Albums

While Coyote Canyon is unmistakably a Rick Deitrick album that will seamlessly slip into his catalogue, there are also intriguing moods and techniques at play that give it its own identity. In short, Coyote Canyon is an altogether intriguing and rather lovely album.

The August List’s ‘Wax Cat’ is a thrilling and bizarre concoction of retro influences that’s delivered in a glorious jumble of melodic chaos. The near-collision between the myriad competing forces provides a near-perfect record.

Hailing from Yukon, The Lucky Ones deliver their own brand of bluegrass on a promising self-titled debut throughout which there’s a strong sense of family and community.

The idea behind Brooks Williams’ ‘Ghost Owl’ may have been relatively simple but the magic lies in its execution. Joined by Aaron Catlow, Ghost Owl is a thing of beauty and the barn owl has the perfect soundtrack to its twilight habits.

At the heart of Spiers & Boden’s “Fallow Ground” is the utter joy of two friends making music together. It’s a joyful, exciting, and beautifully produced release and it’s so great to have them back.

Throughout ‘Home No More’, the Folkatron Sessions make clever use of subtle experimentation to enhance and celebrate traditional song. This is experimental folk at its best. Excellent.

With sympathetic arrangements moving alongside each other fluidly throughout and Steve Gunn’s voice to the fore, ‘Other You’ is his most elegant sounding solo record yet.

Featuring songs from landworkers and some well-known folk singers, ‘Stand Up Now’ is a beautiful and enchanting album that uses its traditional sound to explore a range of political issues surrounding the agricultural industry. Ultimately, it’s an album about hope; hope for a better, fairer world.

The changing moods of Sam Kelly and the Lost Boys‘ “The Wishing Tree” form a big part of its charm. From the thought-provoking lyrics to the musicianship, you’d be hard pushed to find the merest chink in their armour and here they demonstrate that to perfection.

Arriving ten years after The Faux Paws first got together, this debut may have been long in the gestation, but the experience and musical wisdom accumulated in that time has clearly paid off for a quietly unassuming but highly infectious album.

As a project, this Sonafric safari is a triumph in unearthing and presenting the music and musicians of Yaoundé’s underground music scene of some 50 years ago.  The legacy offered here on Cameroon Garage Funk illustrates the timelessness of the music and is highly recommended.

Recorded at a countryside retreat in Kildare with Myles O’Reilly, Rónán Ó Snodaig’s Tá Go Maith is an album not to be rushed but instead presents an opportunity to slow down and embrace its evocative gentle mood and positivity.