The folking.com music archive for album reviews and news

This is a list of everything we have on folking.com in date and month order. So if you like trawling the depths of the site for amazing content that you may have missed then this is the place to “net” an article, feature or review or two.

The archive is a work in progress as we still have gaps to fill from 2009 back to 2001. Most of the missing content are older album reviews which require reformatting with each article having to be submitted back on to the site with album covers and links to where they can be obtained from (where available).

Mull Historical Society is back with a brand new album

Released by the Xtra MIle Recordings label on 21 July,  In My Mind There's A Room, the first new material from Colin MacIntyre (aka Mull ...
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JO MILLER – A’ The Way To Galloway (own label JOM1CD)

I’m always impressed by the number of Scottish singers and musicians who quietly preface their name with Dr. and these are not honorary degrees but ...
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SINGLES BAR 90 – A round-up of recent EPs and singles

One half of the wonderfully named Canadian duo The Goddamsels, MALLORY CHIPMAN steps out solo for As Though I Had Wings (Tunnel Mountain), an EP ...
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Shrewsbury Folk Festival adds even more names

Shrewsbury Folk Festival has announced the latest wave of artists for this year’s festival including Joachim Cooder, the first lady of Celtic music Moya Brennan and the first ...
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Cambridge Folk Festival unveils The Den line-up

Cambridge Folk Festival has a long-standing reputation for providing a platform for up-and-coming new artists and nurturing promising young talent. This commitment continues in 2023 ...
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THE HACKLES – What A Beautiful Thing I Have Made (Jealous Butcher Records JB 223)

Trajectory - the Collins dictionary defines this as “The trajectory of a moving object is the path that it follows as it moves.”  It’s often ...
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TÍR NA NÓG – Love Lost (MIG Music MIG02942 CD)

Older readers will remember Sonny Condell and Leo O’Kelly, otherwise Tír na nÓg. For the young folk, Tír na nÓg formed in Dublin in 1969 ...
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Hazel Askew and John Dipper join Historically Informed Summer School (HISS)

HISS (Historically Informed Summer School) explores the Common Ground between early, traditional and folk music. We are delighted for Hazel Askew to join us for ...
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CAMUS – Out On The Spree (Old Windmill Records – OWR001)

Out On The Spree is the first full album Camus have released in several years, and only the fourth since the band was formed in ...
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FolkEast stages ‘The Sartin Singaround’

FolkEast will pay tribute to one of folk’s favourite performers this August in Saturday night’s ‘The Sartin Singaround’. Paul Sartin, oboe and fiddle player with ...
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MAGGIE HOLLAND – The Dust Of Rage (Irregular Records IRR126)

When I first moved to this area I set out to find the local folk scene, which was not as easy then as it is ...
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ADY SHAW – Light & Dark (Piper Moon Records)

Ady Shaw may not be a familiar name to many. He made his musical debut more than half a century ago and has been making ...
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BRUCE COCKBURN – O Sun O Moon (True North Records)

Bruce Cockburn once sang, “The trouble with normal is it always gets worse”.  But that’s simply not true for his new album, O Sun O ...
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BROOMDASHER – Ingrave Epiphany (Clean Sweep CS0122)

Following on from their Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady project and released to coincide with their From Pub To Pulpit tour with Coracle and ...
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The Langan Band announce a new album and tour dates

The revered Scottish folk trio's first record in a decade, Plight o’ Sheep, is now releasing May 12, one week later than previously announced. The ...
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DROPKICK MURPHYS – Okemah Rising (Dummy Luck DLM003LP)

Following on from This Machine Still Kills Fascists, Okemah Rising, the second collection of songs recorded in Tulsa featuring unpublished lyrics by Woody Guthrie they’ve ...
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TERRY EMM – Wish You Were Here (Azez Records/Shellshock)

Terry Emm’s Wish You Were Here is a return, after a seven-year hiatus, with an introspective, melodically addictive, and really nice folk album. Now, perhaps, ...
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Rachel Hair and Ron Jappy announce new album

Two of Scotland’s most in-demand traditional musicians Rachel Hair and Ron Jappy have joined forces once again for their second duo album Élan, set for ...
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Bruce Cockburn announces new studio album

“Time takes its toll, but in my soul I’m on a roll”, Bruce Cockburn sings on his latest studio album, O Sun O Moon. Smart ...
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HANNAH ROSE PLATT – Deathbed Confessions (Xtra Mile Recording)

Hannah Rose Platt’s music extolls the peculiar enjoyment of buttered popcorn and a hammer horror film marathon. Her new album, Deathbed Confessions, which comes all ...
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ELLI DE MON – Pagan Blues (Area Pirata Records AP096)

Musician and songwriter Elli de Mon presented Pagan Blues in late April, two years after capturing the attention of audiences throughout Europe and beyond with ...
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Foy Vance announces celebratory tour

Foy Vance has today announced a very special tour of UK & Ireland this December to celebrate 10 years of his award-winning 2013 album Joy ...
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GREG ISTOCK – Mr Greg Mr Jones (Blue Gate Records)

Greg Istock releases Mr Greg Mr Jones on May 3rd. Istock has a pedigree to match the best: band leader, singer, songwriter (all the tracks ...
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UNA MONAGHAN – Aonaracht (own label UMM002CD)

Aonaracht is an album that will divide opinion. The strapline on the sleeve – ‘a collection for traditional musicians and computer’ – is probably enough ...
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New funding for Scottish creatives

A total of £111,000 has been made available to support artists and organisations to deliver creative work. Creative Scotland has confirmed its continuation of funding ...
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Michelle Willis talks to folking.com

Singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Michelle Willis has established herself as one of the most effective utility players on the modern scene, having toured and recorded ...
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KRIS DREVER – The Best Of Kris Drever (Reveal Records)

The Best of Kris Drever is a collection of the Scottish singer-songwriter’s “Love of our land’s sacred rights”, as indeed, these songs sing with the ...
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JON WILKS – Before I Knew What Had Begun I Had Already Lost (own label)       

His fourth solo album sees Jon Wilks step away from the Birmingham-derived songs that were the mainstays of his last two releases and embrace those ...
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CAESAR SPENCER – Get Out Into Yourself (New Radio Records)

Caesar Spencer’s Get Out Into Yourself is an album whose press release says, “with a loose narrative that follows a protagonist journeying through different cultural ...
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OPEN ROAD – Skylark (Delfina Records DR428-OR01)

A duo comprising San Francisco native Lucia Comnes, now based in Italy, and West Coast songwriter John Palmer, Skylark is their debut release and brings ...
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SIMON MAYOR – Carolan (Acoustics CDACS 082)

Simon Mayor’s Carolan album was due for release on March 10 2023, but somehow or other the link found its way into my spam folder, ...
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SINGLES BAR 89 – A round-up of recent EPs and singles

The daughter of Peter Lewis, founding member of 60s psych-folk icons Moby Grape (and who features on Stratocaster), and granddaughter of Oscar-winning actress Loretta Young, ...
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NOW VOYAGERS – The Best Of All Possible Worlds (own label)

Music can work on so many different levels and The Best Of All Possible Worlds, a concept album by Bath based musician Now Voyagers (Kim ...
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Fanny Lumsden announces new album and UK tour dates

Award-winning Australian artist, Fanny Lumsden, has today announced the release of her much anticipated fourth studio album, Hey Dawn, out August 4th. The album follows ...
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LEVERET – Forms (LEVCD06)

Leveret – namely folk virtuoso fiddle player extraordinaire Sam Sweeney, concertina maestro Rob Harbron and magic melodeon player Andy Cutting are celebrating 10 years together ...
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DEL BARBER – Almanac (Acronym)

Eight albums in, the latest from the Canadian singer-songwriter takes its title from the idea of a guide to where you should be heading and ...
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Gate To Southwell Festival goes global

This summer’s 16th Gate To Southwell Festival (June 29-July 2) looks certain to be the Midlands’ most international, entertaining and musically diverse event yet, with Sunday’s ...
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ÍMAR – Awakening (BMANN005)

As often happens in folk music familiar faces will turn up in different combinations and that's the case with Glasgow based Ímar. Ryan Murphy (Mànran), ...
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MATTHEWS SOUTHERN COMFORT – The Woodstock Album: 15 Songs of Peace, Love and Understanding  (Must Have Records MHCD 114)

It’s 23 years since Iain Matthews topped the charts with his cover of Joni Mitchell’s ‘Woodstock’ and he returns to the iconic festival now with ...
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GNOSS – Stretching Skyward (BFLY05CD)

Gnoss are a Scottish quartet, nominated three time for the Scot Trad Awards, who have their own distinct view of what traditional folk music is ...
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JOE HENRY – All The Eye Can See (Earmusic)

Joe Henry, with his new album All The Eye Can See, continues to write brand new sonic and quite secular scripture verse. And, with this ...
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Simon Mayor announces album of the music of Turlough O’Carolan

Simon Mayor can tell the story better than anyone. I remember well the first time I heard the music of the Irish harper and composer ...
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Calan win award – but that’s not the real story

An acclaimed Cwmbran guitarist who was last year told by doctors he would never play again after shattering his arm in a mountain bike accident ...
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THE MADELEINE STEWART TRIO – The Madeleine Stewart Trio (own label MSTCD01)

There are some very talented alumni from the traditional music course at The Royal Scottish Conservatoire currently active in the thriving Glasgow folk scene. It’s ...
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Ímar announce new album and tour dates

Almost exactly five years ago Celtic supergroup Ímar had the night of their lives. At the 2018 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in Belfast the ...
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Cambridge Folk Festival revamps Club Tent

CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES BRAND NEW LOOK STAGE 3, THE FORMER CLUB TENT, PROVIDING A SHOWCASE PLATFORM FOR RISING ARTISTS FROM THE UK & IRELAND ...
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LUCY FARRELL – We Are Only Sound (Hudson)

Born in Kent and now based in Canada, Farrell is probably better known for her contributions to the work of others, both live and in ...
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EWAN MACINTYRE – Twenty First Century Fool (Broken Car Recordz BCR-005)

Twenty First Century Fool is the fourth solo album by Ewan Macintyre since his departure from Southern Tenant Folk Union, recorded in Montreal with a ...
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DAVID HOWLEY – For Venus (own label)

Born in Ireland and the founder member of We Banjo 3, Howley is a prodigious exponent of Irish folk and has performed alongside such diverse ...
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Pedair announce their debut album

Five years on from their first gig Pedair and Sain are proud to be able to share their first album, Mae ’na Olau – an ...
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ALICE HOWE – Circumstance (KnowHowe KH0003)

Born in Massachusetts, Howe already has two impressive releases to her name but Circumstance, with its cocktail of southern rock, country, folk, classic soul and ...
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BEAU – Kingdom Of The Blind (Cherry Red BEAUKOTB1)

I’ve said it before and will inevitably say it again, Beau is a refreshing throwback to the 60s when political and social satire was afforded ...
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GEORGE SANSOME & MATT QUINN – Sheffield Park (Grimdon Records GRICD007)

It seems that English folkies are taking a leaf out of their Scottish counterparts’ book by swapping musical partners like a barn dance’s introductory mixer ...
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TRAPPER SCHOEPP – Siren Songs (Grand Phony)

Trapper Schoepp releases Siren Songs on April 21st. Schoepp said of it, “What’s most important to me is to be a link in the chain ...
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YOUNG MARTYRS – Time Is Not On Our Side (own label)

Flying the Bristol flag for UK Americana, comprising frontman Tom Corneill, lead guitarist Simon Whitehead with Lee Cole and Rich Beeby providing the rhythm section, ...
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Le Vent Du Nord announce May tour dates

The award-winning and highly acclaimed Le Vent du Nord is a leading force in Québec’s progressive francophone folk movement.  The group’s vast repertoire draws from ...
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JAMES KERRY – Source (own label JK2022CD)

In the ordinary way of things I’m not a great fan of the melodeon. It’s fine for dancing where it can maintain a steady rhythm ...
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ANGUS McOG – Cirrus (Gare Du Nord Records)

With his new album, Cirrus, Angus McOg (aka Italian folk singer Antonio Tavoni) paints with a brush stroke melodic beauty that could, perhaps, soundtrack the ...
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Lindisfarne release live at the BBC set

One of the UK’s most successful folk-rock bands of the 70s live at the BBC, with more than eight hours of recordings, over half of ...
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GERAINT WATKINS – Aide-memoire (Last Music Co LMCD233)

A name that will be very familiar to anyone who peruses album credits, Watkins has played piano, accordion and guitar for a wealth of famous ...
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PHIL HOOLEY – Provenance (own label)

Frontman with Yorkshire alt-country outfit The Woolgatherers, Provenance is Hooley’s second solo outing, the material varying between recent and dusted off older numbers, joined here ...
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DAN WHITEHOUSE – Reflections On The Glass Age (own label WTK005)

Following his ground-breaking album, Dan Whitehouse is now going on the road with Reflections On The Glass Age, a stripped down acoustic version of The ...
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CARTER SAMPSON – Gold (Horton)

Joined by frequent collaborator, Kyle Reid who contributes pedal steel, guitar and synths among other instruments, Oklahoma-songbird Sampson again taps into her heartland country roots ...
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O’HOOLEY & TIDOW – Cloudheads (No Masters NMCD57)

The past few years have been eventful ones for Belinda O’Hooley and Heidi Tidow with the ballyhoo surrounding Gentleman Jack and then the arrival of ...
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UNCLE BARD & THE DIRTY BASTARDS – These Are The Days (Live) (SFMCD565)

You heard the new album by Uncle Bard &  The Dirty Bastards? Who!!!? Uncle Bard & The Dirty Bastards – it’s a belter. Punk Music, ...
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The Unthanks’ all-dayers in September

Whether it’s The Sage Gateshead on the Saturday 9th September or The Barbican London on Sunday 10th, there are just two chances to experience a ...
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The Official Charts Company reveal the top-selling folk albums for March 2023

On Tuesday 4 April the Official Charts Company in partnership with English Folk Expo reveal the Top 40 best-selling and most streamed folk albums released ...
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Merry Hell announce double-CD retrospective and more tour dates

After twelve years, six albums and hundreds of gigs, Merry Hell have taken a little time to look back on all that has passed. The ...
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Jon Wilks announces new album and tour dates

With his fourth solo album, Before I Knew What Had Begun I Had Already Lost, Jon Wilks takes a step away from the Birmingham songs ...
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George Sansome and Matt Quinn announce debut duo album

In an exciting new duo collaboration between two leading lights of their generation of traditional singers, George Sansome and Matt Quinn have come together to ...
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Norfolk & Norwich Festival – highlights

In May Norfolk & Norwich Festival will take place across the county with a world-class programme spanning music, theatre, literature, visual arts, circus, dance and free ...
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NATALIE MACMASTER & DONNELL LEAHY – Canvas (Linus Entertainment 270787)

Two of the world's top Celtic fiddle players and known as Canada’s reigning stars of Celtic music– husband and wife team Donnell Leahy and Natalie ...
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FolkEast announces its 2023 line-up

After celebrating its milestone 10th anniversary in style last year, FolkEast will kick off its next decade with a brilliantly cosmopolitan line-up this August. England’s ...
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Wimborne Minster Folk Festival 2023

Wimborne Minster Folk Festival is back for 2023. This ever popular festival fills the streets of Wimborne with colour, music and dance from the 9th to the ...
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HACK-POETS GUILD – Blackletter Garland (Oli Records TPLP1690CD)

Once in while a record comes along and leaves you speechless which is how I was when I first played Blackletter Garland. Let’s start with ...
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Shrewsbury Folk Festival announces more names

Shrewsbury Folk Festival has released its latest wave of artists for 2023 with a DJ set from The Dhol Foundation and debut visits from Scottish indie folk ...
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Andy White & Tim Finn announce new album

Available today on Floating World Records, AT is the new album from celebrated songwriters Andy White and Tim Finn, a continuation of their ALT project ...
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ROBBIE CUMMING – Choons Vol 1 & 2 (KWSBCM19CD)

Robbie Cumming. You might not instantly recognise the name, particularly in the context of music. However, even for someone watching as little TV as I ...
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Moseley Folk And Arts Festival announce more names

Moseley Folk And Arts Festival (Friday 1 to Sunday 3 September 2023) has added even more artists to this year's line-up.  With ticket sales already ...
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SARAH–JANE SUMMERS & JUHANI SILVOLA – Sølvstrøk (Heilo HCD7384)

Sølvstrøk (Silverstroke) is an ambitious album. Sarah-Jane Summers and Juhani Silvola are already a widely acclaimed duo, but Sarah-Jane has long dreamed of ‘super sizing’ ...
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THE YOUNG’UNS – Tiny Notes (Hudson Records HUD036CD)

It has been mentioned that The Young’Uns are outgrowing their name. After all, it’s twenty years since they discovered folk music in the back room ...
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Cowboy Junkies announce new album

Cowboy Junkies will release Such Ferocious Beauty on June 2 2023 via Cooking Vinyl.  This is the band’s first release of new material in five ...
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THE CURSE OF K K HAMMOND – Death Roll Blues (KKHCD001)

I like it when an album title tells you exactly what you're going to get. With a title like Death Roll Blues you know that ...
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Gretchen Peters announces farewell UK tour

Legendary singer, songwriter and performer Gretchen Peters has announced what will be her final ever tour of the UK. Over 25 years since she first ...
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MELISSA RUTH – Bones (no label details)

Replete with Americana tinged instrumentation and lyrics coloured by vast historical context, singer, songwriter, and music educator Melissa Ruth’s latest effort, Bones, take listeners on an ...
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O’Hooley & Tidow announce new album and tour dates

Much loved Yorkshire folk duo Belinda O’Hooley and Heidi Tidow have been propelled into newfound fame for penning the theme tune to Sally Wainwright’s hit ...
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RACHEL BAIMAN – Common Nation Of Sorrow (Signature Sounds SIG-CD-2144)

As the title would suggest, coloured by her bluegrass roots, Baiman’s third album, Common Nation Of Sorrow, is often rooted in a commentary on contemporary ...
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SINGLES BAR 88 – A round-up of recent EPs and singles

From Ireland but based in Brittany, CALLUM HOUSTON describes himself as a neo/alternative folk singer-songwriter, Pub Poetry being his second self-released EP, he on acoustic guitar, ...
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Adam Beattie announces live album

Acclaimed Scottish singer-songwriter Adam Beattie, known for his ‘uplifting reveries of love’ (MOJO Magazine) releases his stunning brand new live album, Live At The Old ...
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John Doyle Folk Guitar Retreat May 2023

Legendary folk guitarist John Doyle is hosting a series of workshops, masterclasses, group jams and evening sessions in his first ever UK Residential Retreat with ...
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REG MEUROSS – Stolen From God (Hatsongs Records HAT025)

Stolen From God is an album that a lot of us have been looking forward to for a long while. Reg Meuross has taken up ...
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Kris Drever – new single, Best Of album and tour

One of Scotland’s finest and most acclaimed songwriters Kris Drever shares his new single ‘Catterline’ on March 28th and announces a new album ‘The Best ...
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CRUEL FOLK – Far To Fall (Cruelfolk002)

There is an England old and merry, sunny and glorious where Englande and olde have an ‘e’ on the end of them, where merrie has ...
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Findlay Napier – crowdfunder for new album, Outsider, is now open

Outsider is a multi-media extravaganza of new album from Findlay Napier exploring outsiders in love and outsiders in life. A few months ago I had ...
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MICHAEL JOHNATHON – Garden Of Silence (PoetMan Records PMR70034)

Incredibly prolific, Johnathon has released a previous twenty-one albums, with one a year since 2012, published five books, a play, composed an opera, regularly performs ...
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MULL HISTORICAL SOCIETY – Archaeology: Complete Recordings 2000-2004 (Demon Records)

Mull Historical Society’s four-disc Archaeology: Complete Recordings 2000—2004 proves that while “Daddy takes the T-bird away” every once in a while, there’s still quite a ...
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Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola announce their chamber orchestra album

Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola have created their own chamber orchestra Sølvstrøk (Silverstroke), consisting of a dream team of Norwegian folk & classical musicians, with ...
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Edinburgh Tradfest announces its 2023 line-up

This week Edinburgh Tradfest launched its 2023 programme of traditional live music, storytelling, dance, workshops, talks, ceilidhs, and special events taking place at various venues across ...
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THE BLUE HIGHWAYS – Out On The Line (own label)

The Blue Highways release Out On The Line on March 31st. One of the lines in ‘Nobody Lives Here Any More’ (below) is “Rules are ...
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Judy Collins joins Cambridge Folk Festival line-up

More incredible artists have been announced for this year’s Cambridge Folk Festival, including folk icon, US singer-songwriter Judy Collins in a very special performance with ...
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ANDREW GABBARD – Cedar City Sweetheart (Colemine Records)

Andrew Gabbard’s Cedar City Sweetheart proves there’s always room for yet another melodic pedal guitar infused Rodeo Sweetheart record that oozes Neil Young, The Buffalo ...
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Underneath The Stars Festival announces more names

A second wave of names have been announced for Yorkshire’s award winning boutique festival, Underneath The Stars Festival, which returns on Friday 4th to Sunday ...
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Ali Farka Touré: new posthumous album

Voyageur, the new album from the legendary African guitarist and singer Ali Farka Touré, is out now via World Circuit Records. It is the first ...
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ANDY HEDGES – Roll On, Cowboys (Andy Hedges)

Let me admit, I’m not exactly steeped in the cowboy songs idiom, though I certainly trawled through some collections by the Lomaxes et al. at ...
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MEGSON – What Are We Trying To Say? (EDJ Records EDJ033)

It’s four years since we last heard from Megson, which is too long but we all know what happened in the interim. What Are We ...
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DAVID HARLEY – So Sound You Sleep (ISBN 979-8377897699)

Apart from saying, “As you’ll see from his website, David Harley is a Shropshire lad, now living in Cornwall, who has played guitar since the ...
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JOY DUNLOP – Caoir (Sradag Music SRM008)

The phrase multi-talented is sometimes over-used, but I’ve no doubt that it applies to Joy Dunlop. An award winning Gaelic singer and step dancer, Joy ...
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KATHRYN ROBERTS & SEAN LAKEMAN – Almost A Sunset (Iscream Music ISCD20)

It has been five years since Kathryn and Sean’s last album of new music. There was a retrospective album of recorded back catalogue a couple ...
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OWEN MOORE – Songs From The Shamrock Bar (PJO Records)

Songs From The Shamrock Bar, subtitled A 10-Year Anthology, and timely available for St Patrick’s Day, this, as it says, gathers together around an hour’s ...
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COLIN MACDUFF – The Past And The Sky (own label)

Colin Macduff’s The Past And The Sky is home-spun like a Tweed River Scottish fisherman’s thatched fishing creel, filled with folk music with the rich ...
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Maverick Festival 30th June, 1st & 2nd July 2023

The Maverick Festival will once again take place in the glorious surroundings of Easton Farm Park, Suffolk set in thirty acres of rural heaven yet ...
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Lachlan Bryan And The Wildes tour UK this month with Alan Fletcher

Lachlan Bryan And The Wildes will make their way back to the UK in March and April with their great mate Alan Fletcher (yes, the ...
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RURA – Dusk Moon (RURACD005)

Rura release Dusk Moon, their fourth studio album, on March 17th. I’ve previously described Rura’s music as “engaging the spirit”, the notes that come with ...
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Dan Webster and Bella Gaffney to co-headline tour

Dan Webster & Bella Gaffney are stalwarts of the UK folk scene and this year they are coming together to do a co-headline tour of ...
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BEN & DOM – His Head Lies Heavy (La La La Records)

That’ll be Ben See and Dominic Stichbury, both London-based choir leaders, singers and songwriters, the latter the founder of Chaps Choir, a 20-strong project that ...
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BRIGID O’NEILL—The Truth & Other Stories (Goldrush Records)

Irish singer-songwriter Brigid O’ Neill, with her new album The Truth & Other Stories, lightly skips tossed stones like thoughtful opinions across the early evening ...
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KAREN JONAS – The Restless (own label)

Over the course of five albums, the Maryland-born singer has established herself as very much a country voice with old school leanings. This time round, ...
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SINGLES BAR 87 – A round-up of recent EPs and singles

Based in Edmonton, Alberta, LILY MONAGHAN self-releases Introspection, an EP of bluesy folk that draws on such diverse influences as Taylor Swift, Feist, Florence Welch ...
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Terry Emm announces new album

In December 2021, acclaimed singer-songwriter Terry Emm’s Facebook page flickered into life after a 7-year hiatus to announce some magnificent news. The Hertfordshire based artist’s ...
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BEN WALKER – Banish Air From Air (Folk Room Records FRR2301)

As with his 2019 solo debut, Echo, Walker has enlisted the help of an array of different vocalists to give voice to material that ranges ...
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FRANKIE ARCHER – Live at Aces & Eights, Tufnell Park, London – 19th February 2023

I first came across Frankie Archer at the Love Folk festival in Southport this year, playing a showcase session on the busk stage.  She came ...
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Amy Thatcher and Francesca Knowles announce debut album

Brand new accordion and percussion duo from Newcastle, Amy Thatcher and Francesca Knowles defy the preconceptions of what their instruments can do, breaking with tradition ...
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Levellers: new acoustic album and tour dates

Levellers release their new album Together All The Way on March 10th and head off on a full UK tour at the end of this month in ...
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THE WILDWOODS – Foxfield Saint John (own label)

The Wildwoods are a duo that is really a trio: husband and wife Noah and Chloe Gose from Lincoln, Nebraska are joined by bassist Andrew ...
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The Nest Collective announces the 2023 series of Singing With Nightingales

This spring The Nest Collective are delighted to be hosting over 35 events in the woods of Sussex and Gloucestershire. The Nest Collective are all ...
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Bristol Folk Festival announces headline names

Bristol Folk Festival returns with a stellar line-up of UK and world artists taking to stages across the city at the end of April for ...
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Graham Nash announces new solo album

Two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and founding member of both the Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash, Graham Nash returns with his ...
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IAN ROLAND – The Woodwide Web (Ditto)

You’ll be familiar with the world wide web, but research has shown that, beneath every forest and wood, there is a complex underground web of ...
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GILLEBRÌDE MacMILLAN – Sèimh (own label DEALAS003)

Gillebrìde MacMillan is a lecturer at Glasgow University specialising in the Gaelic language. He’s also a singer, a songwriter and a composer known for film ...
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THE QUIGGS – Threads (Lowland Recordings LOWLAND 022)

The Quiggs are a Scottish folk duo: Stephen Quigg is a former member of The McCalmans who reversed the accepted tradition by bringing back his ...
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Westward The Light announce new album

Flow Country is the latest album from celebrated trad group Westward The Light, set for release on Friday 31st March 2023. Named after the region ...
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THE IAN WALKER BAND – We Come To Sing (Vangel Recordings VANCD16)

There’s something engagingly old-school about the Ian Walker Band’s album We Come To Sing, released on the 16th January 2023. Perhaps that’s not surprising, since ...
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Moseley Folk And Arts Festival add The Saw Doctors to this year’s bill

Irish legends The Saw Doctors are the latest big-name addition to Birmingham's Moseley Folk and Arts Festival (Friday 1 to Sunday 3 September 2023). Starting out playing in Galway ...
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Alan Surtees Trust opens 2023 funding for young folk performers aged 16-30

Folk musicians, dancers, singers or performers from all cultures are being invited to apply for grants of up to £2,000 to help develop their careers ...
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GRAHAM MACKENZIE – The Dawning (Blue Door Music)

As the gentle notes of Jim Molyneaux’s piano and Innes Watson’s almost funky acoustic guitar open the album you feel that The Dawning may be ...
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UNTHANK: SMITH – Nowhere And Everywhere (Billingham Records)

On paper the notion of Paul Smith, guitarist frontman with alt-rock outfit Maximo Park and harmonium player and cellist Rachel Unthank making an album together ...
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WILL POUND AND JENN BUTTERWORTH – Volume 1 – (LuluBug Records)

As Winter drags on, while the cost of living crises bites deeper and the news seems to be continually tragic, suggestions for anything that might ...
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Moonrakers announce 2023 tour dates

Greetings. Just emerging from hibernation, still in winter woollies, but lots of news to share with you. It's been a busy time recording the new album at ...
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KIRSTEN ADAMSON – Landing Place (own label)

With Dave Burns having recently released a solo EP now Adamson, the other half of The Marriage, delivers her second solo album, Landing Place, produced ...
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Bob Fox announces spring gigs

Here's a message from Bob Fox about his goings-on this spring. Hello!! After a good few weeks off and a couple of sunshine holidays I'm ...
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Frankie Archer plays Eights & Aces

On Sunday 19th February highly regarded emerging folk artist Frankie Archer is performing at the intimate basement venue in Aces & Eights, Tufnell Park, North ...
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ALAN FLETCHER – The Point (Ubersavvy Music)

Jason Donovan, Kylie Minogue and Natalia Imbruglia are the biggest stars, but astonishingly Australian soap Neighbours also launched the music careers of many other actors, ...
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The Official Folk Album Chart for January 2023

On Tuesday 7 February the Official Charts Company in partnership with English Folk Expo revealed the Top 40 best-selling and most streamed folk albums released ...
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Underneath The Stars announces first names for 2023 festival

The first names have been revealed for Yorkshire’s award winning boutique festival, Underneath The Stars festival, which returns on the new dates of Friday 4th ...
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Glasgow gets major new festival with launch of The Reeling

The prayers of Glasgow audiences with an appetite for Scottish music have been answered, with the launch of a major new summertime festival in the ...
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DAN WALSH – O’Neill’s Tunes (Rooksmere RRCD120)

Dan Walsh tells the story himself: how he fell in love with Irish music and wanted to learn the banjo. He acquired a 5-string banjo ...
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MARY ELIZABETH REMINGTON – In Embudo (Loose Music)

Mary Elizabeth Remington’s In Embudo evokes Walt Whitman’s Song Of Myself. This is music of the earth where “every atom belonging to me as good ...
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Beans On Toast is Back Out On The Road soon

Since 2005, Beans On Toast has written simple songs about complicated subjects. Tackling the big issues of the day but doing so with his feet ...
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SAVOURNA STEVENSON & STEVE KETTLEY – Wine Of Life (Cooking Vinyl COOKCD870)

There are any number of instrumental duos around at the moment, particularly in Scotland where musical alliances are swapped as easily as dance partners at ...
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RUTH ANGELL – Hlywing (Talking Elephant TECD484)

Ruth Angell is a multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter who has performed with people such as Ashley Hutchings and Rufus Wainwright.  Not before time she's released ...
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EMILY MAGUIRE – A Light To Follow (Shaktu Records, SHK)

For her seventh studio album, A Light To Follow, Emily Maguire shimmers brightly in the strong Australian sun. As she advocates, “go and seek out ...
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Cambridge Folk Festival announces first names for 2023

Cambridge Folk Festival is delighted to announce the first names in a broad and diverse programme for 2023. Taking place from July 27-30 in the ...
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SINGLES BAR 86 – A round-up of recent EPs and singles

TIMOTHY JOHNSTON is a PhD student with a remarkable group of folk friends including Fay Hield, Patrick Rimes of Calan, Rob Harbron and Shirley Smart ...
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NOLEN SELLWOOD – Otherwise (New Folk Records)

A Minneapolis teenager inspired to get into folk after listening to Nick Drake’s Pink Moon, Sellwood’s debut, Otherwise, opens with ‘This Time’, simply strummed acoustic ...
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The Wildwoods announce their new album

Folk trio, The Wildwoods, are set to release their newest album, Foxfield Saint John, on February 17th, 2023. The nine-track album is a collection of ...
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PAUL COWLEY – Stroll Out West (Lou B Music LBM007 2023)

It’s been a while since I heard a Paul Cowley album, so it was a real pleasure to receive a copy of Stroll Out West, ...
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HARBOTTLE & JONAS – Saving The Good Stuff Vol 1 (Brook View Records BVR003)

In 2019, the Devon duo took to live streaming, performing, under a title inspired by a Richard Thompson song, a series of covers, one a ...
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INGER NORDVIK – Hibernation (own label)

Inger Nordvik is a classically trained musician who, like so many others, isn't tied to just what she was taught. Whilst studying classical singing at ...
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New trio Hack-Poets Guild announce their debut album

On March 10th One Little Independent are proud to release the high-concept debut album from the brand-new collaboration between three of UK folk’s most unique ...
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Highland trio Assynt announce their second album

Where From Here is the dynamic second album from award-winning traditional trio Assynt, due for release on Friday 24 February. This exciting new record not ...
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Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman announce spring release of their new album

It has been five years since the last offering from the popular husband and wife duo Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman and their latest album ...
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THE WOOLVERSTONES – Grey Eyed Dandy (Available to stream through Bandcamp)

Woolverstone is a village on Suffolk’s Shotley Peninsula. It’s a small place, but I was able to find out about it – it’s various listed ...
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JOHN BLEK – Until The Rivers Run Dry (We Are Rats Recordings)

John Blek’s Until The Rivers Run Dry is a lovely folk album with deep melodies and emotive strings that conjure the late 60’s baroque beauty ...
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VIDEO WALL 25

Welcome to 2023. We've collected quite a few videos during the cold months (not that it's any warmer now) so this seems to be a ...
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Shrewsbury Folk Festival announces first tranche of artists

Singer songwriter Billy Bragg has topped the bill in the first wave of artists announced for this year’s Shrewsbury Folk Festival. Oysterband, Breabach, Jiggy, Spiers & Boden, Talisk, Daphne’s Flight, kora master N’Faly ...
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Harbottle & Jonas have been Saving The Good Stuff for a while

 Saving The Good Stuff Vol.1 is the ninth offering from the hardworking Harbottle & Jonas, with each release they continue to build and cement their ...
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Dan Walsh announces his dream album of O’Neill tunes

When looking back to when you were a teenager a smile often comes to the face thinking about what you dreamed of achieving. Maybe a ...
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Humbletown announce their debut album

If you dig banjo and like other indie folk bands like The Lowest Pair you will for sure appreciate Humbletown! They have super catchy songs ...
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From Pub To Pulpit concerts continue pilgrimages to cathedrals through 2023

Thousands of voices will raise roofs of Cathedrals and Churches around the country this year as a cappella group Broomdasher and multi-instrumental trio Coracle continue ...
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Sean Taylor Band announces new live album and tour dates

2023 will see the first ever Sean Taylor Band album release, a live album, featuring multi-instrumentalist Mike Seal on double bass and the Thompson Twins ...
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JOHN McCUSKER – The Best Of (Under One Sky UOSR010)

On January 20th Under One Sky Records release John McCusker – The Best Of to mark his 30 years in the music industry.  Alongside the ...
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ESBE – Blow The Wind Southerly (New Cat Music)

A London-based graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, Esbe follows in the footsteps of Katy Rose Bennett with Blow The Wind Southerly, a wholly ...
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ARCHIE CHURCHILL-MOSS – PH(R)ASE (Slow Worm Records SWR003)

PH(R)ASE might be Archie Churchill-Moss’s first solo album, but there is a good chance you’ll have heard him play before. After all, Archie is regarded ...
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Reg Meuross announces important new album

Award winning singer-songwriter Reg Meuross will release his 15th solo album on April 7th 2023. The groundbreaking project is the culmination of over four years ...
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Skerryvore: new album and tour dates

Skerryvore have reinvented and reignited Scottish roots music with a modern alt-pop flavour that has connected with an ever-expanding multicultural global audience. But as the pandemic broke, ...
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Eric Andersen – triple CD tribute album

Tribute To a Songpoet: Songs Of Eric Andersen was released digitally as a 41-track album via EARecords on January 9; and also as a 42-track, 3CD ...
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The Official Charts Company presents the Folk album chart for December 2022

On Tuesday 10 January the Official Charts Company in partnership with English Folk Expo revealed the Top 40 best-selling and most streamed UK folk albums ...
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Mull Historical Society announces re-issues of first albums

Mull Historical Society, the alias of Colin MacIntyre will be releasing a trilogy of colourful classic album reissues (Loss, Us and This Is Hope), plus ...
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JUNI HABEL – Carvings (Basin Rock)

A Waldorf – or Steiner - teacher as well as a singer-songwriter, Habel lives in rural Southern Norway, sharing an old school house with her ...
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Ben Walker announces his second solo album

It’s probably unusual to open a record with a passionate modern madrigal to the physics of gases. You wouldn’t expect to find the work of ...
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Copperplate Podcast 278

folking.com brings you the latest podcast from that aficionado of Irish music, the one and only Mr. Alan O’Leary with his regular monthly instalment of ...
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RACHEL WALKER & AARON JONES – Despite The Wind And Rain (ROSCD103)

Despite The Wind And Rain is the debut album, as a duo, for musician Aaron Jones and the Gaelic singer Rachel Walker. The album has ...
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SU-A LEE – Dialogues (Sky Child Records SCR001CD)

There are a number of cellists plying at least part of their trade in folk music. Some have their name on the front covers of ...
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MIKE VASS – Decemberwell Decade (UR007CD)

Musician, composer, producer - where do you start to describe the work of Mike Vass? How about the first line on his webpage, “Mike Vass ...
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MARK GWYNNE JONES – Voices From The Peak (Talking Elephant TECD473)

I wasn’t born in the Peak District but I was bought up there and lived there for the best part of twenty years so the ...
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RITZ & WESSON – Wisdom Of The Heart (Backstage Music)

Before you ask “who are Ritz & Wesson?” I’ll explain. Nigel Wesson was a resident at Bunjies Folk Cellar back in the day which is ...
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Folksongs Sung In Ulster – new edition with CD

A unique and ground-breaking collection of songs which focuses on the singers, their background and the place of the songs in Ulster history and society ...
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Sidmouth Folk Festival announces first names for 2023

The Sidmouth Folk Festival is preparing to burst into action for the 69th time in 2023, bringing an irresistible feast of world-class folk music, song ...
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FIRELIGHT TRIO – Firelight Trio (Proper EDFLT01)

There are so many new instrumental albums coming out these days that, if you want to stand out, you have to be different. There is ...
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KELLY BAYFIELD – Wave Machine (own label)

A glance at the cover of Kelly Bayfield’s new album, which is released next month, might suggest something pastoral and gentle. True, many of the ...
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NOËL DASHWOOD – Noël Dashwood (own label)

Noël Dashwood is, of course, one third of Alden Patterson and Dashwood, a trio that has been making waves in recent years. His first, eponymous, ...
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Archie Churchill-Moss announces debut solo album

Archie Churchill-Moss is one of Britain’s foremost squeezers; a 29-year-old diatonic button accordion player from Somerset who grew up immersed in English and French traditional ...
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ASH GRAY AND THE BURNERS – Live ’55 (LuvRock Records)

Sheffield’s Ash Gray And The Burners’ Live ’55, with its country-psych sound coloured with steel pedal’s “unlimited glissandi and deep vibrati (Thank you, Wikipedia!), will ...
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DAVID HARLEY – Introduction To Nashville Tuning For Guitar (Wheal Alice Music)

This book is great. I make the point at the start for a number of reasons To highlight that it’s a book not a CD ...
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John McCusker celebrates 30 years with a retrospective album

Acclaimed Scottish fiddle player, John McCusker, will celebrate three decades in the music industry by releasing John McCusker – The Best Of album on Friday ...
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SINGLES BAR 85 – A round-up of recent EPs, singles and Christmas cheer

Eve is a new digital EP released with Christmas and New Year in mind by DARIA KULESH. The opening track ‘Cossack Lullaby’ sounds very Christmassy ...
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CHRIS CLEVERLEY – Broadcast The Secret Verse (Opiate Records 003)

I’ve been an enthusiastic follower of Chris Cleverley’s music since his debut album back in 2015. Musically speaking, Chris isn’t a man who stands still ...
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PLU -Tri (Sbrigyn Ymborth SY034)

Plu’s new album was released earlier this year so I must first apologise for not getting around to it until now. Tri is the fourth ...
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NATIVE HARROW – Old Kind Of Magic (Loose Music)

Native Harrow’s new album, Old Kind Of Magic has the beautiful depth of a gossamer web, and it has the musical width of Emily Dickinson’s ...
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Cambridge Folk Festival 2023 tickets on sale now

Cambridge Folk Festival made a triumphant return in 2022, following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, cementing its place as “The jewel within the ...
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