John Surge and The Haymakers - Maybe You Don't Know Me EP

September 18, 2024 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Alt-Country, Americana, Country

To quote John Surge, “These five songs represent a real cross-section of the music we make”. John is referencing a new EP aptly titled, ‘Maybe You Don’t Know Me’. The ‘Almost Time’ album from last year was well received, but Surge still had a host of material that wasn’t quite right for that record but worked well in his live set. A live set that had gotten John noticed on the LA country scene in the first place. Surge re-connected with highly regarded Texas producer Tommy Detamore {Doug Sahm, Jim Lauderdale, Sunny Sweeney, Jesse Daniel} and reenlisted many of the ‘Almost Time’ crew including his right-hand Haymaker guitarist Randy Volin, plus Brennen Leigh on harmony vocals, Brad Fordham (Dave Alvin/Hayes Carll) on bass, Tom Lewis (Junior Brown/Raul Malo) on drums and Floyd Domino (Asleep at the Wheel, Merle Haggard) on keyboards.

Fred Abbott and The Wild Unknown - Shining Under The Soot (Album Review)

July 07, 2023 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Americana, Classic Rock, Country Rock, Singer-Songwriter

Fred Abbott may be better known to you as the guitarist from the much-loved and hard-to-pigeonhole band Noah & The Whale. A popular live draw, their refreshing, inventive approach to songwriting and record-making set them apart from the crowd but ultimately the band split in 2015, with four albums to their name. Abbott’s solo debut, Serious Poke, appeared shortly after, sporting a more straightforward, guitar-centred sound. Eight years later - and having gained broad experience as a session musician and producer in between - Abbott has returned with Shining Under The Soot, a mature and beautifully crafted follow-up, brimming with energy and heart.

Ledfoot and Ronni Le Tekrø - Limited Edition Lava Lamp (Album Review)

May 04, 2023 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Blues, Singer-Songwriter

Ledfoot aka Tim Scott McConnell and Ronni Le Tekrø seem, at first look, like an odd pair. Tim, born in Florida, has been based in Norway for many years, adopting the Ledfoot moniker in 2007 after a string of solo releases on major labels and as frontman of The Havalinas. Ronni Le Tekrø is best known as the guitarist in TNT, Norwegian rock royalty, enjoying considerable international success since their formation in 1982. The Norwegian connection would seem to be the cement here, and ‘Limited Edition Lava Lamp’ is their second record as a duo.

Sam Outlaw - Popular Mechanics (Album Review)

March 02, 2022 by David Vousden in 80s, Album Reviews, Americana, Country, Singer-Songwriter

The press release that accompanied ‘Popular Mechanics’ referenced Kenny Loggins, Tom Petty and Cyndi Lauper, all acts that have a home in my collection, so I was intrigued to hear what exactly Sam Outlaw had in mind on his new album. Listeners familiar with Outlaw and his impressive back catalogue might find the mention of Cyndi a tad incongruous as his previous records had received positive reviews for their take on the southern California country sound. As it turned out, I was pleased to find Outlaw might have taken a left turn, but he was far from lost.

Jack Francis - Jack Francis (Album Review)

February 04, 2022 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Singer-Songwriter

Listening to Jack Francis is a bit like getting reacquainted with an old friend. The Southampton troubadour has a knack with a melody and a transatlantic approach reminiscent of 70s songwriters such as The Band, Paul Simon and Van Morrison. The route to his self-titled album might have been a long and circuitous one, but the resulting record is a triumph that should crack a smile on the most stone-faced individual.

Noah Guthrie - Blue Wall (Album Review)

January 21, 2022 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Alt-Country, Americana, Country, Country Rock, Singer-Songwriter

In 2022 everybody and their dog is making a record which can be both a blessing and a curse (as the RGM inbox often reminds me). The upside to this situation is the myriad ways to discover new artists, which brings me to Noah Guthrie. Admittedly Noah Guthrie is hardly a new name, as watchers of reality TV talent shows will already be well aware (Guthrie reached the semi-final of America’s Got Talent in 2018) and even appeared in the final season of Glee. Neither of these events popped up on my radar, but late one night, lost down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, I stumbled upon guitarist Rhett Shull preparing for a gig with a bloke named Noah Guthrie…

John Hinshelwood - Called Back (the poems of Emily Dickinson) (Album Review)

June 09, 2021 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Bluegrass, Folk, Jazz

For his sixth solo release Scottish singer and songwriter John Hinshelwood has taken a different approach to his craft inspired by the poems of Emily Dickinson (1830-1886). The reclusive Dickinson, who wrote almost 1800 poems during her lifetime, conducted most of her correspondence with the outside world via letter, especially after she retreated to her bedroom in later life. The sheer volume of Dickinson’s work was not discovered until after her death and she is now considered one of the finest American poets of her generation. John Hinshelwood readily admits that his connection to Dickinson was initially limited to a mention of her in a Paul Simon song, but the purchase of a volume of ‘Selected Poems’ would spark an interest that would become an obsession (in a good way).

Jesse Terry - When We Wander (Album Review)

May 19, 2021 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Americana, Singer-Songwriter

Jesse Terry is the kind of musician you could happily take home to meet your folks, safe in the knowledge that your imminent engagement would get their full endorsement. Your mother would ask, flushed, “is he too good to be true?” I don’t think there is anyone quite as clean-cut as Jesse Terry in the whole wide world of Americana. It’s just a pity for all you singletons that he is already married (to wife Jess – Jess, I know!) and has a young daughter. Unsurprisingly, then, family is at this record’s heart, as Jesse and Jess were raising their child on tour until being forced off the road by the pandemic. It’s the first time Terry has properly pulled over in a decade, having been a full-time troubadour with Jess by his side since 2010.

M G Boulter - Clifftown (Album Review)

April 21, 2021 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Folk, Singer-Songwriter, Americana

As concepts for albums go, faded Essex seaside towns might not be the most likely choice but singer-songwriter M G Boulter has carefully hewn a hugely affecting set of songs from the rocks of Clifftown, a pseudonym for his beloved Southend-on-Sea. For those new to the name, Boulter has been making solo records since 2013, having cut his teeth in various bands and he’s now signed to the independent label Hudson Records, alongside Karine Polwart, Bellowhead and Jenny Sturgeon. With a vocal that is as vulnerable as Neil Young but as English as Nick Drake, M G Boulter has concentrated the promise of his first two records into an extremely accomplished third that marries his poetic lyrics with intricate (but unshowy) guitar playing.

Amigo The Devil - Born Against (Album Review)

April 14, 2021 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Folk, Singer-Songwriter

2018’s ‘Everything Is Fine’ was one of that year's finest releases and marked Danny Kiranos aka Amigo The Devil as one to watch. ‘Everything Is Fine' is a terrific record full of dark imagery unhindered by genre stereotypes. It might not be quite everyone’s cup of tea but if you like a good murder ballad delivered by a heavily bearded man with a banjo then ‘Everything Is Fine’ could well become your go-to album. As it turned out the album only told half the story as the RGM team found on our last but one pre lockdown night out in February of 2020. The Amigo The Devil live experience is something else entirely, ‘Everything Is Fine’ is a fantastic record but put ATD on a stage and the results are very special. In forty years of gig-going, I’ve rarely seen an artist connect with an audience in the same way as ATD. The subject matter might often be jet black but ATD is not without humour and his followers appreciate the honesty within and can relate to his grasp of the daily problems we all face, and how we deal with those problems that have, in many cases, been exaggerated by the world around us in 2021.

Morgan Wade - Reckless (Album Review)

March 19, 2021 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Country, Country Rock, Pop, Singer-Songwriter

For some artists timing is everything. Sometimes it’s because your face suddenly fits and your take on a chosen genre finds a home, but for others, it’s a little more complicated. Raised in Floyd, a small town in Virginia, Morgan Wade was surrounded by the sounds of country, predominantly bluegrass, from an early age. In later years as she began to progress as a singer and a songwriter, Wade struggled to picture her voice alongside the likes of Shania Twain and Faith Hill on the radio “Alright, well, I’m not going to sing for anybody else - but I’m singing for myself”. Wade played publicly for the first time at 19 with a band picked up via Craigslist (probably not something that I would advise all things considered) and the ball started rolling.

Justin Rutledge - Islands (Album Review)

March 15, 2021 by Rich Barnard in Acoustic, Americana, Singer-Songwriter

Justin Rutledge has put out a steady stream of critically acclaimed but somewhat under-noticed albums since his 2003 debut. Eighteen years on, Islands is – at just nine songs – a lean retrospective of stripped-back, acoustic versions, alongside two new tracks. Few artists possess Rutledge’s poetic lyrical flair and even fewer can boast a career of such a consistently high quality so, for the uninitiated, Islands could be the perfect stepping stone to the mainland of his back catalogue.

Chris Roberts - Red Feather EP (Album Review)

February 24, 2021 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Country Rock, Southern Rock, Country

Chris Roberts’ career path is an interesting one. The Austin native had worked on ranches and construction sites in Texas while laying carpet and even washing cars further demonstrate a willingness to get his hands dirty. Roberts would eventually find business success with the launch of Aspen Hatter a highly regarded hat-making business (I kid you not) in Colorado. Needless to say, he’s got the life experience down and with his debut EP ‘Red Feather’ he’s also got his music down.

Lucero - When You Found Me (Album Review)

January 29, 2021 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Alt-Country, Alternative Rock, Americana, Classic Rock

My belated introduction to Lucero was via their 2018 release ‘Among The Ghosts’ which proved to be one of the very best releases of that year. The tone was dark, the sound widescreen and the songs dragged you in and held on tight. I was lucky enough to catch Lucero at the Black Deer Festival in 2019 where on a bright sunny afternoon deep in the English countryside their songs proved equally effective as they would in a sweaty club. It was a powerful, gritty performance that reinforced my opinion that Lucero is at the top of their game. For the follow up to ‘Ghosts’ frontman Ben Nichols has expanded on the third-person, character-driven approach that had crept into his writing for ‘Ghosts’. Nichols mixes up family-driven tales of love and redemption firmly rooted in reality with interesting diversions into campfire tales and folklore. The other innovation to the Lucero sound finds Rick Steff employing a host of vintage synth sounds to bolster his usual organ/piano armoury. The resulting album could well turn out to be one of the best records of their career.

Scott Cook - Tangle Of Souls (Album Review)

October 06, 2020 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Americana, Folk, Singer-Songwriter

Ordinarily I have little time for what I call the dungaree-thumbing end of the country music spectrum. Yet I find myself irresistibly drawn to rootsy Canadian singer songwriter Scott Cook. Tangle of Souls is the seasoned troubadour’s seventh album and is accompanied by a whopping 240-page cloth-bound, hardback book. This little tome, of which I confess I have only scratched the surface, is an autobiographical work of folk-philosophy that deserves a review or three all by itself. In it, the self-confessed “full-time rambler” weaves the story of each song through the pages with honesty, self-awareness and uncommon academic flair (quotes! references! footnotes!). But, at the risk of doing Mr Cook a disservice, I am going to focus on the music.

Lisa Lambe - Juniper (Album Review)

September 08, 2020 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Folk, Singer-Songwriter

As many far more literate than yours truly have concluded over the years “The best-laid plans of mice and men” are often subject to the fickle hands of fate. Irish actress and singer Lisa Lambe has enjoyed a highly successful career in her home country with a string of well-received roles mainly on the stage. The multi-talented Lambe was also a member of Celtic Women who unsurprisingly found enormous success in America (10 Million+ worldwide CD/DVD sales) with their blend of traditional and contemporary Irish music. In 2015 she embarked on a solo career, recording an album in Nashville ‘Hiding Away’ that received cautiously positive feedback with reviewers praising Lambe’s voice while adding that the album of folk-infused songs - in the main by outside writers including Paul Brady -had been given a Nashville sheen that wasn’t necessarily required.

The RGM Review Roundup July 2020

July 17, 2020 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Country, Folk, Singer-Songwriter, Americana

As usual, RGM has been inundated with quality music from here, there and everywhere. We’re not complaining, especially in these difficult times when a good tune can provide shelter from the pandemic storm. RGM scribe Rich Barnard found time from homeschooling and making the kids lunch to check out four recent/upcoming albums that we believe are well worth your time and/or hard-earned money From Canada via the wilds of Scotland to sunny California welcome to the July edition of the RGM review roundup.

Robert Francis + The End Times - Vol.1 (Album Review)

June 19, 2020 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Alternative Rock, Americana, Classic Rock, Singer-Songwriter

Unbound by genre, Robert Francis’ latest record is the unlikely betrothal of Tom Pettyish classic rock to 90s Radioheadia. Dalliances with Americana, Jazz and 60s psych leave their mark on this otherwise most stable of marriages within which Francis dissects - often ambivalently - the regret and restlessness of human relationships. There are those that are destructive, those that are desperate and those that have long since disintegrated and alongside, of course, there is the ever-changing relationship with the self.

Ken Yates - Quiet Talkers (Album Review)

May 27, 2020 by Rich Barnard in Album Reviews, Americana, Folk, Singer-Songwriter

Sharing an easy-going vocal intimacy with Josh Rouse and Paul Simon, singer-songwriter Ken Yates’ new album is undeniably gentle on the ear. Spotlessly produced by multi-instrumentalist Jim Bryson (who also worked on Yates’ 2016 LP, Huntsville) there’s a light, west coast sheen to Yates’ brand of folky Americana. But, delve a little deeper and you’ll quickly find a sobering lyrical wisdom that’s not always synonymous with the genre.

Nichole Wagner - Dance Songs For The Apocalypse EP (Album Review)

May 20, 2020 by David Vousden in Album Reviews, Americana, Folk, Pop

It’s been said many times before, but the covers record is a fickle beast and incredibly hard to get right. Do you slavishly replicate every note of the original or take a more daring approach? The replication route can prove a little dull, while the opposite route can lead to disaster, upsetting fans of the original and alienating fans hungry for original material. Both options can be considered a pointless exercise best reserved for the contractual obligation release - if you’ve not recorded a live show. Luckily Nichole Wagner didn’t listen to this advice or seemingly worry about any of these issues, and the result is an impressive release with a foot in both camps.