I thought the banks were skint? This one seems to be full to bursting, with a remarkable range of ideas and styles filtered through layers of Fenland folk oddity. Generally speaking the tone is gentle folk-pop, not dissimilar to The…
Category: Reviews
Singles Round-up | Terry Emm, The Beatrix Players, The Lumineers & The Lake Poets
Terry Emm – Gently How have we not previously heard of Terry Emm? This Christmas single follows on from two albums – both of which are consistently as gorgeous as ‘Gently’. Not since Spandau Ballet’s ‘Gold’ has a song’s title…
EP | Hot Feet – Wood House
Let’s talk Hejira. Let’s talk Joni Mitchell’s eighth studio album. All big imagery, curiously picked guitars and Joni’s distinctive voice fluttering about like a pleasantly drunk moth. Hejira is the musician’s favourite Mitchell album and an obvious influence behind Laura…
Album | Daniel Pearson – Mercury State
Daniel Pearson’s second album finds the Hull singer-songwriter immersed in the parlous state of the nation’s economy and its effects on his nearest and dearest. Annoyed that the subject was not being confronted by musicians – “I suppose that’s the…
Album | Julia Holter – Ekstasis
Ekstasis is a shape-shifting album, reminding me of Grimes, Little Dragon, Laurie Anderson, Sigur Ros, Emilie Simon and Miles Davis by turns, blended into chorally-minded, near-orchestral compositions that defy any simple explanation. ‘This Is Ekstasis’ is a true soundscape, evoking…
EP | Seth Lakeman – Live With The BBC Concert Orchestra
As a general rule of thumb, adding an orchestra to something makes it vastly different. Examples of things that would be made wildly more interesting by the addition of an orchestra include train stations, casual conversation and bathtime. The opposing…
Live | Martha Wainwright @ Shepherds Bush Empire
Stomping onto the stage at Shepherd’s Bush Empire with a jumper wrapped turban-wise around her head and a Norwegian fox dangling from her throat, Martha Wainwright bursts straight into a rendition of ‘Factory’. Choosing to begin the evening with a…
Album | Willy Mason – Carry On
For serious Willy Mason devotees, a number of the tracks on Carry On will be thoroughly familiar; he’s been gigging them all around the place for upwards of a year. Recording the album in the depths of south London with…
Live | Gabrielle Aplin @ Scala, London
Gabrielle Aplin, currently best known for soundtracking a snowman love story on the John Lewis Christmas advert, lit up the stage at the Scala with an impressive live show. Read Paul Woods’ review of Gabrielle Aplin live at the Scala on 22/11/2012 on For Folk’s Sake.
Album | Joyce The Librarian – They May Put Land Between Us
When Joyce The Librarian first found their way into FFS ears earlier this year, it took us a while to get over their wondrous name, the Stilgoe & Skillern song of a sex-starved book lender that inspired it, and all…