Albums

The pastoral sounds of Rob St. John return tomorrow on MayDay with a stunning special release on Song, by Toad Records which I have to admit I have been bowled over by. Charcoal Black and the Bonny Grey / Shallow Brown is simply stunning and beautiful!

Folk Radio UK catches Show of Hands at the sold-out Waterside Theatre in Sale, Greater Manchester. Miranda Sykes and Rex Preston opened the evening of entertainment whilst Show of Hands delighted many with a delve into their back catalogue.

The latest offering from Bait, Gastr Del Sol and Bastro guitarist David Grubbs is ‘The Plain Where the Palace Stood’. An album that is equal parts brainy, bonkers and bewildering, but never anything less than rewarding.

We catch a great live performance by Katy Carr at The Lexington who takes to the stage in a vibrant, vivid red dress and matching pillbox hat to put on a great performance supported by her trusty Aviators!

Sophie Hunger’s latest release ‘The Danger of Light’ may not finally cast some light on her real musical persona but it does show Hunger having fun with what seems to have become a career-long quest. Stream the album in full & watch her latest video.

The Little Carpenter is almost the fulcrum of Chris Wood’s latest album as we reach and tip beyond the half way point of the nine track album. As the centre piece it’s also perhaps appropriately the only traditional song on the album. Listen to it here.

The Centre Cannot Hold is a new EP featuring the hugely talented Ríoghnach Connolly along with Ellis Davies & the equally talented Mendi Singh. You may have heard jazz and folk before but never like this! You can’t touch it!

Folk Radio UK catch up with Spiers & Boden on the latest leg of their ‘Backyard Songs Tour’ at the Hungry Horse Folk Club in Ellesmere Port.The tour is set to culminate at the home of English Folk music, Cecil Sharp House, on 25th May.

A welcome return from Folk Radio UK favourites Arborea: Becoming the Latin root of their name, their fifth album Fortress of the Sun transcends eras like the roots of an ancient tree and tells stories in meditative glimpses.

Cam Penner’s latest album ‘To Build a Fire’ is at its heart a good old-fashioned country rock album. It manages to avoid the clichés of the genre with some excellent song writing, an honest, wide-eyed worldview and some very genuine emotional clout.

We head off-piste with London’s Green Note Café for a spectacular night billed as a Songwriters circle featuring Nels Andrews, Peter Mulvey, Allison Russell…as well as Brandon Seabrook and J.T. Nero. It was a truly magical night! Read our live review.

Track Number four from Chris Woods latest album ‘None the Wiser’ is ‘A Whole Life Lived’ another of Chris’ fables that will speak very well for itself. It seems that the wisdom of age is that wisdom is still to be had. Listen to it now.