a music blog
Scotland is lucky enough to have the best roots and folk music festival in the world to keep us music fans warm during the winter. Celtic Connections began last night with their opening concert celebrating the city of Glasgow and over the next few weeks the music on offer is not just the best of Scotland, but the rest of the world too.
Continue reading “Celtic Connections 2025 Highlights”
The new year is here and soon the release schedule will begin filling up but I thought I would do a quick round up of what’s already been announced for 2025.
If you know of any new releases by women not mentioned here then please add to the comments and also let me know what you’re most looking forward to hearing!
Continue reading “Music to Look Forward to in 2025 “
Susan Cain, in her brilliant book ‘Quiet’, celebrated introverts and argued ‘culture is biased against quiet and reserved people, but introverts are responsible for some of humanity’s greatest achievements.’
The problem with being ‘quiet’ unfortunately is that sometimes you don’t get noticed for what you’ve achieved. Those who can shout and dance and sell themselves, or who can pay others who can do this for them, grab most of the attention.
Twenty years have passed since Mindy Smith won the ‘Emerging Artist of the Year’ trophy at the Americana Awards, and twelve years since her last album. She’s been busy in that time, writing for others, working on songs, searching for herself in other ways by reconnecting with her birth family. This new album ‘Quiet Town’ is a welcome return and a chance to celebrate her quietly powerful artistic achievements.
Continue reading “Album Review: Mindy Smith – Quiet Town”
After releasing ‘Saint Cloud’ during the pandemic, Katie Crutchfield’s life changed. She found a new audience within the Americana scene, while also maintaining her core fans from her earlier indie rock records. Success in the genre led to the Plains collaboration with Jess Williamson and even working with Wynnona Judd, further underscoring her dedication to explore her Southern roots and influences.
Katie and her brilliant band (who included Spencer Tweedy on drums) came to Glasgow for the first time in many years, fresh from releasing the new album Tiger’s Blood. She performed that album in full, relishing in the opportunity to play these songs to a sold out audience.
Continue reading “Live Review: Waxahatchee & Anna St. Louis @QMU Glasgow 30/07/24”
The slightly blurred cover of this new album from The Secret Sisters offers us something reassuring in this hyper focused online world – here’s a band and an album that’s out of focus in a good way, soft and quietly spoken, emotionally shaky because living in this world often makes you feel that way.
Continue reading “Album Review: Secret Sisters – Mind, Man, Medicine”
Earlier this year I was lucky enough to catch Kelsey Waldon supporting Margo Price at Celtic Connections festival, where she previewed this brilliant new album of bluegrass and old time music called ‘There’s Always a Song’.
Continue reading “Album Review: Kelsey Waldon – There’s Always a Song”
On Lizzie No’s debut album, Hard Won, she showcased her talents as a harp playing folk singer with something to say and she then built on that foundation with her second record Vanity, creating a more ambitious, rockier sound. Her new record Halfsies is released in conjunction with Americana label Thirty Tigers, which is fitting since Lizzie has been a vocal advocate for more black women in country and folk music. Halfsies is a fantastic record which blends those genres along with some intriguing indie rock influences.
Continue reading “Album Review: Lizzie No – Halfsies”
For her fifth album ‘Do You Recall?’ Dori Freeman has once more worked in collaboration with her husband Nicholas Falk as producer, offering us an intimate collection of new songs about love, life and the struggles of the modern world. The picture on the cover of the record echoes the soft-focus style of alternative Americana that she has perfected over the course of her career.
Continue reading “Album Review: Dori Freeman – Do You Recall?”
Jaime Wyatt’s last album Neon Cross was an authentically raw tale of her recovery from addiction and the grit that it takes to walk the line towards redemption and renewal. Pleasing then that she looks so happy and healthy on the cover of her positively titled new album ‘Feel Good’.
Continue reading “Album Review: Jaime Wyatt – Feel Good”
Highway Queens 