In the shadow of York’s great gothic Minster, the Smoke Fairies have come to weave their magic. Their haunting, ethereal music is ideal for this ancient city. While we may, in fact, be gathered in the basement of a 1960s…
Author: Ian Parker
Ian is For Folk's Sake's reviews editor. Find him on Twitter @iparky.
Interview: Ron Sexsmith rises again
When Ron Sexsmith’s 11th album Long Player Late Bloomer was released earlier this year, FFS declared it to be the Canadian singer-songwriter’s “most exuberant album to date”. We’re sticking with that assessment, but the man himself told us it came…
EP: Cashier No. 9 – Goldstar
Cashier No 9 is, we’re pretty sure, a terrible name for a band. But luckily for them, that’s where the terribleness stops. The Goldstar EP will mark the end of their obscurity, serving as it does as their final self-released…
EP: Pete David and The Payroll Union – Underfed and Underpaid
Sheffield might currently lack a defining music scene, but in the wake of all those who were keen to ape Arctic Monkeys a few years ago this comes as a merciful shot of relief. What the Steel City offers instead…
EP: Anchor & The Wolf – The Cinema Suite
Even when listening to it, I can never quite figure out how some music manages to be both powerful and terribly delicate at the same time. But however that works, Anchor & The Wolf make it happen on the outstanding…
Album: Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter – Marble Son
Nothing is rushed in the world of Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter. Their music a world of long, slow, brooding tracks that envelop you in a warm, melancholy sound. And their productivity rate does little to quicken the pulse…
Album: Amy Lashley – Travels of a Homebody
Fans of a more traditional Americana sound should find plenty to like about Amy Lashley’s latest record Travels of a Homebody. Combining blues, country, folk and even a little jazz, Lashley playfully switches between the styles in a manner akin…
Me & My Friends
Leeds’ Me & My Friends have been picking up the kind of support slots of late that catch the eye of websites like ours – Hannah Peel, Jesca Hoop and Alessi’s Ark to name a few. So the New Bands…
New Sounds: Other Lives, Michael Kiwanuka, Pearl and The Beard, Lauren Campbell & The Dusty Figurines
If you’ve had even half an eye on the website of late, you’ll have noticed an absolute ton of reviews. It’s that time of year when the releases come thick and fast ahead of the summer and we’re doing our…
Album: Bella Hardy – Songs Lost And Stolen
Songs Lost And Stolen is a coming of age album for Derbyshire’s Bella Hardy. Her previous two records stuck to folk standards but here she finds the confidence to give us 12 self-written works. And backed by Scottish-Canadian ‘supergroup’ the…