Albums

Luke Jackson’s latest album ‘This Family Tree’ is short but perfectly formed, sharply and sympathetically observed and emotionally involving. Further evidence that Jackson is shaping up to become one of the enduring major figures in the world of contemporary folk.

With a new line up including Dan Walsh, Paloma, Joe and Tom have pushed the UFQ to new heights and The Escape offers exactly that with myriad musical highlights and global grooves to get lost in for months. This is the band at their brilliant best so make sure you catch them live on their current tour.

The Spyglass & The Herringbone gathers up all of Jackie Oates promise to date, dusts it down and adds polish to present a sparkling jewel of a folk record. It’s a rare and most refined thing of gift of great beauty and as good a record as you could rightly hope for, that’s all yours for the small price of admission.

On Annabelle Chvostek’s latest release ‘Be The Media’ she’s gone back to her indie roots. She may have described her earlier album Resilience as “a big complicated hug”, due to its warm enveloping nature, but ‘Be The Media’, despite initial appearances of spiky acerbity, turns out to be just as enveloping in its own way.

Neither folk nor funk, blues or prog, If I Had Wings is a delicate, sophisticated cocktail of flavours that meet the rim of the glass just so. Stirred, not shaken. “This is the album I always wanted to make but never dared to” says Philips, we’re glad he did.

It’s two years since Manx trio Barrule released their debut album with the declared intention of bringing the music of the Isle of Man to everyone’s attention. Their follow-up, Manannan’s Cloak, is more varied and even more energetic and appealing than the first. If Barrule is yet to enter your musical life, open the door right now.

This year’s BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards was one of the best there’s been. We were there on the night taking in the celebrations, one which was fun, emotional and entertaining. Proof that the folk scene is very much in good health.

Block booking Dublin’s prestigious Vicar Street for a month of concerts was a bold move, but one that has paid off handsomely for Paul Brady, with a little help from his friends. You can hear it for yourself on The Vicar St. Sessions Vol. 1 which is released this month via Proper Records. Read our review here.

What a week it is for The Young’uns having just picked up the BBC Folk Award for Best Group they launch their new album ‘Another Man’s Ground’ this week at The Sage Gateshead. They’ve been on quite a journey since their humble beginnings, one that continues to grow and develop.

Paul heads to Leytonstone’s ‘What’s Cookin’ for an evening of great entertainment from Mark Olson and his wife Ingunn Ringvold. Supported by Welsh/Mississippi duo Lewis and Leigh. Another superb night he shares for you here.

‘High Rise’ is an album of wondrous beauty from start to finish, with pieces that combine jazz, blues and classical with Scottish roots music. The work of Scottish fiddler and composer David Grubb this is a superb, confident soundtrack to a bustling city, as observed by a visitor.

Kate Rusby works her magic once again at the Civic Theatre, Chelmsford – an invitation to step outside of your own world and to join hers for a brief moment, to become part of the great tradition that has seen songs passed to her from her parents and from her and Damien to their children. A superb evening that our reviewer Paul shares here.