Albums

OVA shows no let-up in Afro Celt Soundsystem’s recording of thrilling, incredibly varied music that knows no boundaries. It is a fitting final testament to Simon Emmerson’s vision and his immense feat in making it happen.

While Lee Baggett’s playing may sometimes recall Neil Young of old, the lyrics on Waves for a Begull bend to a more positive vibe that seems to find new ways to discover joy–an antidote for these troubled times.

With Midwinter Swimmers, The Innocence Mission continue the trend of creating albums of sparkling clarity and coherent vision. The quality is always unfalteringly high throughout, and the tonal and thematic shifts provide enough progression to make every new album essential. This is no exception.

Johnny Coley is a genuine poet, someone with things to say that haven’t been said before. With Mister Sweet Whisper, he has created a document of a crazy, frayed civilization and has made it sound beautiful.

Jennifer Castle’s Camelot is a kind of jousting match between religion and mystic thought and secular, pragmatic humanism. It’s rare for an album of such intellectual depth to be so accessible, but throughout, Castle imbues her songs with wit, candour and melodic charm.

Under his pseudonym of Glåsbird, British artist and composer Harry Towell’s exploration of remote geographic locations returns closer to home as he explores the low-lying fenlands surrounding his sleepy Lincolnshire village.

In O Avalanche, Fionn Regan offers a quietly powerful experience. A rare voice capable of bridging vulnerability and resilience, the album is a testament to his enduring creativity and willingness to explore new territory without losing the authenticity that has always defined his music.

For the latest Ceremonial Counties release from Folklore Tapes, Benjamin D Duvall (Ex-Easter Island Head) explores the fragmentary nature of Merseyside’s Crosby Beach, and Sam McLoughlin delivers one of the most playful pieces in the series so far via eight Herefordshire tales.

Trust Fund’s “Has It Been A While?” drifts by, a thirty-five-minute reverie, gauzy and dreamy and illuminated from within…Jones’ biggest influence here is Nick Drake, and it shows.

With Avoudé, Dogo du Togo and the Alagaa Beat Band have created music infused with Togolese culture, history, and tradition while also sounding excitingly modern and intriguing.

Rather than rootless, the rock of Loose Cattle merges so many influences that it is perhaps the perfect roux for what ails you, with just enough Louisiana spice to give “Someone’s Monster” the heat that makes an undeniable classic.

Return to Kielderside is, among other things, a document of what has happened between that first Kathryn Tickell release and the present day-It’s like a long-exposure photograph of an important and highly impressive career in constant evolution.