Basic Folk

Former trumpet player and anxious adventurer Caroline Cotter had been constantly on the move performing hundreds of live shows since 2015. At the dawn of the pandemic she had a full album in the can and ready to go. When the world shut down, so did she. She set her songs to the side and didn't pick up her guitar for a long while. She left her city of Portland, Maine and headed even more north...

Jobi Riccio has only begun to scratch the surface of what they have to offer on their debut album Whiplash . The songwriting is centered around self-discovery and mourning past lives laid alongside super smart country and pop melodies. Our hero grew up an outdoor kid amongst the woods of Red Rocks Parks and Amphitheatre in Colorado. A strong bluegrass community encircled her playing from a very yo...

Curiosity, luck and drive are three words that revolve around singer-songwriter Billy Keane . He was born with all three traits and they are the hallmark of his music, especially his new album Oh, These Days . The seven song cycle was written during the pandemic and right after some very big life changes: he got divorced, quit alcohol and split with his band The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow. He approac...

Bluegrass hero and former weird kid Alice Gerrard strongly believes that traditional music is connected to everyday life. She has said: “When you listen to traditional music you have such a sense of this connectedness of this person’s life. It comes out of the earth.” She was first exposed to folk music while attending Antioch College. Jeremy Foster (her boyfriend at the time, who would become her...

This week we have a Basic Folk hero returning to the pod! Tre Burt is back today, going track by track through his new album, ‘Traffic Fiction.’ I am a longtime fan of Tre’s music, and this new release on Oh Boy Records is my favorite of his records so far. It combines what fans have come to love about Tre’s writing and unmistakable vocal performances with a new infusion of soul and Motown-inspire...

Antje Duvekot confronts trauma with a newfound wisdom and fierceness on her new record, My New Wild West , her best in her 20 plus year career produced by her friend Mark Erelli. To put it plainly, Antje, who moved to America from Germany at age 13, had a really rough time as a teenager. She was transplanted to a totally new universe with a new language she barely understood with unsupportive and...

Your Career vs Your Soul: a debate feat. The Milk Carton Kids (Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan), music journalist and Why Write Host, Kim Ruehl , Isa Burke (Lula Wiles, Aoife O’Donovan), musician and Basic Folk guest host lizzie no and yours truly, Cindy Howes, boss of Basic Folk. It's Folk Debate Club, our occasional crossover series with fellow folk-pod Why We Write ! I’d like to think that...

Podcaster, #1 hit songwriter, human and dog mother, gay icon Jenny Owen Youngs returns with her first full length album since 2012! In the last decade plus, Jenny has experienced a wild ride of changes like divorce, extreme grief, moving across the country, remarrying, etc. Her main project while not writing, recording and tour, she hosts podcasts like the very successful Buffering The Vampire Sla...

Milwaukee singer-songwriter Buffalo Nichols returns to Basic Folk today to talk about his new album, ‘ The Fatalist ,’ out September 15 from Fat Possum Records. We picked up where Nichols’ debut album left off, traveling the world hot on the heels of the blues. Following a profound tradition can be just as frustrating as it is romantic. In his years on the road promoting his self-titled debut albu...

Sisters Leah Song & Chloe Smith grew up in Urban Atlanta, they also lived in New Orleans and outside of Asheville. The pair are deeply rooted in their Southern identity as evidenced in their band, Rising Appalachia . Although their parents are not professional musicians, music was a constant part of the family. Their parents were dedicated students of early Appalachian music. The sisters playe...

Lancaster-born, Nashville-based Nina de Vitry ‘s debut album, What You Feel is Real , shines while showcasing her passion for jazz and folk music. de Vitry’s name may sound familiar, as she comes from a musical family and is the youngest sister of folk superstar Maya de Vitry (formerly of The Stray Birds). She grew up fiddling around the campfire, while being classically trained on the violin and...

Ben Harper has a deep connection to music through his family, who own a a very special music store in the Inland Empire of California. The legacy of the store is founded on ensuring its community always has access to music. That legacy has deeply impacted the type of person Ben Harper continues to be throughout his artistic life. He’s been a musician who has given so many artists their start (very...

Canadian-born, New York based banjo person Taylor Ashton’s second solo album, Stranger to the Feeling, was recorded on a coast to coast road trip during 2021. These were the two weeks post-vaccine where we thought everything was A-OK, so Ashton and producer Jacob Blumberg set out on a recording adventure that included collaborations with friends new and old. Ashton, who’s since become a new parent...

The headline for Los Angeles-based Raye Zaragoza 's new album Hold That Spirit is that after she broke off her engagement, she used her wedding budget to fund the recording. She wrote the songs the year she turned 30 while she was thinking of the expectations placed on women in society to have everything together at a certain age: marriage, kids, career, etc. She's decided to let those exp...

It’s been ten years since Boston-area Meg Hutchinson has released an album and she did it super quietly, so no shade if you didn’t realize that your favorite middle sister is back with some seriously devastating songs. Meg grew up just outside of Great Barrington, MA where she had an idyllic childhood surrounded by woods and framed by her desire to become a folk singer. That dream was realized aft...

Basic Folk is thrilled to interview The Bluegrass Situation's July 2023 Artist of the Month : Molly Tuttle ! Quickly becoming The Bluegrass American Idol, Molly Tuttle's new album City of Gold is hot off the heels of her Grammy-award winning 2022 record Crooked Tree , which also got her a nomination in one of the coveted "Big Four" categories: Best New Artist. Aaand we know that WE...

Kara Jackson has a mind like a diamond and a voice like maple syrup. She has always been drawn to music as a medium, but you probably first heard of her as the National Youth Poet Laureate. Cutting her teeth as a performing poet gave Jackson a huge public platform as well as a sense of how form can be a foundation for expression. Now, at the ripe age of 23, Jackson has released her stunning debut...

Tim O'Brien is one of Bluegrass' beloved players, from his work with the innovative Hot Rize to his yearly appearances at The Telluride Bluegrass Festival. He's just released his first album of all original material, which is something to be said for his 50 year career. At 69 years old, it's no surprise that the theme of aging pops up on quite a few of his new songs. He opens up ab...

I am feeling #blessed and #grateful to be sharing today’s interview with our listeners. Brian Dunne is one of my dearest pals in the music biz, not to mention one of my favorite songwriters working today. Brian’s songs are always clever and sincere, dark and fun, honest and imaginative. He’s got a way with words, a killer voice, and big time rock star vibes. These are a few of the reasons why “Los...

Is mandolinist Ethan Setiawan 100 years old?! The Indiana-born Setiawan's expert playing will fool you into thinking he's four times his actual age. Thanks to a supportive family and mennonite community, Ethan came to the mandolin and folk music at an early age. His impressive proficiency and technical prowess landed him a full scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston. There, he w...

Urgency and patience are the two poles of New England songwriter Caitlin Canty ’s magnetism. Her music invites you to quiet moments of reflection with unhurried confidence. When I first heard her song “Get Up” in 2015 I felt like I was receiving a very important magical message. Canty’s subsequent releases have further revealed her uncanny talents for grooving at the right tempo, describing the me...

Rissi Palmer and Miko Marks have been laying the foundation for country musicians and fans who are Black for almost 20 years. Back in the early 2000's both women experienced the trials and tribulations of being Black women in country. Despite their success and large growing fanbase, both were separately discouraged by the ceilings and roadblocks they encountered from the white-dominated indust...

Welcome to  Folk Debate Club , our occasional crossover series with fellow folk-pod  Why We Write ! Today, to discuss Lyrics vs Melody, we welcome our panel of guests: music journalist and former singer/songwriter,  Kim Ruehl ,  Isa Burke  (Lula Wiles, Aoife O’Donovan), illustrious male folk singer  Willi Carlisle , musician and Basic Folk guest host  lizzie no , and yours truly,  Cindy Howes , bo...

Lately I have been fascinated by musicians who are creative not only in what they create, but also in terms of how they share it. This curiosity has made me a fan of Matt Sucich, an artist who has cultivated a passionate fanbase via his live performances, instagram livestreams, and thoughtful email newsletter. We are living in a moment of history where there is more music available than ever befor...

Fiddler  Hanneke Cassel  has been a big Celtic star for decades and comes to the pod to try and teach me the difference between Irish and Scottish music. Just kidding all you Hanneke-heads! …. But seriously, she helps me keep some things straight. She’s been fusing all different styles of music for a long time and her latest album  Infinite Brightness  weaves her signature flowing Celtic style alo...