Browsing Tag

Acoustic Folk

LeoJJChill leaves us ensnared with his minimalist folk sound.

Posted on 14 September 2021

With years of songwriting behind him, LeoJJChill has given us a taste of what we can expect from his future releases. Anyone who found them ensnared by Nick Cave’s new material created in collaboration with Warren Ellis will quickly become ensnared by the ease of the melodies and the command of the vocals above the gentle acoustic guitar progressions.

His songwriting that takes you right back to the roots of folk is simple, but it isn’t without soul or authentic artistic licence, and that is exactly what leaves you absorbed by LeoJJChill’s less-than-archetypal approach to lo-fi folk. We eagerly await his official indie-folk debut.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Folk meets Britpop in River Knight’s latest single, She Came Round, featuring Ralph Walling.

Posted on 5 July 2021
https://soundcloud.com/river-knight-613028707/she-came-round-1

Americana meets UK Britpop in River Night’s alt-folk single, She Came Round, featuring Ralph Walling. While instrumentally, the semi-orchestral folky instrumentals run in the same vein as Dylan’s did in the 70s, there’s a touch of Oasis and the Stone Roses to the vocals that contrast with the accordant tones of the acoustic guitar progressions.

She Came Round is just one of the authentically original singles from the Southampton-based duo’s lockdown-born album, Grow, which released on June 25th. With plenty of tour dates in their diary, 2021 could very well be the year of River Knight.

She Came Round is now available to stream via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Award-winning alt-folk artist Colin Clyne has released his latest single, ‘Within Hindsight’

Posted on 22 June 2021
Colin Clyne

Award-winning Scottish alt-folk singer-songwriter Colin Clyne’s latest single, Within Hindsight, takes you back to the time when ballads were tender and minimal instrumentation carried alchemically profound magnetism.

The tones in Within Hindsight are enough to evoke synaesthesia as you drink in the sepia colours weaved into the acoustic guitar progression and soft neo-classic-style meanderings of the piano. The gravelly whisky-soaked vocals hit the high notes with soaring ease, allowing Clyne to exhibit both his arresting vocal range and emotional range. They say that there are 34,000 possible human emotions, Within Hindsight resonates as capable of evoking most of them.

After spending ten years in California collecting accolades, including being a two-time winner of ‘The Best Acoustic Act’ at San Diego Music Awards, and featuring on a list of the best singer-songwriters curated by NBC that listed him alongside Tom Waits, it is safe to say that he made quite the impression. There is no reason why he can’t celebrate the same success on this side of the pond.

Within Hindsight is due for official release on June 25th.

You can check out Colin Clyne via his website, Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Eleanor Goldfield has made her solo debut with the radical Americana EP, ‘No Solo’.

Posted on 21 May 2021

After opening for acts such as Helmet and Tom Morello in her band Rooftop Revolutionaries, Elanor Goldfield has launched her solo debut EP, ‘No Solo,’ which consists of three original songs and two spoken-word pieces. It’s a far cry from her political hard rock sound in Rooftop Revolutionaries, but the queer creative radical, journalist and filmmaker’s versatile sound still comes with a bruising impact.

The single, ‘Pyre’, is the perfect introduction to her visceral songwriting style. The enthralling slice of Americana lays its foundation in swampy bluegrass roots, while the easy acoustic guitar chords bring a light accordant air of singer-songwriter country folk. While tackling themes of damnation, the radical track unapologetically forces into consciousness the destruction that collectively surrounds us while speaking to your soul with a recognition that only exceptional songwriters can achieve.

With lyrics such as, “What do you live for if they’re dying to kill for a dime?”, if you don’t feel something listening to Pyre, you may want to check you’ve still got a pulse.

If you find space on your playlists for Bonny Light Horseman, Angel Olsen or Sharen Van Etten on your playlists, you’ll definitely want to make room for Goldfield’s debut EP.

Elanor Goldfield’s debut EP is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

There’s no time like the present to check out Barry Locke’s acoustic folk single, ‘One of These Days’.

Posted on 20 May 2021

Folk singer-songwriter Barry Locke’s latest single, ‘One of These Days’ carries plenty of hallmarks of the quintessential acoustic folk-pop ballad while the distinction lies in his vulnerable vocals and the lifts in the sonic Americana pop-rock crescendos that make the track an evocatively powerful ride from start to finish.

One of These Days perfectly captures the instability that can often follow periods of self-reflection, the times when you look back, and you can’t recall the footsteps that led you to where you are, but you are still yearning from the life you evolved from.

The upbeat track leaves melancholy by the wayside and thrives on the determination to carry on, even if you don’t know where that energy is coming from. It’s a stunning release, sobering and uplifting in equal measure.

One of These Days officially released on May 20th; you can check it out on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Marshall Artz are ‘Coming Home’ with their twin guitars and a brand new album

Posted on 8 May 2021
Marshall Artz

Taken from their fifth album ‘What Matters’, Marshall Artz’ new single ‘Coming Home’ is a mildly folky, Louisiana-tinged acoustic-led duet, fast-paced and upbeat with some bluegrass vibes in places around the banjo-roll lead breaks and slide guitar pieces, all wrapped around the uber-tight fingerstyle rhythm work of Kevin Artz. There’s a folk-rock, Americana feel to the track, reminiscent of 70’s trio America, Bread, or Harry Chapin, with maybe an element of the Doobie Brothers thrown in in the way both players interact organically around the track to create something that sounds fuller than ‘just’ two guitars and vocals.

It’s an excellent track, pacey and tight; lyrically, the title’s pretty much on the money – a long time away, nothing but ‘FaceTime on my iPhone’ to connect with, and ‘today is the day that I’m coming home’. Gentle, fun, and uplifting, ‘Coming Home’ is a great introduction to Marshall Artz new album.

You can hear ‘Coming Home’ here.

Review by Alex Holmes

Lindsay Brazell reached the pinnacle of indie-folk with her single, ‘Midnight Gospel’.

Posted on 5 May 2021

With chord progressions that flow as easily as Courtney Barnett’s and the Beatles’, from the first note, you’re suckered right into Lindsay Brazell’s latest bluesy folk-pop single, ‘Midnight Gospel’.

The choruses practically act as transcendental experiences as you get caught up within Brazell’s chorally arcane vocals that give you the same vibe as Stevie Nicks as they work with the popping melodies that remain contemporary until the solo where the roots of bluegrass pull through.

With her sound exuding as much distinction as Amigo the Devil and the 2020 supergroup Bonny Light Horseman, combined with the impression that she lights up every room she walks in, it comes as no surprise that the singer-songwriter has been dubbed one to watch by The Nashville Songwriters Association International. We wholeheartedly agree.

Midnight Gospel is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Toby Charlesworth – To Say Goodbye: Organically Raw Indie Acoustic Folk

Posted on 23 April 2021

North London’s Toby Charlesworth followed on from his 2021 successful debut EP with the release of the captivating indie-folk single, ‘To Say Goodbye’. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter uses music to express what words alone cannot; To Say Goodbye is the perfect testament of his expressive talent.

With the same tender tender lyricism as Tom Odell paired with Charlesworth’s vocals where nothing is dramatic, prosaic or forced, every note is organically raw as he laments on ‘a beauty he used to know’.

The single perfectly captures all of those self-deprecating thoughts that come to fruition after saying a goodbye that we never wanted to say. It’s the kind of track that can leave you in a daze as the lyrics force you to contemplate your losses and find gratitude for the ones that are still around.

To Say Goodbye is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dylan Walker drops his debut single, the chilled love-song ‘All I Need Is You’

Posted on 10 April 2021

It’s not often that bible quotes spring readily to mind when reviewing new music, but “when I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things” could easily be the tag-line for ‘All I Need Is You’, Dylan Walker’s debut self-penned single.

An ex-childhood tennis prodigy and professional player turned musician and songwriter, 20-something Dylan Walker’s opener is a beautiful, gentle mellow little acoustic-guitar-and-vocal-led ballad to love, loss, and the understanding that the important things in life aren’t – as he puts it – ‘…fancy things/ like fast cars and grand clothes and diamond rings’, but the love and support of those close to us. Dylan Walker’s voice is soft, lilting, almost falsetto at times, carrying the message of the lyrics beautifully over the chilled melodic backing. It’s a strong, confident debut, and bodes well for Dylan Walker in the future, with two more singles – ‘Life Began With You’ and ‘We Are Meant To Be’ slated for release later this year on Happy Sloth Records.

‘All I Need Is You’ is out now across all major streaming platforms; you can check it out on Spotify now.

Review by Alex Holmes

Salmon Run have released their chorally accordant country folk single, ‘She’s Alright’

Posted on 7 April 2021

With their latest single, ‘She’s Alright’, Appleton, WI-residing duo Salmon Run played with roots of country-folk while giving the production a chorally enticing contemporary feel.

The lyrics are sentimental and heartfelt enough for you to become personally enamoured with the object of affection which the accordant single gently introduces, reminding you well and truly that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that, for the most part, thankfully, it lies in idiosyncrasies.

It’s a stunning single to hand over your emotions and rhythmic pulses to. Any fans of contemporary folk acts such as Bonny Light Horseman will appreciate this quiescent journey of romantic adoration.

The official video to She’s Alright is now available to stream via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast