Tonight’s round-up takes place in Canada. We shall begin with the latest hit song from Daniel Romano’s “flower pop supergroup” Ancient Shapes. A Flower That Wouldn’t Bloom is the first outtake and title track from their forthcoming album that is out on the 25th of October on You’ve Changed Records. It comes with colourful music video directed by Daniel Domenico Romano. What can we expect next from this multi-talented man. A novel collection, feature-length movie, re-imagination of Mona Lisa. Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s going to be awesome.

Ancient Shapes at Facebook

A smooth transition to the new self-titled Espanola album that came out on the 28th of June. The man behind the name is Aaron Goldstein, a Canadian studio wizard, master of pedal steel and a true liner note hero. He has played with lots of my favorite Canadian artists (incl. Daniel Romano) and he has also produced and/or recorded lots of songs that mean the world to me. But even if you are great at making others shine more brightly, it’s good to do you own thing too. Espanola proves that he can also handle the songwriter department of music making and blasted out a gorgeous rock record with monster riffs, country flavors and psych traces. Here’s one awesome album cut called This High, listen to / buy the whole record by hitting the links on that bandcamp player

Espanola at Facebook

Well guess who played some pedal steel on this one and did some production work too. Aaron Goldstein of course. So there’s another smooth transition to the new Run Coyote album In Shadowlands that came out on 26th of April on So Sorry Records. If you are into some vintage film noir and spaghetti westerns, you’ll have a new favorite band right here. Actually just loving rock’n’roll is sufficient, because this is just a damn good record. Here’s Late Night Lovers from the album and as usual buy/listen whole thing by hitting the links on that player.

Run Coyote Website

Let’s end this little round up blog post with a song from the new Slow Healer EP Always Trippin’. It’s the musical side of Mitch Fillion, who should get some kind of lifetime award for everything he has done in the moving pictures department by documenting performances from countless amount of fabulous artists (Southern Souls, Live at Massey Hall). Apparently he can also do this songwriting too, because this is a really good EP. Oh and obviously Aaron Goldstein plays on this one too. Not on this particular track Tell Me though so this love letter to Aaron won’t go overboard.

Four Arms to Hold You is an ongoing feature with a weird name. It might not contain a whole lot of words, but it does contain a whole lot of love towards the featured songs. Basicly this is just four albums / songs / artists that have done their part in holding me together and therefore I want to tell the world or the seven readers of this blog how much I love them. Not entirely sure do these kind of posts serve any kind of purpose and I do hope I manage to write longer posts too. Right now it just feels like the playlists and these kind of short posts are the only way to keep this dear hobby alive. Plus it’s really the music that matters, not my random ramblings and these posts will always contain magical music.

I should have gone to bed a long time ago, but I suppose there’s still time for one short blog post (mostly about exciting things to come). Starting from Omaha, Nebraska with the heavy first single Tongue of a Child from the forthcoming Simon Joyner album Pocket Moon. The album will be co-released by BB*Island (Europe), Grapefruit (North America) and Homeless Records (Australia & New Zealand) on the 25th of October. I can’t wait to hear it, because Simon Joyner is a true poet and one of the finest songwriters of the last couple of decades.

Simon Joyner at Facebook

A long time readers of this little blog might remember a band called Hotel Alexis. I loved them passionately in the early days of the blog. I think The Shining Example Is Lying on the Floor got full five hearts back then when I still wrote proper reviews. But time to let the past go and fast forward back to the year 2019, because exciting things are shining in the horizon. The frontman Sidney Lindner has a new group called Sidney Lindner & The Silver Wilderness Collective and they are about to release a new album on the 13th of September. It will be called Summer Ghosts/ Nightfalls and it will be co-released by Broken Sparrow and Burst & Bloom Records. Check out the song Mother’s Tongue below and the follow the links on that Bandcamp player for pre-order opportunities.

Sidney Lindner & The Silver Wilderness Community at Facebook

Continuing with blog favourites, but unlike the first two Claire Cronin’s new album Big Dread Moon is already out and available on Orindal Records. I’ve loved her poems and songs since the 2015 album Over and Through. The spare, dark beauty of her hauting folk songs always get my under skin and together we are able to keep the devil away. Here’s my favorite What the Night Is Thinking from the new album. Again follow the links on that bandcamp player to hear/buy the whole record.

Claire Cronin Website

Let’s wrap this blog post together in London with some of the finest UK folk of these current times. Paradise of Bachelors will release Red River Dialect’s new album Abundance Welcoming Ghosts on the 27th of September. This fabulous first single Snowdon surfaced a couple of weeks ago. Listen to it below and follow the links on the player, if you want to pre-order. Or better yet, ask your local record store to order you one, if you are still lucky enough to have a local store.

Red River Dialect at Facebook

Four Arms to Hold You is an ongoing feature with a weird name. It might not contain a whole lot of words, but it does contain a whole lot of love towards the featured songs. Basicly this is just four albums / songs / artists that have done their part in holding me together and therefore I want to tell the world or the seven readers of this blog how much I love them. Not entirely sure do these kind of posts serve any kind of purpose and I do hope I manage to write longer posts too. Right now it just feels like the playlists and these kind of short posts are the only way to keep this dear hobby alive. Plus it’s really the music that matters, not my random ramblings and these posts will always contain magical music.

A short round-up to end the day with a quartet of gorgeous music videos. All these would deserve essays, but right now I don’t have the time and I’ll never have the skill. Beginning from Chatsworth, GA with a song from the wonderful new Pony Bradshaw album Sudden Opera that came out 21st of June on Rounder Records. I’ve been a huge fan since the song Josephine burned its way into my heart some years ago and therefore this one was a really high anticipated for me. There’s some overlap with the earlier maybe less official Bad Teeth album, but I don’t mind at all because these songs deserve this new and better opportunity to find your heart. There’s three great acoustic performances on his youtube channel. Here’s one of them called Bad Teeth. Check out the rest too and then ask your local record store (if your lucky enough to still have one) to order a copy of this powerful record.

Pony Bradshaw Website

Next we head to Portland, Oregon and more precisely Laurelthirst Public House. I did share one of the videos from this TK & The Holy Know-Nothings concert, but I have to revisit because Hard Times wasn’t available at the time and it’s one of my biggest favorites from their wonderful new record. Mama Bird Recording Co released the album Arguably OK on the 24th of May. Watch the video below and then click the links on that bandcamp player to inject some damn good storytelling, catchy bar boogie and rock’n’roll grit into your lovely day.

TK & The Holy Know-Nothings Website

Traveling on to Beattyville, Ky and continuing with some powerful storytelling. Ian Noe’s magnificent debut album Between the Country came out 31st of May on National Treasure Recordings. I had been eagerly waiting for this one after falling for his Off this Mountaintop EP and somehow this is able to shake hands with my even unfairly high expectations. Here’s the music video for the excellent title track Between the Country.

Ian Noe Website

This little blog posts ends in East Nashville, Tennessee with a couple of songs from long time favourite Darrin Bradbury. Anti- should receive one of those onechordnet’s imaginary culture awards for signing this fabulous storyteller and releasing his new album Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs on the 20th of September. Non-album track Newark and first single and title track is already out and available in this internet thing-y. Listen to them below and then go and order some physical goods too.

Darrin Bradbury Website

Four Arms to Hold You is an ongoing feature with a weird name. It might not contain a whole lot of words, but it does contain a whole lot of love towards the featured songs. Basicly this is just four albums / songs / artists that have done their part in holding me together and therefore I want to tell the world or the seven readers of this blog how much I love them. Not entirely sure do these kind of posts serve any kind of purpose and I do hope I manage to write longer posts too. Right now it just feels like the playlists and these kind of short posts are the only way to keep this dear hobby alive. Plus it’s really the music that matters, not my random ramblings and these posts will always contain magical music.