CHRIS BRAIN – New Light (BSR 006)

New LightYorkshire based singer-songwriter Chris Brain releases his third album New Light, having gained a lot of followers with his first two albums in 2022 and 2023.  The album was recorded in two different places; a recording studio in Leeds and his allotment shed.  He wanted to capture these sometimes competing aspects of our lives; the need for both solitude and collaboration.

The title track opens the album and Chris has a delicate voice in this song about looking after somebody else and taking on their burdens and taking comfort from that shared experience.  Following on from ‘New Light’ we have ‘Two Lights’ a more upbeat song with a strong, but straightforward, musical backing. This is a kind of love song, not necessarily of the romantic kind, but two people sharing a moment in time together that may not last.  For somebody who says they play in the folk tradition ‘Two Lights’ is quite poppy and all the better for it.  ‘Sun Did Glide’ continues that theme of light as a guiding star.

‘Brother’ comes back to a more folk song feel, with a guitar and a bit of electric.  As with a lot of songs the bright sound covers lyrics that can be read in several was, one of which is quite dark.  It is of a person reaching out their brother for support through a bad time.  The stand-out sound on this track, though, is Chris’ voice. He sings, as I believe people should, in his own accent which gives a very grounded sound to his work.

Closing the album is probably my favourite song.  It comes back to the idea of solitude, but being alone is not the same as being lonely.  ‘Sit And Wonder Why’ is something we should all take the time to do on occasions.  It recalled something the gardener Geoff Hamilton said once “Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits”.  This is a contemplative song about sitting on a balmy evening as the light starts to fade and seeing what you can see.  It might be a tree blowing in the wind, a bat flitting past or a bird song.  So you sit and wonder why.  You don’t need an answer but just enjoy being in the moment.

I enjoyed New Light, an album of Chris’ own compositions.  It’s a gentle work, with Chris’ voice generating the mood but he’s brought in some fine musicians to help him and support the sound without ever distracting from the main performance.

The album releases on 7th March but is available to pre-order now on Bandcamp as a download, CD or vinyl.  There’s an accompanying nationwide tour throughout March and into April.  All details can be found on the website.

Tony Birch

Artist’s website: https://chrisbrainmusic.com/

‘Two Lights’ – official video:

We all give our spare time to run folking.com. Our aim has always been to keep folking a free service for our visitors, artists, PR agencies and tour promoters. If you wish help out and donate something (running costs currently funded by Paul Miles), please click the PayPal link below to send us a small one off payment or a monthly contribution.