Hear the Best New Folk Music with Fresh Cuts Friday
January has been a slow month for new releases in the folk and roots music realms, but that all changes today.
Numerous artists are dropping new albums today—and even more have announced exciting new albums to look forward to in the coming months.
We’ve got a little taste of all of it, as always, thanks to DJ Cindy Howes and her Fresh Cuts Radio Hour. You can tune into Folk Alley on the website, app, or via your smart speaker at 2 p.m. Eastern, 11 a.m. Pacific, or just click on the Fresh Cuts stream whenever it’s convenient for you.
Rachel Baiman – “Self Made Man”
This song is based on a song fragment from a John Hartford album that his family put out after he passed on. Baiman was moved by what she heard and reimagined it into a song of her own, from her forthcoming Common Nation of Sorrow album (due March 31 on Signature Sounds).
Nickel Creek is back with a new album—their first studio album since 2014’s A Dotted Line. The new album, Celebrants, they say, is about “embracing the friction inherent in real human connection.” It’s due March 24 via Thirty Tigers.
Chris Smither – “Outside Inside”
This song sees Smither covering his late friend Billy Conway, from a new tribute album called Further On (out this week), which sees Conway’s friends and collaborators recording and interpreting songs he left behind.
Aoife O’Donovan – “I Love You But I’m Lost”
This song is the latest from O’Donovan’s The Apathy Sessions—a deluxe edition of her Age of Apathy album, including several bonus tracks and collaborations. This track sees her tackling a cover of a Sharon Van Etten song.
Elise Diedhiou – “Aline Sitoe”
This is a song from a new compilation coming in February from Smithsonian Folkwys, focusing on the music of the ekonting—a three-string gourd instrument that is a likely predecessor to the banjo. Diedhiou is one of few women ekonting players, and the first to become a professional player.
