Ida Wenoe TIME OF GHOSTS. Songcrafter Music

Danish Music Award nominee Ida Wenoe is excited to announce the UK release of her debut solo album TIME OF GHOSTS. Clash Magazine described her sound as being “bewitching acid folk with a deeply personal edge…” and Paul Lester in The Guardian WROTE “she sounds like the young narrator of her own magical-malevolent fantasies…”. While she has an obvious appreciation of Americana, her sound is laced with more English undertones: the kind of sound Edward Woodward might have heard downstairs in the local inn had the Wicker Man been filmed in a remote Danish village. Like the best of the Nordic Noir leaving the Danish mainland, the recordings are at once both sonically pure and grimy; there’s a shared loneliness that makes you feel that you’re not at all; and all the while there is an honesty to the songwriting that tugs at your sleeve. While still fronting the much-feted Boho Dancer, 2014 brought a successful collaboration with Dangers of The Sea, a series of sold out supports in Denmark with Teitur, and a
spate of tremendously well received shows both in London and at The Great Escape in Brighton.

The album opens to reveal a fragile young female voice and plucked acoustic guitar. ‘Changing Of Seasons’ flows gently along with well-judged chorus male backing vocal and underpinned by a strong melody. It’s a delicate and distinctive folk song and indicative of what follows. ‘What Is The April Moon?’ opens with angelic multi-layered backing vocals before Wenoe’s voice arrives with that mesmerising voice and percussive sounds ring out. There’s another strong melody and an overall sound that provides the artist with a simple, distinctive and distinguishing sound.

‘Time Of Ghosts’ enters pop territory with the most solid melody and choruses here. There’s a lightness of touch with brass sounds adding to the song’s optimistic and fun vibe. ‘How Cold The Winter’ is an illustration of the artist’s grasp of lyric writing: “I know the children; I’ve seen the birth/Of something peculiar up north/The grey in their eyes, the dust in their skin/The black of their pupils, the smog within.” In the background is a thudding percussive sound like someone fisting a table…’I Am On Your Side’ sees the return of scraping guitar strings in one of the most beautiful songs here.

This is a lovely album with judicious production that reveals every fragile sound while separating out some adventurous percussive sounds. The acoustic guitar work is wonderful. If you love folk music with a Scandinavian twist, you must try this album.

4/5

Matthew Logan Vasquez DOES WHAT HE WANTS. Dine Alone Records

Vasquez’s fiery delivery and thoughtful lyrics draw from a huge array of influences, including Kurt Cobain, Neil Young and Iggy Pop. After releasing INTO THE WIDE, Delta Spirit’s critically acclaimed fourth album, Vasquez moved with his wife and newborn child to Texas to work as a solo artist. The resulting AUSTIN EP saw Vasquez go completely solo, as he manned every instrument featured on the album.

Vasquez’s songwriting credentials again shone through on his debut LP SOLICITOR RETURNS, which was released merely four months later. His second solo full length, titled DOES WHAT HE WANTS, sees Vasquez continue to refine his own brand of psych rock.

A few years ago I covered a live performance in Manchester by a USA band called Delta Spirit. The initial reason for my interest was the band’s debut album release which quickly became one of my top albums of the year. The live performance was inspiring. Leading the band was Vasquez who at the time was one of the best frontmen I have seen. This album opens with a blistering rock performance of a song called ‘Same’. I was struck by how different from Delta Spirit music this was being firmly in the heavy blues rock genre (and perhaps the reason why he decided to go solo). It’s a stunning track with great instrumentals, exciting soul-style backing vocals, strong melody and dashes of brass that helps distinguish the song from other rock ditties. Then comes ‘Fatherhood’, a slow contemplative song with solid backbeat underpinned by a solid melody and compelling echoed vocal.

‘Fires Down In Mexico’ opens with exuberant backing vocals before MLV enters briefly before those backing vocals return. This song introduces string and guitar sounds that sound vintage Beatles. ‘Tall Man’ battens down the hatches with a slow and gentle country ballad that really showcases the artist’s wide ranging voice. There’s an A and B side to the album the difference being that side B is similar in sound to Delta Spirit. ‘The Fighter’ is the standout song here which opens with the spoken word before sighing backing vocals introduce MLV’s expressive and sincere vocal. The song is about the artist finding his faith during a difficult spell in his life. It’s totally beautiful. ‘Headed West’ is also biographical and is about the artist’s move to Texas. The initial instrumental vibe is pure cinematic cowboy country which returns at several points in the song’s passage. ‘The Informant’ is an acoustic gem with an expressive vocal lighting up the relatively dark vibe. It’s another beauty. This is one great album with diverse pace and mood, and is highly recommended.

4.5/5