Ajay Mathur has lived a life worthy of a motion picture. A Switzerland import by way of New Delhi, he grew up surrounded by music and the arts. A painter, singer, and songwriter, Mathur found inspiration in meeting his idols—the…
Faced with the harsh realities of the impending global pandemic, Mackenzie Shivers hunkered down with her husband and friend at the latter’s Cape Cod home. For the next three months, in the midst of uncertainty, she flourished. Without her trademark…
When he’s not hit the road, you might find Serious Sam Barrett off Otley recording his next scorcher. Inspired by traditional English folk music in the form of a book, Sam’s latest sears with all of the tenacity that old-time…
In the world between folk singing and rock ‘n’ roll, David Lareau presents his own microcosm. Together with his band, Whiskey in the Pines, they create heartland-reminiscent blue collar music. It feels a little like Damien Jurado, a little like…
Nikki Wozzo & The Bad Whiskey bring bonafide outlaw attitude to the West Coast. Alongside bassist Ray Miller, Wozzo recalls the likes of ZZ Top on one hand and the Brothers Comatose on the other; their sound is blues-drenched, gritty,…
Replete with reverberating dobro, bouncing bass lines, and picturesque lyricism, Mercy Bell’s Golden Child recalls no-frills, 90s-era country music. Her textured vocals sell tales of breaking free and looking back in equal measure, and they soar effortlessly when the song…
Los Angeles’ Furious Seasons make music worthy of the Troubadour circa 1970. Their music recalls the tonal clarity of the era’s studious soft rock and melodious folk. Band leader David Steinhart crafts their songs “on the hopeful side of melancholy”,…
Zahava—Hebrew for “Golden”—is Jordana Talsky’s middle name. The moniker is also shared by her new EP, detailing the personal growth that she has made in its creation. A work of harmony, Talsky has used the album’s development to express a…
Paula Standing describes her new LP, The More I Give, as “a brief history of me.” Cut from the same tapestry as the likes of Dar Williams or Shawn Colvin, Standing’s folk is blended with subtle pop sensibilities and a…
Denise Dombrowski is an unsung hero. Throughout my conversations with singer-songwriters in the Berlin folk scene, the name of the violinist kept cropping up, together with the harmonica player Sebastian Hoch. Somehow, the two instrumentalists seemed to be ubiquitous –…
They’re based in Indiana, but their music is decidedly Southern Rock. The Crossroad Saints are purveyors of hearty roots rock meant for long hauls out on the highway. It recalls the Muscle Shoals sound with some Capricorn thrown in for…
George Gritzbach is an old-school cool. Inspired by vintage R&B greats and having grown up amidst blue-collar grit, Gritzbach translates a hard-earned life into soulful, powerful music. His latest release is Full Circle, invoking his forward-moving style as a frontman…
Mark Jowett is Plain Mister Smith. A purveyor of the consummately offbeat, Jowett’s “Smith” project has enabled him to develop no-holds-barred indie pop. Replete with crunching guitar tones, dithering percussion, and a collection of captivating vocal structures, ‘The Rat’ is…
When a band changes its name there’s always the feeling they’re desperate for a new start, yet nothing could be farther from the truth for Watchhouse. As Mandolin Orange they had managed to create a respected body of work, on that…
Following up 2019’s breakthrough The Big Freeze, Stevenson’s sixth studio album finds her facing up to a friend’s unspecified but “absolutely unthinkable” trauma, against the backdrop of first-time motherhood and the wild emotions of a couple of years like no…
One of the last gigs I went to pre-lockdown, in November 2019, was the magnificent Holy Moly and the Crackers in York. On the merchandise table afterwards, alongside the standard array of CDs and T-shirts, was a solitary copy of…
Today’s session comes from Rookling (aka Jem Bosatta) with ‘Cases’. Originally from England, Jem has been putting roots in Berlin for the past few years and we caught up with him as part of a trip back to his old…