Scandinavian-born singer Benjamin Folke Thomas is excited to announce the release of his impressive new album Copenhagen on March 3rd, 2017.
Folke Thomas was born in the coldest winter recorded in modern day history in Gothenburg, Sweden; perhaps his obsession for sad, lamenting country songs was inevitable; and grew up on a secluded island off the coast, populated by mainly evangelical Christians. However, Ben never found God. He discovered grunge music instead, and at the age of 11 he was playing drums in a punk band before turning to folk and Americana music after seeing Kurt Cobain’s performance of ‘In The Pines’ on Unplugged. Steeping himself in Leadbelly, Dylan, and Leonard Cohen, by the age of 20 he was an accomplished finger-picker, confident performer, and mature songwriter.
Copenhagen is Ben’s best work to date; an album full of roots and rhythmic blues, alongside the most beautiful descriptive storytelling, sung with his trademark baritone vocals and packed with anthemic choruses.
After living and playing in London for some years, where he proved to be one of the most exciting prospects to come out of the acoustic scene in years, he released his first studio album Too Close To Here in 2013. It was mainly recorded with Swedish musicians in the Rosa Huset (‘The Pink House’) outside Gothenburg. Follow up Rogue State of Mind, released in 2015, was recorded with his same Swedish band in their studio in an old warehouse, and focused in on the bands live nature with minimal rehearsal.
Folke Thomas’ live ability has attracted a dedicated fanbase and rave reviews, including Q Magazine describing his “stunning playing… his finger-picking is the best you will ever hear”, whilst the Guardian stated that he “stands out like Oliver Reed at an AA meeting”.
‘One More Ride’ live at Cropredy Festival:
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