Our Top Six Releases May 22
Top Six Releases
May 2022
Our Top Six Releases May 22
By Rob Dickens
Allison Forbes
Dead Men Tell No Tales
Independent
15 April 2022
Allison Forbes proves that her previous, debut, album Bonedigger was no flash in the pan.
For that release, this Tamworth-bred country artist received four prestigious Golden Guitar nominations at the 2021 Tamworth Country Music Festival, was voted Most Popular Female Artist at the 2020 Independent Country Music Awards and garned serious radio attention. How to follow that up can be a pesky second album dilemma.
Dead Men Tell No Tales shows a bold artist, doubling-down. The songs here are even more personal, exploring ominous situations with honesty but thankfully offering hope and salvation if the listener is prepared to do the work. ARIA Award-winning producer Matt Fell augments the songs and the result is a lovely meld of country, Americana, folk and even bluegrass.
Two artisitic triumphs on the trot. Time to pay attention.
Via Stuart Coupe Publicity and Red Rebel Music
Calexico
El Mirador
Anti-
8 April 2022
Interestingly, a few of my music-loving friends are not big Calexico fans. Having seen them live four times, collected just about every one of their previous nine albums and in danger of wearing out a live DVD World Drifts In (2004), I’m hooked.
Actually, when I have been searching for Calexico’s music in record stores over the years, it has proven to be a little challenging to find it, a music cataloguers nightmare I guess – alternative? folk? world? tex-mex? Of course, it doesn’t matter what you call it – labels = commerce *.
The romantic, sinuous vocals of Joey Burns and the unmistakeable touch percussion of John Convertino form the base ingredients to which you add instrument exotica, brass, electronics, latin sways and flourishes. El Mirador continues the brilliant catalogue of Calexico. It lifts my spirit, makes me eshew logic and concentrate on mi corazőn. You can’t ask for more than that.
(* A recent press release received at LTTL HQ referred to the enclosed music as “christian, hot”. Still makes me smile!)
Meredith Lazowski
Other Way Home
Independent
17 June 2022
Introducing…Toronto-based Americana singer-songwriter Meredith Lazowski with her debut album, Other Way Home containing ten distinctive songs. Produced by Juno Award-winner and performer Justin Rutledge, the album came together quickly, only five days at Union Sound studio – Lazowski and her acoustic guitar, joined seamlessly by sublime players (pedal steel guitar, fiddle, bass, electric guitar, keyboards, accordion and drums). Tom Juhas‘s guitarwork on “The Other Side” is particularly ear-catching.
Raised in a music-drenched house, Lazowski began to compose and eventually sing her songs on local stages, schools and universities. Given her upbringing, it is not an accident on this album that her sister is featured on background vocals, with father providing a guitar solo (on “December”) and her mother helped create the marketing materials.
Other Way Home represents an imposing and talented beginning.
Via Skye Media
Orville Peck
Bronco
Columbia
8 April 2022
The masked gay cowboy returns with flair, panache and a monster voice. Ever the individual who wears his style on his sleeve, Orville Peck has South African and Canadian roots and a prior life in a punk band, plus, for those not in the know, performs always in a fringed mask (not the same one of course but a multitude of stylish ones).
On Bronco, imagine Elvis, Roy or Bruce in true country mode regaling us with tales of same-sex longing and desire and you just about have it nailed (yes, his voice is in that stratosphere). This is a back-in-the-saddle follow-up (pardon the pun) to his debut Pony (see the theme here?) and sees Peck eschew any notion of a novelty act with an immensely likable western landscape.
Canadian alternative rock band The Frigs feature throughout and they know their way around a Peck song, and producer Jay Joyce stamps his craft on the production.
Paul Cauthen
Country Coming Down
Velvet Rose Records/Thirty Tigers
1 April 2022
From a shimmering cowboy vocalist to another known for some contrariness and single vision. Paul Cauthen‘s voice has also been compared to Roy Orbison and here he presents two songs full of f*** from the collection that are likely to upset a certain section of his audience and seriously reduce radio airplay. Not that he cares.
Cauthen (pronounced Cothin) recently told The Boot: “If you want to judge me and judge my music, I don’t want you at my show”…Country Coming Down is this Texan’s third full release and continues his journey with a funkier sound lashed with sharp humour and even mischief.
Its brazen, artistically authentic and leaves a mighty impression.
Peter Rowan
Calling You From My Mountain
Rebel Records
24 June 2022
A new album from pioneering American roots musician Peter Rowan is always a treat and this one doesn’t disappoint. Over six decades of quality work, Grammys, member of Bill Monroe‘s Blue Grass Boys, partner with The Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, bluegrass icon who has dabbled in multiple genres, you name it.
What originally started as new songs with a nod to Hank Williams‘ fascinating alter-ego Luke The Drifter changed because of the enforced space provided by the pandemic. Calling You From My Mountain features a lovely combo of original and traditional songs from Rowan and his multi-generational band, plus guests Shawn Camp, Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, Lindsay Lou and more.
Classy.
Via Hearth Music
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More Music Adventures Await!
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Our Top Six Releases May 22
Our Top Six Releases May 22
Our Top Six Releases May 22
