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.

Tonight’s round up of songs and albums that I love starts from St. Louis, Missouri. If the Stanley Cup parties are starting to slow down, the locals over there can start celebrating the release of the new Beth Bombara album Evergreen. The album was just released yesterday on the 9th of August and it’s a damn enjoyable collection of roots-rock and americana. Sean Kirkland made a gorgeous double music video for the starting duo I Only Cry When I’m Alone and Upside Down. Watch that below and then hit those bandcamp links on the player to hear/buy the whole beautiful thing.

Beth Bombara Website

A smooth transition to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sure there are some miles between the cities, but the hearts of the songwriters aren’t far apart. In fact, John Calvin Abney co-produced Beth Bombara’s record and also plays keys on it. He also has a new album of his own songs on the horizon. The album Safe Passage will be released by Black Mesa Records on the 27th of September. Two excellent singles have already been released. This latest one Honest Liar just surfaced earlier in the week. It’s a very timely reflection on the toxic habits of certain people. You’ll find the other single and pre-order options by hitting the links on the bandcamp player.

John Calvin Abney Website

Moving on to Austin, Texas to gently sway a while in the arms of the fragile new Will Johnson single A Solitary Slip. It’s an outtake from his sixth solo album Wire Mountain that will come out on the 27th of September, just like John Calvin Abney’s record. This one will be on the wonderful Austin-based label Keeled Scales. This beautiful man probably doesn’t need an introduction, because he has been releasing great records for a couple of decades (Centro-Matic, South San Gabriel, Marie/Lepanto, Molina and Johnson and so forth) and in-between collaborated with other artists in multiple ways. Again hit that Bandcamp player links in order to find pre-order options and the powerful first single Cornelius.

Will Johnson Website

We shall wrap up this little blog in Houston, Texas with a song or two from the new Matt Harlan album Best Beasts that came out on the 12th of July on Eigth 30 Records. This is a strong and powerful album full of first class songwriting that is trying to make some sense out of this mess of a world where anger is continuously trying to overshadow empathy. We sure need our poets and folk songwriters during these dark times and hopefully their words can cast away the clouds from our hearts and breathe some sense into our minds. Maybe Best Beasts is just a record, but it’s a record that has a good heart. Sometimes that is everything.

Matt Harlan 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.