Micah Blues and Red Rivers 7/10 Micah Blue Smaldone is a former punk scenester from New England who has moved on to sparse, rootsy folk. ‘The Red River‘, his fourth solo record, is dominated by meditative, neo-traditional acoustica with an eye for theatre. While intimate in scale it much less personal than, say, Bon Iver, [...]
Abum Review: Micah Blue Smaldone – The Red River
October 30th, 2008 · 2 Comments · Alt-country, Alternative, Folk/Acoustic, Indie, Music, New Wierd America
Tags:Acoustic·Americana·Folk·Ragtime·Singer-songwriter·Vaudeville
Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
May 1st, 2008 · 1 Comment · Alt-country, Alt-rock, Best of 2008, Folk/Acoustic, Music, Pop/Rock
A good winter, forever after 8/10 It would be easy to dismiss the history behind the recording of For Emma, Forever Ago as mere press release hype. Yes, Justin Vernon (aka Bon Iver) recorded this album recovering from some deep personal disappointments in an isolated log cabin over one bitter Wisconsin winter – but what [...]
Tags:Acoustic·Alt-country·Best of 2008·falsetto·Folk·Justin Vernon·lo-fi·log cabin·multi-track·Singer-songwriter·winter·Wisconsin
Richard Hawley – Lady’s Bridge
September 9th, 2007 · No Comments · Alt-country, Best of 2007, Folk/Acoustic, MP3s, Music, Pop/Rock
‘Roll River Roll’ 8/10 Richard Hawley’s latest album is embued with the same romantic retro ambience as his previous ventures. The former Pulp guitarist turned baritone crooner gives a masterclass in classic pop nostalgia, pitting his melancholy Roy Orbison-cum-Scott Walker vocals against beautifully arranged compositions. Whereas he has garnered some criticism for playing it too [...]
Tags:Alt-country·crooner·dream pop·MP3·Retro·rockabilly·Sheffield·Singer-songwriter