The debut release from Lissie is, by no means, a bad release – the songs are pleasantly inoffensive, impeccably performed, and – in theory – highly appealing, but Lissie is a small fish in the insanely crowded, overwhelmingly talented female singer-songwriter pool.
Singer-Songwriter
Scott Matthew – There Is An Ocean That Divides…
It may have the longest album title EVER, but is Scott Matthew’s sophomore effort worth the effort? Steve Lampiris review.
Kristofer Astrom – Sinkadus
Swedish singer-songwriter Kristofer Åström takes a random walk across a landscape somewhere between four cardinal points labelled Daniel Lanois, Snow Patrol, J. Tillman, and generic US rock.
Duke Special – I Never Thought This Day Would Come
Duke Special continues with his eccentrically romantic and irrepressibly melodic invitation to the jaded grey world all around to get up and join him in a sing-along. All together now …
Bill Madden – Child Of The Same God
Bill Madden leaves little permanent emotional trace for his admirable efforts – the Jack Johnson of protest singers.
J. Tillman – Vacilando Territory Blues
J. Tillman’s 5th album sees the Fleet Fox once again delving into nighttime narratives of regret, pain and redemption, and adding new touches to his sound with country, blues and rock.
Finn. – The Best Low-Priced Heartbreakers You Can Own
Solo acoustic guitar tunes swell and burgeon into anthemic orchestrated climaxes. Expect to hear this grand cinematic music as the backdrop to many a TV segment soon. Andrew Dowdall reviews.
The Gunshy – I Gave Too Much Time To The Wine (And Other Collected EPs)
To quote the man Matt Arbogast himself: “This fucker sounds just like Tom Waits, Do we need another Tom Waits?”.
Emily Jane White – Dark Undercoat
There’s no avoiding the bleedin’ obvious: she sounds like a dead ringer for Cat Power. No bad thing of course, and it may be recommendation enough for many. Andrew Dowdall reviews.
Damien Jurado – Caught In The Trees
Damien Jurado’s 8th album shows that although the way some of the songs are presented is different, his inherent skill as a songwriter shows through at every turn. Simon Gurney reviews.
David Vandervelde – Waiting For The Sunrise
The opener is solid AM gold on an album where a seventies soft rock feel permeates most tracks. But it’s dragged gently downhill from there by a few clunkers.
Jefferson Pepper – American Evolution Volume 2 (The White Album)
This release sees Pepper two thirds of the way through his ambitious 50 song project to try and answer the question “What has happened to my country?” Is the answer really anything you didn’t know already?
A.C. Newman to release new album in January 09
New Pornographers front man close to completing new album, set for release in January 09.
Farrell Spence – A Town Called Hell
Farrell Spence delivers an album of sweet backwoods ballads charting the claustrophobic relationships and stunted dreams of isolated prairie town life: “Nothing ever happens in a town called hell”. She’s no Judith Chalmers that’s for sure.
Essie Jain – We Made This Ourselves
Andrew Dowdall reviews Essie Jain’s debut, finally getting a release in the UK, and is mesmerised by its melancholic beauty.
Ed Harcourt – Until Tomorrow Then (The Best Of)
Always the singer-songwriter pianist bridesmaid, never the singer-songwriter pianist bride. Some artists seem destined to inhabit the world of the could have been, should have been. This career reprise of the quintessentially English (still – though now US based) indie-intellipop sensibilities of Ed Harcourt tries to make the big breakthrough the second time around. Is [...]
