Hope Sandoval - Blanchard

I have bought many albums multiple times, but the first Mazzy Star album I think holds the record. I wore out two or three copies on tape (one of only two tapes I had whilst living in Cork, the other was Violent Femmes), then on vinyl and probably twice on CD as well (not including my wife's copy). So I'm always interested to hear what's new in the seemingly slow-moving world of Hope. I liked, but couldn't grow to love, the Bavarian Fruit Bread album from a few years back - it lacked the 'Country Music as imagined by Tim Burton' that I came to love and obsess slightly about in Mazzy Star. This new song from a forthcoming album promises a return to those soft edged vocals and burbling telecaster.
Listen: Hope Sandoval - Blanchard

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The weather here has been hot and humid, I lay in bed with the duvet bunched up between me and my wife to act as a heat sump, we were too hot. The rain came at 3.15 this morning, we listened as my 3 year old son got up to watch the lightning out of his window for a bit in the semi-light and then went back to bed of his own accord. We drifted back to sleep worried about open windows, flash floods and our old cooker that is sat in the back garden. Last night our sleep was a little too salty.

I guess I'm going to have to get my 'Summer of Joni Mitchell' underway with some appropriate songs by current artists. Shannon Stephens' is from her new album, The Breadwinner, coming out on Sept 8th. The Blue Roses album is out July 21st.

Listen: Shannon Stephens - In the Summer Heat

Listen: Blue Roses - Doubtful Comforts

Shannon Stephens on MySpace
Blue Roses on MySpace

Fur and Steve - Travelers

A summer's Friday night is surely the time for a bit of dancing round the kitchen. So, let's have some big cowboy hats and guitars, yodeling and harmonies and, oh, some fiddle and trumpet to see us our way.


Fur and Steve make fantastic country-soaked folk songs about big highways, big heartbreak, the lure of home and the love of friends. It's impossible not to be charmed. Besides, how can you resist a woman called Fur?

Extra points for the trumpet on the album opener and first song posted here.

Listen: Fur Dixon and Steve Werner - Journey to Another Side

Listen: Fur Dixon and Steve Werner - Homesick for the Highway Blues

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Midnight shakes the memory

As a madman shakes a dead geranium.

I seem to have done a fair bit of dead geranium shaking recently (literally and figuratively) and my northern exploits have meant that I've seen a fair whack of midnight sun.

So, let's have some songs about the witching hour to celebrate the nights drawing in.

Listen: Porter Wagoner - Midnight (this is an absolute corker)

Listen: Rhonda Vincent - Midnight Angel

Listen: Buddy Holly - Midnight Shift (oddly, this seems a bit racy)

Listen: Julie London - 'Round Midnight

Buy some Porter, some Rhonda, some Buddy, or, oh yes, yes, some Julie.

Charlie Wadhams Darkness

A lovely weekend that's taken all of Monday to wear off. That's my son Noah, asleep on the train home from Central London after seeing the London Eye (too young to go on it yet), a lovely lunch and running across Waterloo Bridge.

To keep the soothing thoughts going here's a track from Charlie Wadhams' ep In a Goldmine, that you can download for free from his official website. You can also see the lovely video for the lead track Someone to Kiss.

Listen: Charlie Wadhams - Darkness

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Rain and Snow

Last weekend, when this country was having the flags proverbially cracked, I was up to my thighs in snow on top of a glacier. Funny how things go, isn't it?

Obviously this post is just an excuse for me to ramble on about Iceland and The Lonesome Sisters, possibly two of my favourite favourite things. I'd encourage you all to have a go at both.

If you've been hanging around here for a while, you'll know our love of this lot. It's where it all began and how we found our blog name. So, on the off chance that you haven't had the pleasure yet, then do give this a whirl for top-notch old-timey bluegrass harmonies.

Listen: The Lonesome Sisters - Rain and Snow

And whilst we're about it, here are some more snowy delights.

Listen: Emmylou Harris - Roses in the Snow

Listen: Hank Snow - Miller's Cave.

Please buy The Lonesome Sisters, splash out on some deluxe Emmylou or get your hands on some essential Hank Snow.

Gibson Brothers - Ring the Bell

Apologies for going a bit quiet lately, normaly I'd blame work, but the real reason is that I've been playing my new guitars a bit too much. I've got one of these and one of those. So that's it for a very, very long time. Anyway here's Noah's first non pre-school specific request for music in the car, he's got great taste already. This is the title track from their new album, that I'm very much looking forward to hearing.

Check the official website for some fantastic earlier album covers.

Listen - Gibson Brothers - Ring the Bell

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Alasdair Roberts - Spoils

I missed Alasdair Roberts at Homegame so was very pleased to see him in Leeds last night. Picture the scene - room above a pub, fantastic Victorian tiles all round, skinny bloke in directional jeans who looks like he could be in, oh, Maximo Park, gets up and starts singing, well, this. Astonishing.

It's not often that you get the words saturnine and sarcophagi in a song, clever bugger. Top marks all round.

Listen: Alasdair Roberts - So Bored Was I [Dark Triad]

And because every day's a school day, the Dark Triad is the group of personality types that are associated with 'bad boys' - narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy. It's always the quiet ones.

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James Blackshaw interview on Radio 4

God bless the BBC - an interview with James Blackshaw. Here on BBC - Today, think John Fahey meets Philip Glass.

Listen: James Blackshaw - Cross

Karine Polwart at Homegame

When your very favourite things are (1) being by the sea, (2) being with friends who just get it, (3) easy pints and (4) music, then Homegame is just about the perfect festival.

I'm just back from a euphoric few days up in Anstruther where I developed a bit of a crush on Karine Polwart. (And several other Fence-y types, if truth be told). But Karine's the one to post up here - a breath of folky beauty; clear, beautiful and with a huge generosity and warmth.

Listen: Karine Polwart - The Light on the Shore

Listen: Karine Polwart - Follow the Heron

Buy Faultlines or Scribbled In Chalk from Karine's website - more downloads there too.