MIK SABIERS savours the first headline solo show of the stalwart of Brighton’s indie-punk outfit Blood Red Shoes
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Hopeless romanticism as old as the hills
IAN SINCLAIR reviews albums by HC McEntire, A Grave With No Name, and Ghost Music
New releases reviewed by IAN SINCLAIR
STEVEN ANDREW is moved beyond words by a historical account of mining in Britain made from the words of the miners themselves
CAILEAN MCBRIDE welcomes a refreshing and timely study of the way officialdom creates structures that exclude LGBT+ rights and humanity
The bard mourns the loss of comrades and troubadours, and looks for consolation with Black Country Jess
CHRIS MOSS relishes the painting and the life story of a self-taught working-class artist from Warrington
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by a star-studded adaptation of Ibsen’s play that is devoid of believable humanity
HC McEntire
Lionheart
(Merge Records)
★★★★
THE DEBUT solo album from the frontwoman of Mount Moriah, Lionheart is inspired by the American South, the Bible and the desire to challenge the hetero-normative ideology of country music.
HC McEntire recorded the songs at home in North Carolina, with assistance from a bevy of talented musicians including Angel Olsen, Tift Merritt and guitar virtuoso William Tyler. The smouldering romance of opener A Lamb, A Dove sets the tone, with McEntire singing: “I have found heaven/In a woman’s touch/Come to me now/I’ll make you blush.”
Elsewhere, she stirs in gospel, folk, blues and rock. Quartz In The Valley swings along nicely with some great freewheeling piano, with McEntire’s vocals reminiscent of Marianne Faithfull singing The Ballad of Lucy Jordan.
Sounding as old as the hills, it’s a beautiful, deeply impressive record that fans of Lucinda Williams and Emmylou Harris will lap up.
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