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!
Lucinda Williams, “So Much Trouble in the World” (feat. Mavis Staples)
World’s Gone Wrong, Lucinda’s new album (out Jan 23) features “So Much Trouble in the World,” a powerful new duet with Mavis Staples. The long-awaited collaboration and a centerpiece for Williams’ topical album brings new gravity to Marley’s message.
Mon Rovîa, “Old Fort Steel Trail”
Out today, Bloodline is the highly anticipated debut album from Liberia-born musician Mon Rovîa. Born into civil war, he was later adopted by missionaries and moved to the U.S., settling in Tennessee. The debut album marks the culmination of years spent searching for meaning and stitching together the fragments of a past marked by displacement and rebirth.
Langhorne Slim, “Dream Come True”
The Dreamin’ Kind (out Jan 16) finds Langhorne Slim strapping on an electric guitar and embracing his longtime love of larger-than-life rock & roll. “Dream Come True” however, is folky and banjo-based, so it looks like he can’t fully escape his love of roots.
The new album from Queen Esther, Blackbirding (out Feb 2), features the song “Hold Steady.” It’s an anthem of endurance for those who are left to fight alone. Rooted in the blood-soaked soil of Gettysburg and echoing through Black modern resistance movements, this track is a rallying cry for the forgotten, the overlooked, and the unwavering.
More this week on Fresh Cuts!
Anna Tivel – “Swan Song”
Courtney Marie Andrews – “Little Picture of a Butterfly”
Eric Bibb – “Muddy Waters”
The Foreign Landers – “I Am a Youth Inclined to Ramble”
Grace Givertz – “Midnight Feature”
The Lowest Pair – “The Uncertain Seas”
The McDades – “Peggy-O”
Steve Poltz – “If It Bleeds It Leads”
Tom Paxton & John McCutcheon – “Pathfinder”
