Jon E Erkkila - Be True To Yr Crew

Band / Artist: Jon E Erkkila
Year: 2011
Genre: Country, Acoustic, Folk

My Review:
Some good acoustic folk-country tunes that are reminiscent of what the train kids play in the french quarter. This guy hails from Flemington, NJ, where apparently there is a pocket of music called the Flemington Folk Scene.

He uses an acoustic guitar and a banjo, and does a pretty solid job with each. The recording quality is really solid, and the playing is soothing and technically skilled.

I don't have much more for this one, I have a report I need to finish up writing. Hope y'all enjoy.

Jon E Erkkila - Be True To Yr Crew

Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs - Jalikebba and the Toubabs

Band / Artist: Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs
Year: 2005
Genre: World, Spoken Word., African, Indian, Folk

My Review:
Swedish folk, Classical violin, Indian tabla, and African kora. All together. God. Damn. I like it a whole lot.

Here's a breakdown of the members

Two members of the group, Jalikebba and Haruna were born into griot families. Griots [ /grēˈō/ ] are a social caste who perform traditional music and poetry, jaliyaa, carrying on the oral tradition from antiquity.

Tommy is an Austrian performer and composer who specializes in the Indian tabla and other percussive instruments. Violinist Sandra and vocalist Kasja are both Swedes.

Jalikebba Kuyateh was born and raised in Gambia, and is a skilled kora player who has performed with many groups in Africa. He is in demand for festivals, weddings, and ceremonies. He also teaches music workshops both at the museum and abroad.

Currently, Jalikebba is the lead performer at the Tanji Village Museum in Tanji, Gambia.  The museum presents and preserves the traditional culture and the natural history of Gambia. These tunes were recorded live at the Tanji Village Museum, January 29, 2005.

So they make this neat melded sound, that seems like a much more melodic version of Bjork's weirder music, just infused with a ton of African influences. Listen to a track or two, and I'll bet it grows on you.

Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs - Jalikebba and the Toubabs

Chance McCoy And The Appalachian String Band - Self Titled

Band / Artist: Chance McCoy
Year: 2008
Genre: Folk, Bluegrass, Americana

My Review:
I volunteered for more than 2 years with a historic fort in Savannah, GA. I got paid nicely for my time, had my own confederate uniform (it was slightly more comfortable than the Yankee blues), and got to teach/yell at middle school kids. If you ever want to know about civil war river defense and communication, as well as history about Sherman's march to the sea, I'll talk to you for an hour.

But that's not really here or there. The point is, that historic American music is not very often heard these days. My general distaste for modern country stems from their disregard of the instruments and skills in their own history. But this release does none of that. Mr. McCoy knows that history, and he holds true to it. This is no small album. He plays out 19 tracks with his companions, and he does it with skill and with heart. That fiddle, banjo, acoustic guitar, and bass all meld into a sensation that's incredibly hard to describe. Here's his website.

http://wildhogintheredbrush.com/

This brings be back to bold sunsets, hot humid days, the stink of black gunpowder and burnt flour, biting sand gnats, the taste of Brunswick stew and drinking a beer with my coworkers after hours, and the muddy water of the river flowing past the reeds on the bank. If I ever find anything that gets closer to that, I'll post it without haste. I hope you enjoy.

Chance McCoy And The Appalachian String Band - Self Titled

Connor Bird - Where Winter Hides

Band / Artist: Connor Bird
Year: 2012
Genre: Acoustic, Folk

My Review:
So, I got this email. The guys from Moosick sent me an artist interested in sharing his music with you. Aren't they a peach? Also the music is good too.

Mr. Bird is doing a short album of emotionally raw, exposed acoustic work. Unlike a lot of the acoustic music you tend to hear, this isn't as stripped down and minimal. There are complimenting flourishes of an accompanying guitar, adding slides, and soft ambient layers into the tracks. It still has a lot of that comforting simplicity of acoustic folk.

I made sure that he didn't have a website or anything, and he let me know that if anyone was interested in the music and wanted to get in touch with him, to please email him at flon1992(at)yahoo(.)com Please don't hesitate to do so, or even just tell him how cool he is. It's still such a rarity to find musicians willing to share it all like this, with nothing expected back.

I can't shake this feeling while listening to it about the years of jesus camp in the summers, not that this is christian music or anything, it just keeps triggering the memory. Anyhow.. Go give it a listen.




Connor Bird - Where Winter Hides

Random posts - Ivan and Alyosha - The Cabin Sessions Demos

I just got contacted by a viewer to the blog suggesting this demo set. So thanks a bunch! Here we go...

Band / Artist: Ivan & Alyosha
Year: 2012
Genre: Folk, Indie Folk, Folk Pop

My Review:
They are a northwest indie band with that folksy, acoustic sound that indie bands love so well, but with just a bit of that country hometown band sound, and their photo collection with instagram, like these;

 

Tons of good shots for album covers.. Anyhow, here is their site if you want to see more of their stuff.

http://www.ivanandalyosha.com/

They just signed with dualtone records, which hopefully means they are set for a few years to grow and evolve, and hopefully build up a big fanbase. They are absolutely your thing if you like Mumford & Sons or Johnny Flynn.

Ivan and Alyosha - The Cabin Sessions

Miscellaniac: Preservation Week 2012 Mix

Band / Artist: Wooden Shjips, Edward Avis and Howard R Garis, Spencer Owen, Oneida, Kreamy 'Lectric Santa, Scott Joplin, Boss Hog, Valentina Vuksic, Karpov Not Kasparov, The Paperhead, R. Stevie Moore, Newagehillbilly, Big Blood, Vermillion Sands, Roger McGuinn, Giraffe, Spade Cooley & the Western Swing Dance Gang Feat. Tex Williams, Sophie Tucker, Isidore Soucy
Year: 2012
Genre: Psych-Rock, Old-Time / Historic, Pop, Lo-fi, Indie-Rock, Krautrock, Post-Rock, Experimental, Punk, Glitch, Folk, International

My Review:
From recently digitized archive records. its a really nice little mixtape of old vaudeville, jazz, punk, rock, experimental, and hymnal sounds. I won't lie, some of these tracks aren't good, and they kill the flow of the mix. Either way, the tracks that are good, are worth enough to merit downloading this one.

Miscellaniac: Preservation Week 2012 Mix

Austin Leonard Jones - Sundowners

Band / Artist: Austin Leonard Jones
Year: 2011
Genre: Country, Folk Rock, Indie Rock, Folk

My Review:
Some modern folk/country with a bit of a marcy playground feel, as well as a few moments of old westerns. Not that it sounds anything like any of these, but it reminded me of new Beck, and some things from the Wingdale Community Singers. Its a good, more contemporary album lyrically, and I swear I heard a ukelele in there somewhere. Give it a few samplings, and hopefully something about it will sing to you.
 
Austin Leonard Jones – Sundowners

Raw Music International - Kisumu Mixtape

Band / Artist: Raw Music International (Various Artists)
Year: 2011
Genre:  International, Blues, Soul-RnB, Folk, Hip-Hop, Field Recordings, African, Alternative Hip-Hop, Dance, Reggae - Dancehall, Hip-Hop Beats

My Review:
A "mixtape" of tracks from Kisumu, Kenya. It has a pretty wide range of sounds, from traditional Kenyan folk, to pop and rap, and some instrumental pieces.  I played through it a few times and found probably 2 tracks that rubbed me the wrong way and I didn't keep. 

If you want to know a little about each track, go check out the bandcamp page and click through each track.  this is the excerpt for the first song

Olima is an 83 year old blind Luo blues guitarist. We recorded this song at his home on December 31, 2010. He sings in memory of a deceased lover.

http://rawmusicinternational.bandcamp.com/

This one is a good one for a mix, and adds a nice dimension of flavor into a playlist. It would be nice in a mix for at a summery BBQ or a dinner party.

Raw Music International - Kisumu Mixtape