​Las is the name of the new project of piper Ross Ainslie.  Unfortunately their debut is boring from start to end. But, if you love the sound of Scottish bagpipes, don’t hesitate!

​Beautiful folksongs in a mediaevel minimalistic canvas: subtle and refined sung.

Another Brit folk compilation? Well yes, but these three discs sample the famous Folk Heritage label which took great care of recording dozens of folk artists who ‘did’ the folk club circuit in the North East of England in the late sixties and the seventies. With not one hit or a famous name in sight, this is a splendid collection that delivers what it promises: to preserve the heritage of British folk music.  Most records were pressed in limited quantities and, therefore, nigh impossible to find. A good enough reason to release this box!
‘Heritage’ means no game changers, no avant-garde, no re-writing of the manual. Quite some artists here simply copy the age-old tradition, fiddles and all. Others have a go at the new folk movement (The Young Folk), some have listened to pop (Music Box, Saraband), a few are clearly singer-songwriters with potential (Porter Cunningham, Blue Horizon). Why, there is even a protest song again protesters! If you won’t discover anything ground-breaking, it must also be said that there are no fillers here. On the contrary, this compilation features many a good voice, such as Christine Hennesy’s raw chords.
Moreover, the recording quality is just great. I enjoyed listening to this and selected choice tracks for my shows on radio 68, to be heard on Wednesday 31 August.
Cherry Red has done another good job. A nice booklet allows you to discover all these beautiful people!

​Brooklyn based folkband Barry Oreck brings the roots spirit with contemporary songs, softly framed with rhythm guitar, mandolin and weeping violin.

​Great intriguing debut from the Dutch female artist Caspar Milquetoast, experimental psychedelic folk with a story.  Common in the seventies,  exceptional in the 21st century.
Love it!

​Armed with only his voice, an acoustic guitar and a harp is the release ‘Oh Suzana Blues’  a deep and intimate blues experience. And after all this misery, he also continues to glorify his faith in 'No God But God'. Together with his honest acoustic guitar playing, David Owen tells his life story. Respect! 

​Instrumental album with flemish melodies of the eighteenth century, with subtility upgraded to our modern times.

​Modern folk with contemporary influences creates an energetic sound. Not to be missed!

Texas Hall Of Fame musician Stehpen Doster made a fantastic acoustic album with his fingerpicking guitar.  Worth discovering!

Wonderful nine dance songs inspired by tradition.  It really invites you to dance (till you drop dead-don’t!).  Very enjoyable!

Sixteenth album of Texan singer-songwriter George Enslé.  Once more he puts the finger on the wound.  Don’t look away of life and try to improve your social self.

Scandinavian look on celtic folk from Ireland over the Shetlands, cross Wales to England.  The Celtic Duo investigated history and searched for the unknown masterpieces. Great!

Traditional folk tunes beautifully uplifted with jazzy improvisations. Experimental? Yes, in a certain way, but very accessible.

Every song tells another story, beautiful interpreted by the committed Roos Meijer.  Dreamy, psychedelic folk with a clear message.

An interesting mix of new European and American folk tunes, that musically refers to the 60’-70’s.  Confusing in a certain way, but with great skills performed. Very enjoyable debut.

​Instrumental contemporary compositions based on traditional European folk structures.  

​Stundom= Sometimes it works between musicians.  In the case of the Danish trio Stundom it upgrades their repertoire.

​As usual Astral Swans offers a few unique psychedelic songs: mindfucking experimental but also beautiful harmonic with the female contributions.

Paul Kaplan is a real troubadour: amusing and entertaining.  Try to discover his back catalogue. You will be pleasantly surprised.

​A Murder In Mississippi, a six-piece crazy musical gang from Ghent. With a shared passion and many different musical influences, they present a wide range of contemporary timbres. Country, folk, Americana and Irish tinged tunes wrap A Murder In Mississippi with a lick of blues. The flawless vocals and dynamic instrumentation let us float away in that retro-symphonic folk sound palette. 'Hurricana' is a wonderful album..!

​Mother Nature inspired this talented young man to compose the course of a day on guitar while running through the wood and fields.  Peace in mind and soul!

​So now there is 'The Blues Never End', Elly Wininger’s fifth studio album. In thirteen tracks Elly takes us into her own blues and folk world. Contemporary fingerpicking, which is delicately interwoven with ragtime, old timey, jazz and country. There's even cajun with (I wanna Be Like) 'Rosie', a fitting tribute to famed Zydeco artist Rosie Ledet. Most of the songs are covers she borrowed from legends like Rosetta Tharpe, Skip James, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Lonnie Johnson, Leadbelly, Blind Willie Johnson and Geeshie Wiley. In the song 'Black Snake Moan' has Elly accompanied by a four-piece Dixieland horn section. And that only promotes the diversity of her intended Delta Blues style. Great..!

​Unusual collaboration between two musical giants, also a combination of two different cultures. Mesmerising is the least you can say.

​Beautiful interesting stories from a real Scottish singer-songwriter, who also plays American countryfolk.  Ultimate time to discover!

​On the release 'Double High Five', Josephine Johnson shines in all her simplicity. Unique in her oeuvre are the original folk, blues and rock compositions. And they like to be submerged with the earthy atmospheres of multi-instrumentalist Andrew Sovine, drummer Rob Heeth and those tight percussion and keyboard arrangements of Mike Kapitan. Many songs swirl around themes such as fateful relationships, but fortunately never wallow in self-pity. Highly recommended release...!