Albums

They enjoy a robust on-stage relationship that fuels their artistry. Neither appears to have an answer to where the person ends and the music begins – that puzzle is one part of what makes the Milk Carton Kids so special and their new album Monterey is no exception.

Folk Radio catches Dean Owens at his album launch show for ‘Into The Sea’ at London’s Green Note. He sings ‘six songs, six possible singles; it really is that strong an album.’ Let’s hope Owens doesn’t leave it long before returning south of the border again.

It’s been a long time coming, but ‘Boy In A Boat’ is a fine record, which combines literate songwriting and top class musicianship with high production values and painstaking attention to detail. The result is an album of which Barry Kerr can be justifiably proud; one which more than holds its own with the big names of the contemporary Celtic music scene.

Folk Radio get a double treat from Robert Chaney and Barna Howard at London’s Servant Jazz Quarters – “Both songwriters could have played all night and it would not have been enough.”

Dedicated to the late founding member and family patriarch, Lenny Barker, The Barker Band’s sixth album The Land We Hold Dear is already set be on the ‘Best of’ lists of 2015. It should be on yours.

Dreamer’s Circus have proven they will refuse, gleefully, to be restricted by genre or by tradition. Their approach is all-embracing and their technical ability simply outstanding. Their music is completely accessible and, at the same time, remarkable in its complexity. ‘Second Movement’ carries the listener from calm contemplation to a euphoric exuberance – a journey to be relished.

Danny Schmidt’s work is characterised by a beauty in the simplicity of its expression, a quietly compelling demeanour that draws the listener in immediately. Owls is everything a contemporary troubadour singer-songwriter album should be.

Nothing More is a most valuable set, not least in that it brings together under one roof a host of recordings that together could be argued to represent the best, the bulk of the collected Fotheringay, and impeccably presented in the house style of earlier Island/Universal hardcover box-sets including a new authoritative essay by Mick Houghton, along with a copious selection of rare and previously unseen photographs.

Eliza Carthy and Tim Eriksen finally found the means to combine their extraordinary talents and a couple of UK tours created the opportunity to open the Bottle in celebration. This is a great record, as accomplished and surprising as you might expect from two of the folk world’s most complete musical artists.

With a win at the famous Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Trout Steak Revival place their best foot forward with their new album Brighter Every Day…it’s certainly looking that way.

The Escape as an album already comes highly recommended and as the centre piece of a live gig it proved to be irresistible. UFQ have done it again, ensuring their live shows continue to provide top notch entertainment that really has to be experienced.

The Mariannes are still considered to be something of a secret in their native Ireland. On the strength of this all-too-brief collection any attempt by the Dublin-based urban alt-folk sextet to expand their horizons beyond the Emerald Isle’s shores would be very welcome.