Hear the Best New Folk Music with Fresh Cuts Friday
Every week, we get treated to a pile of new music on our desks. OK, a lot of it comes digitally. But, regardless, we are inclined as ever to share some highlights with you. Below you’ll find five tracks that the FA staff is loving right now. All of them are featured on Cindy Howes’s Fresh Cuts show, which you can hear every Friday at 2pm ET/11am PT. (Or just click on the Fresh Cuts playlist here our website or on the Folk Alley app, and enjoy the best new music anytime that suits you!)
Steve Forbert – “Buffalo Nickel”
Steve Forbert’s new album Moving Through America—his 23rd studio recording—is out today, May 13. True to the theme of the album, on “Buffalo Nickel,” he moves through America along the path of Westward Expansion, tackling the impact of white folks have had on Native culture.
Rebolu – “La Sorpresa (The Surprise)”
Combining two Afro-Carribbean dance rhythms—puya and chalupa—this Queens, NY-based group is at the forefront of the City’s New Colombian music movement. “La Sorpresa” sees them all working together to drive the rhythm of this absolute jam.
Anais Mitchell – “Any Way You Come”
An expanded version of Anais Mitchell’s recent, self-titled release just dropped, featuring a couple of previously unreleased tracks. This love song stunner is one of them and will no doubt delight her many fans.
Kentucky-based singer-songwriter releases this heartbreak tune from her new album Teeth Marks (due June 3). It’s inspired by the loud calls of the cicadas that she could hear on her back porch one summer when she was going through some bad heartbreak.
Joan Shelley – “Amberlit Morning”
This new song from singer-songwriter Joan Shelley comes from a collection she recorded in Kentucky while she was pregnant with her first child. The album, The Spur, is due June 24. She wrote much of it during Covid quarantine, when the music was a balm for so many—even more so than usual.
