ZZ Ward is an American songwriter with a strong love for blues and hip hop. I love her voice and her writing style, the songs have got a definite blues undertone but I wouldn’t class it as solely that genre. There is a free mixtape download that I highly recommend you download, it’s available from the ZZ Ward website. Get a taster below of her live performance of Move Like You Stole It.

Boys & Girls Album Review for fairsharemusic.com

The Alabama Shakes have arrived with their fantastic debut album, Boys & Girls. A cross between youthful rock ‘n’ roll energy and aching blues tales of life, loss and love.

The rootsy sound you hear when listening to this album perfectly depicts where the band came from. Each member has a love for a different type of music and they are far from manufactured, which gives them a cool edge, which in turn makes you cool for listening to them. (I’m quite sure that’s how it works). One thing that is consistent throughout and possibly the focal point of the album, is the intensely heartfelt vocal performances from front woman, Brittany Howard.

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The Civil Wars – Barton Hollow
Review by Clare Knight
Buy: Barton Hollow Album

I have to say that the Civil Wars are probably the best country act to come out of Tennessee recently, who have managed to cross the pond and make an impact on people in the rather ‘country-less’ UK. First appearing on Jools Holland and impressing everyone with their cover of Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean, the duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White have released an equally as impressive debut album. Barton Hollow is a country album but don’t be deterred as they manage to draw from the blues and you are mostly listening to their amazing blend of voices. Really you should listen to this album on vinyl in a dimly lit room with a glass of whiskey to get the full essence of it!

From the first track, 20 Years you hear the warm sound of a solo acoustic guitar played by John Paul White beautifully, which is something that is consistent throughout the album and really makes this duo stand out. Other notable tracks made beautiful by his guitar playing are C’est La Mort, To Whom It May Concern and Girl With The Red Balloon.

The title track, Barton Hollow is as down and dirty blues as this album gets with lyrics like ‘the devil gonna find me wherever I go’ and pounding rhythmic guitar mixed with their soulful harmonies. This song especially brings out the passion and theatrics of their songs for me. One of my favourites from this album is Forget Me Not, an ode to a lover being far away. It is a beautifully wistful song that emphasises the country vibe with a violin and slide guitar. However, the instruments are mostly forgettable (forgive the pun) as the lyrics and the vocal harmony throughout takes centre stage. ‘Let’s write a song for us, and sing until we’re old and grey’… ain’t that a lyric to make ya swoon! I can’t finish without mentioning the Billie Jean cover which I mentioned earlier. It is a completely new take on the song, which is done in true Civil Wars fashion with one guitar and two amazing vocals.

I love how this album tells so many in depth stories in 3 minute songs. The Civil Wars are impressive songwriters who write with passion and longing. They also happen to have rather good vocal chords (may I give props to John Paul White at this point) and a great dynamic between the two of them. It’s no wonder they are popular across the globe, they are really bloody good!

Kill It Kid are releasing a brand new AA single which includes Wild & Wasted Waters & All To Me on November 28th. If you are a fan of The Black Keys then Kill It Kid is worth listening to. Their influences are as diverse as The Carter Family, Queens of The Stone Age and Woody Guthrie, pitching the band as a new breed of all-electric bluesmen.

Take a listen to the two quite different tracks on this release below. I think you will like it!

Review by Tom Caswell
Union Chapel 04/05/11

Unbelievable. That’s the word I’d use if I were to give a one word review. If I were to give two? Absolutely unbelievable.

It was a great evening at the Union Chapel, a venue which has hosted some fantastic artists over the years and Hugh Laurie can now be added to that list. I arrived at the venue 15 minutes before doors opened and the queue was already winding it’s way along the street, excitement building amongst those waiting to go in. Even though there were a hell of a lot of people in front of me, I still managed to get a good seat in the 4th row with a great view of the stage.

There was only an hour to wait between doors opening and the start of the set but it seemed like a lifetime, I couldn’t wait for it to begin! The wait was worth it though as I spotted the very beautiful and talented Amber Tamblyn (House co-star) making her way to a seat a few rows behind me. Finally when the lights dimmed, the band made their way onto the stage, minus Hugh. Everyone had their eyes pinned on the door to the backstage area however Hugh was making his way down the Chapel isle from somewhere behind us, taking it all in. The crowd went wild!

The great thing about the gig was that between every single song, Hugh would interact with the crowd with a few jokes and give stories on the songs he was performing. It was an intimate setting, fantastic stuff. The band behind him were absolutely fantastic, true American blues musicians! You don’t get any better than that. Even though this was Hugh’s gig he always mentioned the band after every song they performed.

The set was outstanding, the band were as tight as a ducks arse and Mr Laurie was on top form. I love the blues, so for me it was brilliant listening to so many great renditions of songs I already know and love. Battle Of Jericho had an extremely dark and rough feel for it with a stomping beat that felt like the Chapel was falling down around us. You Don’t Know My Mind (the first single from his album) is already a firm favourite of the fans and got the crowd going, and The Whale Has Swallowed Me was brilliant to hear, a track by J.B. Lenoir that I love very much.

There were so many highlights from this gig, performances of You Don’t Know My Mind, Battle Of Jericho, Buddy Bolden’s Blues and The Whale Has Swallowed Me all included, but the whole evening was a highlight. There was never a dull moment from when I entered the Chapel to when I left. Every single song was sublime, the music fantastic, the vocals out of this world! A lot has been said about Hugh Laurie’s vocal performance on Later…with Jools Holland, and I don’t know why. The BBC have always mixed that show extremely badly and it didn’t do him justice. At the Union Chapel he put all doubts to rest. He’s an actor, comedian, musician and singer, and he’s damn good at all of them!

As I come to the end of my review, I think of that one word as the beginning of it that summed up the gig for me. Unbelievable. I left the venue with such a buzz, and I even got to see Amber Tamblyn again before I left. Perfect!

Setlist:
Bright Mississippi / St. James Infirmary / Crazy Arms / Six Cold Feet / You Don’t Know My Mind / Battle Of Jericho / Buddy Bolden’s Blues / Careless Love / The Whale Has Swallowed Me / Winin’ Boy / Swanee River / Dear Old Southland / Hallelujah I Love Her So / Let Them Talk / Tipitina