and cumulatively convincing.

Daoirí Farrell, our Artist of the Month, returns this month with his third solo album, A Lifetime of Happiness. The songs are delivered with infinite care and deep affection; it is a wonderful album that delights on every level.

Maintaining the tradition of wrapping their lives into the process of getting their art out into the marketplace, Jacken Elswyth’s end product is a wholly credible, hypnotic and fascinating piece of work. Time to dig out your old tape player perhaps?

Like last year’s Folk Fever album, Variations is a reminder of just how flexible music can be in the hands of an artist who sees genre boundaries as a challenge rather than confinement.

Accompanied by The Celtic Blues Orchestra Rhiannon Giddens delivered an exceptional performance at Celtic Connections, receiving no less than three standing ovations. An unforgettable evening.

We catch master Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser premièring his latest collaborative odyssey at Celtic Connections featuring, cellist Natalie Haas, fiddler sister Brittany, Québécois guitarist, accordionist and singer Yann Falquet, and phenomenal US stepdancer Nic Gareiss.

The Unthanks’ latest venture, Lines, is a trilogy of three discrete song cycles inspired by poetry, linked by their focus on female perspectives across time. Guests include Sam Lee and Tim Dalling. Through their expressive performing style, commitment and vision a deeper undercurrent is revealed.