LITM Singer-songwriter brings you tunes brought to you by Joshua Caleb Smith, Dryadic, Bishopskin, Eddie Cohn and Vanngo.
Joshua Caleb Smith – "Barkeep"
"Barkeep" has the feel of being recorded in a dark bar where secrets flow more freely than booze. Joshua Caleb Smith doesn't simply sing- he tells secrets. His voice is worn but welcoming, like a mix between gravel and benevolence, the sort that could tell an old Western or forgotten love letter. The production is bare to its essence- rootsy, smoky, cinematic. It's no wonder that Smith's songs have strayed into television and cinema; it creates pictures without a camera. Each note in "Barkeep" sounds lived-in, as if an old tale told too often and yet never quite the same twice. There's toughness here, but also exposure- the delicate balance of sheen and hurt. Imagine Chris Stapleton drinking bourbon with Bruce Springsteen. "Barkeep" isn't a song, though- it's a subdued confession cloaked in Americana poetry.
2. Dryadic – "Redevelop Our Souls"
If folk-rock were going to have a protest march, "Redevelop Our Souls" would be headlining with a flute and a raised fist. Dryadic's EP lead is half-anthem, half-city sermon, and fully heart. Zora's voice comes in like a call to arms- velvety and volcanic- cutting through the din of contemporary politics. The words cut deep: "Flattened, demolished, do away with the old," she warbles, and you can hear the bulldozers of capital grinding in the distance. The group stacks percussion and melody like a hand-painted banner- raw, intimate, and impossible to overlook. It's hard to find a song this politically sounding, this alive; rather than sermons, Dryadic offer up a track that moves. The combination of folk instruments and contemporary edge makes "Redevelop Our Souls" sound ageless, as if Joan Baez suddenly plugged in and had tea with Florence Welch and sparked a revolution.
3. Bishopskin – "Doggerland"
"Doggerland" is not a song- it's an archaeological excavation to music. Bishopskin have transformed the vanished land between Britain and Europe into a folk-rock Atlantis, and the process is wonderful. The track feels liquid: violins ripple like waves, clarinets drift like sea mist, and Tiger Nicholson’s voice rises and falls like the tide. It’s history made emotional- melancholic, mythic, and mesmerising. The interplay between Nicholson and Tati Gutteridge feels ritualistic, as if they’re summoning forgotten spirits from beneath the channel. By the time the last swell arrives, you don't know whether you've heard a song or seen a myth being remade. It's brazen, textured, and full of guts- proof that Bishopskin are more than musicians, they're sonic mapmakers charting the affective coast between punk, folk, and the divine. "Doggerland" leaves you soggy- in sound, story, and reverence.
4. Eddie Cohn – "Get Back My Way"
Eddie Cohn's "Get Back My Way" is the musical equivalent of a storm-swept dawn- gritty, radiant, and gloriously human. There's a veteran authenticity here, a nod to the golden age of rock in the 90s when songs actually mattered and voices cracked up for good cause. You can hear bits of Eddie Vedder creeping into Cohn's delivery- earthy, impassioned, but with his own indie spin. The song starts from a coarse-strung guitar growl and ends up being a cathartic anthem for finding your truth again. It's less "rock song" and more "emotional return narrative." The cello creeps in on us like a secret weapon, adding cinematic bombast to the whole affair. What makes it land the hardest, though, is Cohn's belief. You trust every syllable. "Get Back My Way" isn't nostalgic; it's a self-takeover, loudly. This is music that rolls up its sleeves and gets down to business.
5. VANNGO – "Tears Fall Like The Rain"
VANNGO's "Tears Fall Like the Rain" is heartbreak with a halo—stripped, simple, and achingly lovely. It's the sort of song that does not demand attention; it deserves silence. A ghostly violin, an acoustic guitar, and VANNGO's voice- cracked like an old photograph. It's refreshingly raw in an era of overproduced pop music, the type of song you listen to at 1 a.m. when your chest aches but you don't know why. It's what makes it magical- the balance- it aches, but it heals. You can almost hear him treading the thin line between despair and acceptance, with each breath an exhale of memory. There is grittiness in the vulnerability and poignancy in the sadness, such as rain on a summer evening. "Tears Fall Like the Rain" is not only sorrowful- it's real. VANNGO has made breakups into a hymn.
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