Bonnie Prince Billy Says Beware

The man, the myth, the legend that is Bonnie Prince Billy has returned once again with a new album entitled Beware. As per usual, Bonnie takes the rustic, countrified route into folk heaven and does a pretty decent job of getting there. No big changes then, but that shouldn't be a surprise because he is Bonnie Prince Billy after all.

Beware is a mellow pastoral stroll through the Bonnie Prince Billy songbook. It's packed to the gills with fiddle, pedal steel, and vocals that long for lost love somewhere else. Beware is a charming album that sounds like traditional country records did 50 years ago. In other words, Beware is dusty, dear, and downtrodden and is sound of heartbreak and soulsearching.

From the painfully titled, "You Can't Hear Me Now," to the the anguish of, "I Don't Belong to Anyone," Bonnie Prince Billy sounds as if he's had a bad time of it. In fact, Beware, seems to be chronicle of depression that unfortunately sounds bloody fantastic. Hopefully, one day Bonnie Prince Billy and his heart will belong to someone, but until that day arrives we can allow celebrate his pain especially if it sounds as good as it does on Beware.

Francois Virot Wants To Know Yes Or No

Francois Virot is a ridiculously busy guy. He's one of those artists that needs to stay busy and constantly find new ways to make music and be creative. When he's not out on the road or making records with his other band, Clara Clara, he finds time to fiddle on his own and that's where his solo record Yes or No comes into play.


Virot's Yes Or No is a folky wee record that's sprightly, jangly, and fiercely melodic. It's a personal record that was recorded with the idea that simple is better. Using nothing but acoustic guitars, hand claps, and various bits of things for percussion, Virot creates a record that's nervous, jumpy, and miraculously good. What could have been a dreadful moany bore is turned into a harmonic convergence of strummy pop thanks to Virot's incessant need to be busy and creative.


Maybe a bit like Beirut, Animal Collective, or even a less produced Simon and Garfunkel, Francois Virot easily creates memorable musical sketches with the bare minimum of materials. It's constantly amazing what Virot can wrangle out of his guitar and yet he does so over and over again. Even at his most melancholic, Virot eeks out a song that's still has a pop sensibility about it and still good.  "Island," serves as a perfect example of Francois Virot's ability to make a big pop song out of next to nothing. Using some strummy riffs on endless repeat and a hand made beat, the song skips along with a chorus that will reel you in; it's a hootin' hollerin' tune of fun and pretty much sums up everything that Yes Or No is about.


Yes Or No is quite listenable and offers so much more than just an average folk record could ever hope to.   It is a jittery folk fueled pop journey that constantly dishes out great songs with little effort, production, or instrumentation. Francois Virot's constant desire to be creative and productive serves him well here as his debut album is a treasure trove of acoustic pop brilliance. With any luck he'll have his follow up record recorded and ready to go by the spring. Here's hoping anyway.

Alela Diane Knows To Be Still

Another day, another folk artist. Today's featured artist is Alela Diane and her followup to 2006's The Pirates Gospel, To Be Still. Rooted in folk and Americana To Be Still is a folksy homely sort of record that sounds something like a more rustic Cat Power. With banjos, gently plucked guitars, and songs that sound as if they were lifted from the Civil War, Alela Diane creates a haunting atmosphere of centuries gone by.


Much of To Be Still sounds like this and very rarely do things sound or even hint at being modern. It's fascinating stuff but it wears out it's welcome after a while, primarily because so many of the songs on To Be Still sound and feel so similar. It's as if they're each a variation on a theme as opposed to their own entity and personality. While I enjoy the rustic and dusty atmosphere that To Be Still creates, it just becomes boring after about 25 minutes.


If you love songs from the American songbook that's long since been rewritten, you'll fall in love with Alela Diane's To Be Still. For those of you who are after something a bit more modern you'll struggle to get your ears around this release.

Michael Claytor and Friends Have An Elephant

The first thing I thought of when I heard Michael Claytor and His Friends was this band is from Florida?  We're not exactly known for producing alt-country bands of any sort of decent caliber, but here MCAHF are, playing it and playing it oh so well.  Their debut album, We Have An Elephant is an elegant, twangy record that sounds like it belongs in the Appalachians and not Gainesville.


Fully embracing countrified pop with enough pedal steel and fiddle to last a lifetime, We Have An Elephant sounds like the best hillbilly record a band from Florida could ever hope to make.  MCAHF are rustic, charming, and really quite good at what they do.   Listening to this record is like spending a day on a lazy river and just letting the songs take you where ever they want.  We Have An Elephant has a free rolling and carefree spirit about it that wins you over almost instantly.

With illusionary lyrics, all over the place, MCAHF create a clever, dusty and lovelorn world where funny things happen.  Just listen to "Alphabet Soup," for a brilliant example of how sharp these guys are with their wordplay.  And that's just the start, We Have An Elephant is loaded with songs that paint pictures with words and create emotional moments with its musical accompaniment.  They might be from Florida but their hearts and minds are in a different time and place.

Michael Claytor and His Friends are a special band and their album We Have An Elephant is a special debut.   It's an album with a down home feel and the kind of record you want to bring home to your mother.  It's a friendly affair that's written and played brilliantly and has to be one of the best records to come out of Gainesville in a very long time.