Alasdair Roberts

Scottish singer-songwriter Alasdair Roberts has had a penchant for the folk tales of his homeland. Their themes of drinking, love and death have a timeless quality that he has effortlessly interpreted without making them seem dated. On his latest album The Amber Gathers Roberts has crafted 11 originals that weave the classic themes of these tales into his own compositions. They retain the same effortless feelings of wisdom and timelessness but the music has been updated a bit; and his past work with Will Oldham shines through in a feeling of worn immediacy that tugs at your emotions in ways that classic folk songs might not. When the feeling turns celebratory you can't help but want to toast along with him and when he turns the tone around to lamentation you can easily mourn along. Like similarly displaced musicians Tom Brosseau and Jolie Holland he uproots feelings of the past; simpler times when music was the only distraction from life's troubles, times when folk tales were the music of the people. Robert's new album is out soon on Drag City records.

Download:
[MP3] Alasdair Roberts-The Old Men of the Shells
[MP3] Alasdair Roberts-Waxwing