Over the years I have occasionally shared sets of recent music that I liked, and have done so in both April and May, so it seems a plan to do it again for songs that came out in June. As always, they are a mixed bunch, so I hope you find something among them to enjoy.

You may recall that last month I played some songs by Merry Hell, one of my favourite English folk bands, in SLS: Let The Music Speak For Itself, in which I featured their compilation album of that title. They have a new album out (highly recommended by me) and last week released the first single from it. In commenting on YouTube I mentioned that I would be playing it in a blog post and, nice people that they are, they asked me to let them have the link so that they could share it too. So, in hope, here is their new record:

That was Only Love, from Merry Hell’s new album Rising Of The Bold. Like everything they do, the album is full of great tunes and songs with intelligent lyrics, and this is a good example of both. As the band say on their YouTube page: “It asks the question ‘What is real in a digital world?’ Who and what can you trust and the effects that may have, especially on our younger members of society. All this is accompanied by an irresistible beat, that will have you dancing wherever you are!” Sounds fair to me! I have all of their albums, and their fabulous ‘year in the life’ DVD, and suggest that you follow them up if you enjoyed this one.

A change in style for my next new tune. I’ve played several of her songs before, as befits the one I think is the most talented in her family, by a country mile. This is Noah Cyrus, with Blake Shelton:

New Country is very much a song for these times, and is a suggestion of how to look forward when things aren’t going well, and how to tackle the future (rather an understatement in relation to the US, I think!). Noah has released several EPs, both solo and in collaboration, and one full length album, 2022’s The Hardest Part, which made both the Country and Americana charts in the UK. This song is on her new album, I Want My Loved Ones To Go With Me, which is due out on 11 July. Three tracks have been released to date, and all are really good: you may remember that I played one of them, I Saw The Mountains, last month, but couldn’t resist another this time!

Last week I gave you A Little Quirky Music, in which I shared a band who, though they have been in existence since 2014, were new to me. They are Little Quirks, and from the comments you seemed to like them. It was almost as if they were waiting for me to find them, as the day after my post they released a new single and video, just too late for me! But it gives them a second airing, as I’m playing that new one today:

Little Quirks, with Honey. Like everything they do, be it covers or, like this one, their own songs, it is catchy and full of the fun they bring to their music. The band comprises sisters Abbey and Mia Toole (on guitar and drums, respectively), their cousins Alex and Jaymi Toole (mandolin and bass guitar), and their friend Jordan Rouse on electric guitar. I think they are very talented and there are loads of videos on YouTube if you want to see more.

Another return visitor is up next. This one also shows my folk music leanings:

That was Patty Gurdy and The Dragon From Lowerhill, a track on her most recent album Tavern, which was released last November. Given the setting for this video I think I know where she took the album’s title from! Patricia Büchler, aka Patty Gurdy, is German, though her command of English is excellent, and she frequently posts in English – both speaking and in writing – on her Facebook page. She is also one of those artists who responds to comments made by fans, rather than leaving it to her ‘team’ to do the work, which is always good for brownie points from me, and she is an absolute delight. Her commitment to supporting mental health issues is to be admired, too, especially after she lost just about everything in the floods that hit Europe a few summers ago. She has played in several bands and has had a number of musical collaborations, including one with Faun, another band who you may have noticed that I really like. She took up the hurdy gurdy in 2014, and is making a mark for herself with it. It is an instrument that is clearly important to German folk bands: Faun also has a hurdy gurdy player.

Completing this run of four female lead vocals is someone who made her name as a virtuoso on guitar and banjo – she teaches both – and is from the American bluegrass tradition. Her new album, So Long Little Miss Sunshine, is due for release on 15 August, and the first track to be released from it suggests a bit of a change in direction, as to my ears this is very much a pop singer-songwriter tune. See what you think:

That was Molly Tuttle with That’s Gonna Leave A Mark – as I said, not much of a hint of bluegrass in that, was there? But I like to see musicians who don’t wed themselves to one style, but try new things: I really like this song and am looking forward to the album. I’ve played several of Molly’s songs before, notably her cover of the Rolling Stones’ She’s A Rainbow. Molly has suffered from Alopecia Areata since childhood, and wears a wig most of the time. She has said in interviews about how being stared at in public from an early age has enabled her to develop an inner strength, and to become aware of what feminism means for her. Her video for She’s A Rainbow saw her  standing up and supporting others, and her version of the song is absolutely gorgeous.

One more for today, and I’m closing with one of the all time greats. When Van Morrison releases new music I take notice! This one came out last Friday, and is the title track of his new album, which was released the previous week:

Van Morrison, with Remembering Now. That is a beautiful song and such an evocative video, harking back to his childhood memories of growing up in a divided city, though he had actually moved away from Belfast before ‘The Troubles’ really took hold, coming to London in 1964 with his first band – Them (remember Here Comes The Night?). Van released his first album in 1967, and Remembering Now is his 47th – that’s some career! He sounds just as good as ever, and is still writing beautiful songs like this. Long may he continue – he turns 80 at the end of August and is showing no signs of wanting to retire.

That’s a wrap for this month’s musical roundup, and I hope you enjoyed at least one or some of them. It’s probably asking too much for you to have enjoyed them all – you’d have to be me to do that, and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone!

See you again for Song Lyric Sunday, I hope 🎶