WRUV Reviews

Blending heart-on-the-sleeve acoustic ballads with ambient soundscapes. Minimal, tender & pretty vocals. Dark & folky.
PLAY: 1, 2, 3, 4
RIYL: FEIST, SHARON VAN ETTEN, THE XX

This collection can help right the minds of anyone who associates Allman and his brothers with nothing but stoner rock. This is serious blues, both world-weary and immediate. There’s enough variety that DJs should considering listening to the whole disc before settling on any one track.

Lots of finger-picking and slide guitar on this blues-folk album. A great album to mix in with more standard blues.

Great first effort by an actor best known for the TV show House. Laurie’s vocals never rise to the level of the greats, but he’s competent enough that I’d consider this one of the better blues albums of 2011. Check out his duet with Irma Thomas in track 9.

MEMBER OF THE CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS. OLD-TIMEY STRING BAND MEETS INDIE POP WITH AUTOHARP, MANDOLIN, HANDCLAPS AND SKELETAL FUNK BREAKS.
PLAY: 1, 2, 5, 6
FCC: 4
RIYL: CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS

John C. Reilly teamed up with Tom Brosseau and Becky Stark, one at a time, to create two folksy songs with each of them.  All four songs are produced by Jack White, and all four are simple and old-timey.  Reilly is mainly known as an actor, but he sang and played guitar in the Dewey Cox movie.  I suppose this album is his first attempt at music without the shield of comedic intentions, although it’s hard to tell based off of the album cover.

RIYL: Simple country songs

PLAY: 1

FCC: n/a

This album is warm, folky and refreshing. “An album that puts Dutch pop music on the map”, Unicorn Loves Deer is a feel good listen from beginning to end.  Utilizing the midwest and folky feel, Alamo Race delivers. Mostly acoustic instruments add to the overall feel of the album. 8 years since their last release, this change of sound could be compared to The Decemberists’ most recent release.

FCC Clean.   PLAY ALL

Unicorn Loves Dear <– IT WILL GET STUCK IN YOUR HEAD

Bittersweet indie folk from two Swedish sisters. With help from members of Bright Eyes and The Felice Brothers.
PLAY: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10 ALL

RIYL: NEKO CASE, GRAM PARSONS, JUNE CARTER

Dark and pretty acoustic indie folk with vintage vocals, vibraphone, organ, marimba, synths, and marching drums.
PLAY: 1, 2, 4, 7, 8

RIYL: MARYSE SMITH, JOANNA NEWSOM

Swedish guitar-based 60’s-influenced acid folk similar to the “New Weird America/ Freak-folk” sound. Even at its saddest (“Don’t Drown in Sorrows” and “Keep the Sky from Falling Down”) somehow Olausson manages to exude a warmth that, if not cheerful, is quite intimate.  That warmth becomes more apparent wherever Olausson employs bits of melody to balance out his often atonal vocals.  Gently wobbling guitar patterns over stuttering drums gives “Riding on the Wind” a gently messy beauty.  “Neptune”s eastern-sounding classical picking and quiet organ brings in an exotic flair to the psychedelic ramble.  “Engraved Invitation” even sounds as it might have been originally been a syrupy love song – though perhaps one as heard on a warped record being played in a different room. - reviler.org
PLAY ALL: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
RIYL: DEVENDRA BANHART, NICK DRAKE, NEIL YOUNG
Jakob Olausson : Riding on the Wind by destijlrecs