During the past weeks, I’ve been sharing a lot of singles from forthcoming albums, but here’s one monumental 2018 album that is already out and available and sets the bar pretty high for the new year. It’s the new H.C. McEntire solo Lionheart that came out on Merge Records on the 26th of January. Previously she has given us a lot of amazing music as the singer and songwriter of the great North Carolinian band Mount Moriah. This astonishing solo debut contains Southern country sounds, folk rock songs and soulful gospel hymns delivered with power, passion and clarity. The album is a personal, influential and eternally beautiful. Especially the hymns of the album A Lamb, A Dove and When You Come For Me leave such a giant mark on my heart. She was raised in a religious family where being gay was not an option and now she sings in a gospel-like hymn that “I have found heaven in a woman’s touch” and does it with such grace, empathy and dignity. It’s not an aggrieved attack, it’s a lesson of deep kindness. Highly needed in this world where lack of empathy often seems to be like a running theme. Lionheart is a powerful album that everyone should hear.

H.C. McEntire at Facebook

Hey there’s a new Caleb Caudle album available in a few weeks and I haven’t said a word. What is wrong with me? Ok, I did take a small head start by dropping the excellent first single Empty Arms on the songs of the year 2017 list, but that has been all. Better up my game, because I’m a long time fan of this North Carolina-based americana songwriter. The new album Crushed Coins is due out 23rd of February on Cornelius Chapel Records and I’m expecting it to be full of endearing songwriting and warm americana sounds. Latest song to surface from the forthcoming album is Lost Without You and there’s also a gorgeous music video for the song. Watch it below and pre-order the record at Bandcamp.

Caleb Caudle Website

What a lovely surprise. A new single from the great Portland-based singer-songwriter Anna Tivel. I’m actually still living under the influence of Anna Tivel’s tremendous 2017 album Small Believer. To be honest, I haven’t made any plans to move on, because I’m quite happy staying here with these misfortuned characters of her songs. The characters of her songs may not have luck on their side and their own misguided actions may even drive them further into darkness, but Anna always tells their stories with empathy, warmth and heart. The new song Dust and Magic is a rare love song in her captivating songbook. Sure there’s a bit of that dark too, but it’s overshadowed by the devoted love. It’s an incredible song and further proof that Anna Tivel is one of the finest songwriters and storytellers at the moment.

Anna Tivel Website

MAITA is a singer-songwriter from Portland, Oregon and her magnificent Waterbearer EP was one of my favorite new finds last year. MAITA just released a new single Japanese Waitress and this outtake from her forthcoming album is extremely powerful and emotive. It reminded me of a tweet by Cale Tyson that I just read the other week where the point was that if you want to make it in the music industry, you first have to make it in the food service industry. This song of course goes way deeper into the subject than that painfully real joke and has far more layers. It’s not just the idea of needing these day jobs in order to be able to make art. The song is about her own experiences from working in a Japanese restaurant as a half-Japanese woman and therefore it’s also about gender roles, femininity and racial prejudice. It’s a courageous and effective song that really demands to be heard. MAITA is definitely one to watch and I’m super eager to hear her full-length sometime in 2018. While waiting I will keep this song and the earlier EP on repeat.

MAITA at Facebook