Albums

On their self-titled debut, The MerKaBa Brotherhood — duo Roman Norfleet and Andre Raiah — treat rhythm as a vessel for hidden knowledge, shaping sound the way mystics shape symbols. Drawing on esoteric texts, sacred imagery and improvisation, this coded manuscript turns noise into philosophy, vibration into shared language, parachuting us into the place where all the in-between notes live.

On his eighth album, his first since 2023’s ‘More Photographs,’ Kevin Morby returns from somewhere far. “Little Wide Open” is a road record across 13 tracks: tangled highways, small towns, roadside crosses, and rock-and-roll romance. From the engine-rumble of opener ‘Badlands’ to the open-armed homecoming of closer ‘Field Guide For The Butterflies,’ Morby writes with weary-eyed honesty.

On “Counting Sunsets”, out now on Northern Spy Records, the New York trio SUSS further distil their sound across ten songs, allowing plenty of space between the instrumentation. An intricate fusion of Americana ingredients and electronic soundscapes, this is their finest, most fully realised expression of “ambient country” yet — a lesson in minimalism from a band with delicate, discerning touches.

For all its preoccupation with what slips away — faces misremembered, friends taken too early, the houses we once lived in — “Who’s Keeping Time?” is markedly less solitary than anything Alela Diane has made since “To Be Still”. Michael Hurley’s death sent her back into the room with other musicians. The album doesn’t argue against loss; it gathers people around it.

On their self-titled debut “Amarante-Cerisier”, Marine Debilly Cerisier and Mauricio Amarante deliver a fitting addition to the canon of Francophone double-acts, with Fontaine and Areski as closest antecedent. Their free-form folk thrives on paradox and fruitful mystery, weaving insistent bone-dry strums, half-whispered vocals and the odd psychedelic keyboard swirl into a deceptive, refractive collection of sweet, sharp songs.

Adam Ross has become a lynchpin of the ever-fertile Scottish scene. As a songwriter, he is deceptively gentle: his melodies scurry, bound or lope along, sometimes jaunty, sometimes suffused with a light melancholy, while his lyrics are always witty and frequently biting. “Bring On the Apathy”, his third album under his own name, is his most mature and rewarding yet.

Sofra Trio release their debut EP “New Dawn” today via Worlds Within Worlds — a powerful meeting of musical traditions from Syria, Türkiye and the Balkans. Recorded live in a single take in Helsinki, the trio of Melisa Yıldırım (kamancha), Merve Abdurrahmani (piano) and Hadi Hrekes (percussion) move fluidly between composition and improvisation.

Henry Parker’s “The Dark Peak” delivers pristine, impeccably fingerpicked acoustic music recorded on the moors of the Peak District. An educated, high-end player, Parker shows a broad skillset and technical prowess throughout, without being overly flashy. With tight melodies and wonderfully evocative natural sounds permeating the songs, this mini-album is a gem.

Daisy Rickman and Magpahi take a side each on “Ceremonial County Series Vol.XXIII,” the penultimate volume in this extensive Folklore Tapes’ series. Rickman’s piece ties East Sussex bonfire myths to pagan ritual, building an immersive wave of sound. Magpahi summons a malevolent Lancashire water spirit. A startling slice of psych-folk that slips easily between worlds — the unearthly charms of weird England.

Setting’s self-titled second studio album sees the North Carolina-based experimental trio of Nathan Bowles, Jaime Fennelly and Joe Westerlund, distilling their blend of acoustic instrumentation, cassette loops and electronics to thrilling effect. The intricate detailing and impeccable construction, along with a clear confidence across the five songs, make “Setting” their clearest expression yet — without a doubt, the perfect title.

Teddy Thompson’s latest album, Never Be The Same, digs back into rockier seams for his first album of original material since 2020. With influences ranging from Crowded House and The Beatles to his father Richard Thompson, these songs explore love, change and the passage of time. The album title may speak of flux, but Thompson’s brilliance remains predictably constant throughout.

Tried To Do’s, Jay Hammond’s second album as Trippers & Askers, follows the jazz-inflected sprawl of ‘Acorn’ with something more introverted and song-based. Shaped by acute personal grief and the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Asheville, the album turns inward without losing generosity. It’s a slow-burning, finespun record of bold sincerity and steady groundedness.