Hear the Best New Folk Music with Fresh Cuts Friday

Discover the Best New Music of the Week!

We’ve pulled together some of the best new music we’ve heard lately — and you can hear it all on Fresh Cuts, my weekly radio hour. Tune in every Friday at 2pm ET / 11am PT on Folk Alley’s 24/7 stream — available on our website, mobile app, or your smart speaker too.

Prefer to listen on your own time? Just click on the Fresh Cuts stream whenever it works for you.

In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at some exciting new music that’s caught our ears this week!

Tony Trischka, “Maple on the Hill” (feat. Sister Sadie)

Included on an upcoming 2026 album. Tony Trischka’s “Maple on the Hill” features the searing vocal harmonies and dynamic musicianship of bluegrass powerhouse Sister Sadie. Based on a 1939 Carter Family version for radio broadcasts on Mexican border stations, and Earl Scruggs jam sessions captured on cassette in the 1980s and ’90s, Trischka bookends the tune with faithful Scruggs solos, creating a potent mix of tradition and masterful collaboration.

Winterpills, “The Shade”

Massachusetts quintet Winterpills returns with their first album in nine years, This Is How We Dance. Emerging from the hiatus of the pandemic, Winterpills dove hearts-first into crafting the album’s 12 songs, in a string of inspired creative sessions in the band’s living rooms and basements. The resulting album feels at once personal and universal, and showcases the evolution of a band still restless and exploring new ways to collaborate.

Eric Bibb, “This One Don’t”

One Mississippi is the upcoming album from bluesman Eric Bibb (out 1/30/26). Featuring thirteen original songs written or co-written with Grammy-nominated producer Glen Scott, alongside a poignant cover of Janis Ian’s “One Mississippi,” the album is a call for peace, justice, and unity in a divided world.

Louisa Stancioff, “Look at Miss Ohio”

Maine songwriter Louisa Stancioff shows her roots on the new cover of Gillian Welch’s “Look at Miss Ohio.” She shares “I started covering this song when I was on tour opening for Blitzen Trapper last summer. They wanted to invite me on stage to sing a song during their set, and we quickly found that Gillian Welch was a mutual favorite artist… I’d start singing the first line of “Miss Ohio” and the crowd would go wild. It became clear that this song was special to a lot of people.”

More this week on FreshCuts!

Anna Tivel – “Airplane to Nowhere”
Ben Nichols – “The Darkness Sings”
Frazey Ford – “Crazy Love”
Kathleen Edwards – “Little Pink Door”
Margo Price – “Don’t Let the Bastards Get You Down”
Rory Block – “Me and My Chauffeur Blues”
The Steel Wheels – “Easy”
Tommy Emmanuel – “Black and White to Color”
Wild Horses – ‘When I Was Younger”