Urban Folk music reviews

I have been listening to Luka Bloom for years, have seen him in concert only once. I love this CD, he is always surprising yet still "himself" - love these songs, he just keeps getting better and better!

Luka Bloom's new CD Innocence has been getting a work out in my iTunes the past couple weeks. I'm listening to it right this minute, as a matter of fact. And the more I listen to it, the more I love it. The new CD is understated, and quiet in places to the point where you might almost miss the power that is there in the lyrics, guitar and Bloom's rich voice. He says of the new record: "The whole story of this album is interesting and different. Life is an endless stream of challenges, and for this singer, the most important ingredient to hang on to is our innocence and wonder at the world". That sense of wonder is on display all over this album, with songs about such simple joys as the coming of Spring, a young girl's trip to the beach with her parents, the power of forgiveness and summer sunshine.

On Innocence, he moves effortlessly from songs that display the sense of humor that is often seen in a Luka Bloom penned lyric (Doing The Best I Can), to a simple, beautiful instrumental (Peace On Earth), to a really haunting version of his well known famine immigration ballad City Of Chicago. He tells a story of modern immigration into Ireland in No Matter Where You Go, There You Are. No stranger to political statements, he takes on The Iraq War in the beautiful I Am Not At War. No stranger to the music of the big world, he won't allow himself to be pigeoned-holed into an "Irish" sound. Listen to Gypsy Music and Venus and you'll see what I mean. And Bloom's song June reminds me of Van Morrison's classic Sweet Thing, and that can't be bad. This is one of those too rare records, for me anyway, that doesn't have a weak spot on it.

I saw Luka Bloom last night in Seattle and bought the CD at the show. The show was fantastic and the CD hasn't stopped playing since. One of the best singer-songwriters of our day. Beautiful guitar and melodies.

This is a wonderful disc, covering a really wide range of European and African music, and makes for a great way explore and increase exposure to quality world music. If you enjoy any one of the artists included here you'll find the others to be equally good.

The line above (from "Doubting Woman") might be the best lyric ever written, or the worst. Or both. If you like it you might like Vic Chesnett, if not steer clear. I find a lot of great stuff on this CD: "Gravity of the Situation" is a brilliant song, and "Thailand" is an example of one where he breaks through the folk singer-songwriter groove and tries a little more sonic noise. I wish that Chesnutt wouldn't write all his songs with the same langorous, downbeat rhythm. A little variation would make it a better CD. But there's no question that the guy knows how to write lyrics.

The line above (from "Doubting Woman") might be the best lyric ever written, or the worst. Or both. If you like it you might like Vic Chesnett, if not steer clear. I find a lot of great stuff on this CD: "Gravity of the Situation" is a brilliant song, and "Thailand" is an example of one where he breaks through the folk singer-songwriter groove and tries a little more sonic noise. I wish that Chesnutt wouldn't write all his songs with the same langorous, downbeat rhythm. A little variation would make it a better CD. But there's no question that the guy knows how to write lyrics.

The line above (from "Doubting Woman") might be the best lyric ever written, or the worst. Or both. If you like it you might like Vic Chesnett, if not steer clear. I find a lot of great stuff on this CD: "Gravity of the Situation" is a brilliant song, and "Thailand" is an example of one where he breaks through the folk singer-songwriter groove and tries a little more sonic noise. I wish that Chesnutt wouldn't write all his songs with the same langorous, downbeat rhythm. A little variation would make it a better CD. But there's no question that the guy knows how to write lyrics.