-
Meta
Editorial Staff
Cat Eldridge
Gary WhitehouseSearch
-
Recent Posts
- What’s New for the 15th of February: Some Seanan McGuire fantasy, Alison Bechdel’s latest, Pamela Dean’s Tam Lin; Nordic sounds, old time, Americana and Tex-Mex music
- What’s New for the 1st of February: Kage Baker retrospective; new Americana, Buddhist chants and Finnish songs, new and reissued jazz, and more
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Fireplaces in Kinrowan Hall
- 132030
- What’s New for the 18th of January: World music and fiction by Amal El-Mohtar
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Bridges and Paths plus a Troll
- What’s New for the 4th of January: Favorite books and music of 2025
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Mythologist John Campbell
- What’s New for 21st of December
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Pub Ghoulies
- What’s New for 7 of December: books by Alan Garner, and holiday music new and old, Celtic, Americana, jazz and more
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Several Annies, Part Two
- What’s New for 23 November
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Several Annies
- What’s New for the 9th of November: rhymers and ravens, folk songs and folk tales, jazz guitar and dark forests and constellations put to music, Hungarian tunes and knights and rakes and tinkers and fools, and more
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Kedgeree
- Whats New for the 26th of October: some Patricia McKillip books and an interview, ’70s jazz reissues, Nordic Americana and American Americana, and some Samhain seasonal albums
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Charles and Alice Pay a Visit (A Letter to Owyn)
- What’s New for the 12th of October
- A Kinrowan Estate story: A Pudding Contest
- What’s New for the 28th of September: Appalachia in books, music and more
- A Kinrown Estate story: Autumn is Upon Us
- What’s New for the 14th of September: Books, film and music with a piratical theme; plus Corsican polyphony, Balkan sevdah, Americana music, Hardanger fiddle with reindeer, Latin jazz and piano trios
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Irish Coffee
- New SF from James S. A. Corey; Terry Gillian’s Excalibur; Rolling Stones do Aaron Copland’s ‘A Fanfare for The Common Man’; An offbeat history of coffee; an interview with Russian folk singer Zhenya Wind; and a grab bag of folk music
- A Kinrowan Estate story: Waltzing Matilda
- What’s New for the 17th of August: Lots of Cropredy reports and reviews, and some new jazz and Americana;
- A Kinrowan Estate story: A Hidden Dragon
- What’s New for the 3rd of August: A mix of Heinlein reviews; new jazz out of Vermont and a grab bag of archival reviews; Italian American food writing, and more
- A Kinrowan Estate story: A Recursive Loops
Category Archives: Music
Jennifer and Hazel Wrigley’s Mither o’the Sea
Richard wrote this for Folk Tales. I have been interested in the traditional music of the British Isles for more than 35 years and have grown older listening to the work of musicians who were already well known to the … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Celtic music, orkney islands
Comments Off on Jennifer and Hazel Wrigley’s Mither o’the Sea
Ceili Rain’s Say ‘KAY-Lee’
Rebecca Swain wrote this review. I like this Christian Celtic album very much (it is also available under the name Ceili Rain.) It is cheerful, enthusiastic, and well-crafted. Those people who are more comfortable with a bleak, cynical view of … Continue reading
Fairport Convention Goes Dutch
Koen Hottentot wrote this review. Theatre De Kom, Nieuwegein, Holland, December 12, 1999 Yesterday must have been one of the most bizarre Fairport gigs in recent years. Half the audience demanded their money back. The other half went home very, … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged English folk rock, Fairport Convention
Comments Off on Fairport Convention Goes Dutch
Veronika Varga’s True Picture
Veronika Varga is a seasoned performer of more than a decade, both solo and as a member of various ensembles (Babra, BudaPesme, VreMea Válkània, Epseria, and her a cappella project Lemonokipos). True Picture is the recording debut of the Hungarian … Continue reading
Wör x Kongero’s Songbooks Live
The Belgian ensemble WÖR (pronounced “were”) plays new arrangements of 18th century Flemish melodies on a blend of old and modern instruments. The Swedish women’s folk quartet Kongero performs traditional Nordic songs in modern a capella arrangements, and composes new … Continue reading
Trèvol’s La Gran Trevolada
The Catalán contemporary folk quartet Trèvol took the unusual path of releasing a live album as their second recording; the 17 tracks on La Gran Trevolada were recorded before an enthusiastic audience at the Festival Folk Internacional Tradicionàrius in Barcelona … Continue reading
Various artists’ Folk and World Music Galore Vol. 4
I’ve come to look forward to the annual Folk and World Music Galore compilation from the German labels Nordic Notes and CPL-Music. The 2025 version of this comp, Vol. 4, is no exception, and even perhaps the best one yet, … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Balkan music, Nordic music, world music
Comments Off on Various artists’ Folk and World Music Galore Vol. 4
Ovella Negra’s Va de Mescles!, and Rosàlia De Souza Quarteto 55˚’s Rosàlia De Souza Quarteto 55˚
Ovella Negra is at root a piano trio, but one with a difference. Pianist Joan Frontera Luna’s vision was to create a vibrant jazz program from the popular folk music of his native Balearic Islands (off Spain’s southern Mediterranean coast, … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Brazilian music, Jazz music, samba, world music
Comments Off on Ovella Negra’s Va de Mescles!, and Rosàlia De Souza Quarteto 55˚’s Rosàlia De Souza Quarteto 55˚
Julian Shore Trio’s Sub Rosa, GinmanBlachmanDahl’s Play Ballads, Convergence’s Reckless Meter, and Kalia Vandever’s Another View
For me, 2025 was the year of the piano trio. I spent countless hours chilling my soul to the likes of Bill Evans in particular, but kept my eye and ear out for contemporary examples of the form, too. My … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Jazz music
Comments Off on Julian Shore Trio’s Sub Rosa, GinmanBlachmanDahl’s Play Ballads, Convergence’s Reckless Meter, and Kalia Vandever’s Another View
Melissa Carper’s A Very Carper Christmas
Melissa Carper’s on a roll. This Americana/queer country standout has made three critically acclaimed solo albums (Ramblin’ Soul, Daddy’s Country Gold and Borned In Ya), plus a couple with the band Sad Daddy, one as the anchor of the Wonder … Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Americana music, holiday music
Comments Off on Melissa Carper’s A Very Carper Christmas