Laurel Canyon Music

24 Blackbush Avenue Chadwell Heath, Romford, England, RM6 5TU United Kingdom

For fans and musicians of Folk, Americana, Country, Blues, Singer-Songwriter, Rock, Roots & Acoustic and music from the Laurel Canyon late 60’s/early 70’s era.

LCM is a new co-operative music community, promoter, event organiser and on-line magazine to promote & support the music that we love. All the latest news, reviews and interviews

LCM is your indispensable insider guide to the wonderful world of independent music and beyond

We aim to help music fans connect and discover great new music and help indie musicians promote their music and help them build relationships with supporters and industry professionals.

Please join us now and explore our website.

We also have some special and exclusive items in our LCM store that you might like.

Filtering by Category: Singer-Songwriter

Namer Of Clouds - Kitty Macfarlane (21/09/18)

July 20, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: Kitty Macfarlane
  • Release Date: 21st September, 2018
  • Genre: Singer-Songwriter, Folk, Contemporary Folk
  • Record Label: Navigator Records
  • Tracks: 11
  • Website: http://www.kittymacfarlane.com/

"Time and tide wait for no man," so the saying goes. But ever since her EP, Tide & Time, came out in 2016, many have been waiting expectantly to hear Somerset singer-songwriter Kitty Macfarlane's debut album. On September 21 the wait will be over as this fine young acoustic artist unveils the beguiling release 'Namer Of Clouds.' Produced by fellow musicians Sam Kelly and Jacob Stoney and released on Navigator Records, this is a captivating album.

Her sharply observed narrative songs are pure poetry, rich with visual imagery and written with an eco-eye – woven loosely together into a theme of mankind's relationship with the wild. Gathering inspiration from the sky to the seabed, Kitty's lyrics touch on intervention and rewilding, climate change and migration and one singular song which is a magical aural tapestry of woman's historical relationship with textiles and the land. The album is augmented by all kinds of 'found sound' recorded in locations from Somerset to Sardinia – birdsong, waterfalls, the click of knitting needles- and is bookended by sounds of the wild.

Recorded partly at The Cube near Truro in Cornwall and partly at Get Real Audio in Bath, 'Namer Of Clouds' features not just the clear, confident voice and finger-picked guitar of Macfarlane but also the in-demand Radio 2 Folk Awards 'Horizon' award winner Sam Kelly on guitar, mandolin and harmony vocals, with some of his talented Lost Boys band members also on the roll call –Graham Coe on cello, Archie Churchill-Moss on melodeon and Jamie Francis, surprisingly not on his trademark banjo, but on electric guitar.

Kitty was a semi-finalist in the BBC Young Folk Award. More recently she has supported Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman on tour, as well as Blair Dunlop.

Now the Bristol-based performer is coming into her own with some remarkably mature songwriting, a marked empathy with the environment and a strong sense of place. Cerebral and classy, honest and immediate, these are not throwaway lyrics or everyday melodies but thought-provoking and evocative compositions with wonderfully crafted soundscapes.

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categories / Singer-Songwriter, Folk Music, Contemporary Folk
tags / Kitty Macfarlane, Namer Of Clouds, LCM New Releases 2018, Debut Album, September 2018

For Everything A Season - Gitta De Ridder (23/03/18)

July 19, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: Gitta de Ridder
  • Release Date:
  • Genre: Singer-Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Pop
  • Record Label: Little Moments Records
  • Tracks: 12 (+1 bonus track on deluxe ed)
  • Website:

'For Everything A Season is a collection of four seasonal EPs, that stand as a metaphor for the cycles we move through in life. A release of quality and depth from the Anglo-Dutch singer and songwriter, this is her second release following her well received debut 'Feathers' in 2016. Best described as high-quality alt-folk, with lyrical and musical complexity, de Ridder has a gift for a memorable hook, and a pop sensibility infuses the work. A deluxe box set containing 4 CDs in wallet with fold out page lyric booklet/mini poster.

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categories / Singer-Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Folk Music, Pop Music
tags / Gitta de Ridder, For Everything A Season, LCM New Releases 2018, March 2018

Just 3 EP - Little Sparrow (13/07/18)

July 13, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: Little Sparrow
  • Release Date: 13th July, 2018
  • Genre: Singer-Songwriter, Acoustic, Pop
  • Record Label: Little Sparrow Music
  • Tracks: 3
  • Website: http://www.littlesparrow.org/  

Having released her debut album ‘Wishing Tree’ to critical acclaim and spending the next couple of years building on this through many successful live performances, Little Sparrow then decided to take some time out to write and record towards her highly anticipated follow up album, which she plans to release in 2019.

Her inspiration for creating the ‘Just 3’ EP was taken from the opportunity she was given in 2016 to perform on the Tim Peaks Diner stage at Kendal Calling as part of an event hosted by BBC Radio 6 & Radio 2 presenter Chris Hawkins.

Also appearing at the festival was much respected composer and musician Robin Dewhurst and suggestion was made by the organisers that Little Sparrow & Robin (along with cellist Sarah Dale) should create & record their own interpretation of 1980’s Madness single ‘Baggy Trousers’ and in addition perform it at the festival.

When performed live the team at Kendal Calling & Tim Peaks FM had this to say: “Little Sparrow & Robin performed the song live to a spellbound crowd on Chris Hawkins Tim Peaks
FM Show, creating a real ‘Kendal Calling’ moment. (It is) one of the best cover versions we have heard in years!"

Having enjoyed the experience they decided to seize this special opportunity to collaborate again and so, with the addition of two Little Sparrow originals, they have created a new EP entitled ‘Just 3’.

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categories / Singer-Songwriter, Acoustic Music, Pop Music
tags / Little Sparrow, Just 3 EP, LCM New Releases 2018, July 2018

Electric Light - James Bay (17/05/18)

June 05, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: James Bay
  • Release Date: 17th May, 2018
  • Genre: Singer-Songwriter
  • Record Label: Universal Records
  • Tracks: 14
  • Website:

Following on from his huge multi-platinum debut album Chaos And The Calm, James Bay returns with Electric Light. Towering, rocky and soulful songs, it sounds like he's grasped influences in electronic music for this release.

“If I had to describe my first album visually it would probably be a flame – while this new album is about a real sonic and artistic evolution for me. The feeling of a 100 watt bulb expanding and brightening is what I envisioned. ‘Electric Light’ came to my mind and I knew it was perfect.”

 

 

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categories / Singer-Songwriter
tags / James Bay, Electric Light, LCM New Releases 2018, May 2018

Shorebound - Ben Glover (04/05/18)

June 05, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: Ben Glover
  • Release Date: 4th May, 2018
  • Genre: Folk, Singer-Songwriter
  • Record Label: Proper Records
  • Tracks: 12
  • Website:

The newfound sounds and shapes that comprise Shorebound mark a moment in Ben Glover's musical history - a moment that nods to the past decade of his artistry even while pivoting into the next era. "I'm a believer in cycles, and 2018 will mark ten years since I released my first album," Glover says, "so it feels very much that this album is a major turning point in a cycle. Shorebound is an acknowledgment of where I am and a celebration of the people who I've gotten here with."

Indeed, collaboration has long filled Glover's career including co-writing the Americana Music Association UK's 2017 International Song of the Year ("Blackbirds") with Gretchen Peters. Playing well with others is something Glover both excels at and enjoys. He joins forces with friends on both sides of the Atlantic for Shorebound, including Peters, Ricky Ross (frontman and songwriter from Scottish rockers Deacon Blue), Mary Gauthier, Kim Richey, Angel Snow, Robert Vincent, Amy Speace, Anthony Toner, and others.

Not only does Shorebound pull together Glover's favorite musical collaborators, it also culls his best life lessons. Where previous albums Atlantic and The Emigrant witnessed him searching for his place in the world, geographically and otherwise, Shorebound finds him more settled, within himself, his career, and his two hometowns of Glenarm, N.Ireland, and Nashville, Tennessee.

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categories / Folk Music, Singer-Songwriter
tags / Ben Glover, Shorebound, LCM New Releases 2018, May 2018

Dancing With The Beast - Gretchen Peters (18/05/18)

June 05, 2018  /  Gary Smith

Gretchen Peters - Dancing With The Beast.jpg
  • Artist: Gretchen Peters
  • Release Date: 18th May, 2018
  • Genre: Contemporary Folk, Singer-Songwriter
  • Record Label: Proper Records
  • Tracks: 11
  • Website:

Dancing with the Beast, the new album from Gretchen Peters, puts female characters at the fore, from teenage girls to old women. And intentionally so. With the 2017 Women's March and the #MeToo Movement as bookends to her writing time, Peters knew that a feminist perspective would be the critical core of the record. She admits, "You can trace the feminist DNA in my songwriting back to 'Independence Day' and probably before. The thing that 2017 did is just put it front and center." Though Peters doesn't consider herself a political writer, she is politically minded and, therefore, knew she had to address the 2016 election and all that has happened since... but in her own way.

There's a bittersweet beauty to the passing of time -- the changes it brings are just as often heartbreaking as they are heartwarming. The inevitable tension that arises from that sway is Gretchen Peters' most trusted muse. With melody supporting that melancholy, the songs on the new album combine to lift the effort over the high artistic bar set by her last outing, 2015's award-winning Blackbirds.

Whether a single sentence or a simple setting, once planted, even the tiniest seed can grow into a vision unto itself. Strung together and populated with strong and broken female heroines, those vignettes make up Dancing with the Beast and, indeed, Peters' entire discography.

Beauty tempered by dread, sorrow buoyed by hope, these are the ever-present tugs of war that make life worth living and songs worth writing. And they are the over-riding themes that make Gretchen Peters one of her generation's most compelling singer/songwriters.

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categories / Folk Music, Contemporary Folk, Singer-Songwriter
tags / Gretchen Peters, Dancing With The Beast, LCM New Releases 2018, May 2018

Unbridled & Ablaze - Zialand (08/06/18)

May 14, 2018  /  Gary Smith

Zialand - Unbridled and Ablaze.jpg
  • Artist: Zialand
  • Release Date 8th June. 21018
  • Genre: Soul-Pop, Singer-Songwriter
  • Record Label: Glittermouth
  • Tracks: 9
  • Website: http://www.zialand.net/

Following her recent singles ‘Landslide’ and ‘Shelter’, the latter of which was played on BBC Scotland, BBC Ulster, Soho Radio, Resonance and Juice FM (Brighton), the Norwegian artist ZIALAND (aka Zia Meyer) will release her new album, ‘Unbridled & Ablaze’ on 8th June. 

A new single entitled ‘Running Cold’ is also scheduled for the early summer. ZIa describes 'Running Cold' as “a song about a friend of mine and the deeply painful relationship she experienced with her alcoholic dad. Her pain was a complicated tapestry woven over time, blended together by watching him distance himself from the people closest to him and her profound love for him and the need for a dad. But her needs were never met because he always chose the bottle. She was the one who found him, barely conscious as he was slipping into a coma. Blood on the floor, on the walls and in the bed. She was the one who cleaned it all up, stayed by his hospital bed and was there as he fought the inevitable. His death wasn’t pretty. "I wanted to honour her and pour some love onto all that pain by writing her this song, bringing a kind of witnessing and a reckoning to it.”

Other highlights on the album include ‘Fever’ (“about living in exile, the vulnerability and precariousness of life in that existence, not knowing what comes next”), the aching ballad ‘Don't Look Down’ (“about a good man losing his partner to illness and his way of loving her is by showing up and being there in all the ways he can”), the powerful ’Shelter’ ("a love letter to my daughter”) and the intense torch song ‘Cleaved’ (“longing for your soulmate, the one you know is out there but not the ‘where’ or ‘how’ or ‘when’ you will meet”).    

Zia thinks of the album as being about “‘in-between' moments, when something is ending and something new beginning. That moment where you finally give way to the transmutation. For anything to move and transcend, something else needs to die or be let go of. To me, these moments are imbued with both the deepest of grief as well as a most delicate beatitude and rapture. I think I’ve always been on the hunt for these moments because they are so elusive."

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categories / Soul Music, Pop Music, Singer-Songwriter
tags / Zialand, Unbridled & Ablaze, LCM New Releases 2018, June 2018

Safe In The Arms Of Time - Rita Coolidge (04/04/18)

May 06, 2018  /  Gary Smith

Rita Coolidge - Safe In The Arms Of Time.jpg
  • Artist: Rita Coolidge
  • Release Date: 4th May, 2018
  • Genre: Folk, Singer-Songwriter
  • Record Label: Blue Élan Records LLC
  • Tracks: 12
  • Website: https://ritacoolidge.net

One of music’s most enduring voices and composers, Rita Coolidge returns to her roots with a stunning new album ‘Safe In The Arms Of Time’, released on May 4th on Blue Elan Records. Along with Rita this musical work of art features the songwriting talents of Graham Nash, Chris Stapleton, Stan Lynch, and Keb’ Mo’.

The album marks the two-time Grammy winner’s return to songwriting, drawing  inspiration for her new material as she often does, from her personal journey and what an epic journey it’s been!

“I’ve written so many songs assuming a role like an actor, but this time I got to write from experience,” says Coolidge, who co-wrote three of the album’s 12 wondrous cuts. “This is the best record I’ve ever done. I’m extremely proud of it.”

In many ways, 'Safe in the Arms of Time’ is both a reflection and a continuation of Rita's remarkable history, one that took flight during the heyday of the ‘70s L.A. music scene when she sang backup on Stephen Stills’ 'Love the One You’re With' and Eric Clapton’s 'After Midnight' (Astute music fans are also well aware of how she contributed the classic – and uncredited – piano coda to Derek & the Dominoes’ Layla) “The idea was making an album that had the same appeal of my early records, to make a roots record about my own roots,” Coolidge says.

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categories / Folk Music, Singer-Songwriter
tags / Rita Coolidge, Safe IN The Arms Of Time, LCM New Releases 2018, May 2018

No. 79 - Gareth Dunlop (11/08/17)

April 18, 2018  /  Gary Smith

  • Artist: Gareth Dunlop
  • Release Date: 11th August, 2017
  • Genre: Singer-Songwriter, Folk
  • Record Label: Priory Records
  • Tracks: 10
  • Website: https://www.garethdunlop.com/

Gareth Dunlop's new album 'No.79' was recorded at his home in East Belfast, Northern Ireland.

“We moved into our house in Belfast about 3 years ago. Spending months at a time away from the house, it just felt right to make this record in my own home. As well as it being somewhere I’m most comfortable, it just has a cool vibe and sound to it, and I wanted to capture that. Something different happens when the studio comes to the musicians… it forces you to approach things differently and think outside of the box. The songs we recorded were all written in the months leading up to the session and I think the emotions of the songs were very much still on the forefront of my mind.”

There are limitations to recording in a house and I wanted to use those restraints as an opportunity to be more creative. It made us all use our instruments in a different way… because we didn’t have a string quartet, we taped up the strings on my old piano to emulate a string part on ‘What It Wants’. That was the story for most days... If we didn’t have it, we had to make it. I spent a couple of weeks driving my family crazy getting the house ready and sound treating the rooms. It wasn’t until we recorded the first take of the first song that I knew it would work. Having great musicians and great friends in my home made the process of recording these songs so much more enjoyable.”          

No. 79
Priory Records
Buy on Amazon
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categories / Singer-Songwriter, Contemporary Folk
tags / Gareth Dunlop, No.79, LCM New Releases 2017, August 2017

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