Album, album!

[RedRockRick]

Ryley Walker: Primrose Green

Solid Air, Bryter Layter, Blue Afternoon, take your pick. In much the same way as Lost In The Dream last year, this already seems like album of the year.

Houndstooth: No News From Home

Arguably a step up from Ride Out The Dark, this confirms them on my list (clashes permitting) of must-sees, particularly since they do tend to let rip live.

Ex Hex: Rips

It's certainly not Sleater Kinney and it's not Wild Flag, but if you asked either of those along to play some crunchy pop at your birthday party, this, I think, is what you'd get. I've been playing it pretty loudly.

Matthew Ryan: Boxers

After a run of quiet albums, this is the overdue and excellent rocking number. The missing element from EOTR this year

[Blannyboy]

Got the Ryley Walker album a couple of weeks ago, there's a lot of comparisons to the British folk scene of the 60s and 70s - Nick Drake, Davey Graham, but probably most of all John Martyn. In fact my wife thought that I had bought a John Martyn album after hearing a couple of tracks.

Easily my record of the year so far, even above Sufjan Stevens latest album

[wolfamongwolves]

Really enjoying braids deep in the iris. Excellent album .

[killyourtv]

Maria Hackman - We Sleep at Last is the record I play repeatedly, and is more compelling than the acoustic live shows.

Confess the Ryley Walker impresses rather than moves me so far.

[ljsawyer]

My pick for album of the year so far is Jim O'Rourke's 'Simple Songs'. A bit of Todd Rundgren, a bit of Tindersticks-esque chamber pop, swirling guitar lines and some beautiful baroque instrumentation, all brought together in a very idiosyncratic way. Great stuff.

Also enjoying Mbongwana Star's 'From Kinshasa' with former members of Staff Benda Bilili, merging together Congolese rhythms and instrumentation with post-punk straight from the year 2500.

[gigs]

Ryley Walker is very good indeed...a lot of John Martyn certainly..

Sufjan is very understated, and it will be interesting to see how it comes over as a festival set.

East India Youth, Culture of Volume, has some terrific tracks as well.

[RedRockRick]

Two from the undercard:

Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear: Skeleton Crew

The only minus for this is that I understand they may have appeared on Later With Jools Holland, and that there's whistling going on on some tracks. Otherwise, possibly only the mother and son team from Kansas appearing this year, this probably a good reason for the familial telepathy on the guitar picking and vocalising. A large tick in the box on the Los Campesinos clashfinder (I think), and may it stay that way.

Try this and weep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ts2aARA1dwQ

Jane Weaver: The Silver Globe

The opening track of this worryingly brings back memories of a horrendous hangover from about 1975, when I put on X Dreams by Annette Peacock for the first time: it's that same relentlessly propulsive bassline from the opening track that pummels you into a corner of your bed and brings your breakfast up again. Aside from that, I have to say I really like this: thanks EOTR for the tip-off.

[RedRockRick]

Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free

Perhaps a surprising choice to fill in as the replacement Saturday night headliner following Sufjan Steven's unforeseen late withdrawal, but listening to this over and over seems to make the decision more than justified. Excellent though it was, this seems a step up from Southeastern, more weight, more depth, an all-round upgrade. It's almost (but not quite) enough to make me forgive him for marrying the lovely Amanda.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. Only kidding about Sufjan.

[Peridot]

 

P.S. Only kidding about Sufjan.

 

 

Pity ... you had my hopes up for a moment 

[gigs]

Heartbreak Pass by Giant Sand. A mighty fine offering.

[Berkspur]

Jason Isbell: Something More Than Free

Perhaps a surprising choice to fill in as the replacement Saturday night headliner following Sufjan Steven's unforeseen late withdrawal, but listening to this over and over seems to make the decision more than justified. Excellent though it was, this seems a step up from Southeastern, more weight, more depth, an all-round upgrade. It's almost (but not quite) enough to make me forgive him for marrying the lovely Amanda.

 

 Seen him twice (once supported by Amanda Shires) and he is just brilliant. Loved Southeastern and loving the new album. I read this (new here) and thought it was serious for a moment - doh! Seeing him in January though so looking forward to that.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LLk7TOcPELo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. Only kidding about Sufjan.

[RedRockRick]

Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker: Land of Plenty

Enjoyable if inessential footnote of instrumental duos. It'll do till the a new full band Ryley Walker album comes along. 

[paulwa]

Two excellent recent albums with folk, rock and country influences:

Israel Nash's Silver Season

Nadia Reid - Listen to Formation, Look for the Signs