From all indie genres, Folk seems to have a special place in our hearts. We can't help to get back to folk songs when we look for some calm and inspiration. When we want to hope for a nice dream. Or when we are feeling in the mood for some very well told stories. As an honour to those feelings, this series is entitled TIFU (Today I Folked Up). Only folk songs from new folk artists. To let you and ourselves go.
Aisha Badru – Lazy River
Singer/songwriter Aisha Badru returns with the gossamer folk-pop single “Lazy River,” a stunning introduction to her upcoming EP, Learning To Love Again, out June 2 via Nettwerk. “Lazy River” sits at the heart of Learning to Love Again and is a thrilling departure for Aisha. A culmination of her personal and musical awakenings, it finds the singer stretching her oft-whispery voice to sweeping effect.
“It’s this freeing of myself and allowing myself to try things that people would not expect of me,” she says of her vocals. “I feel more comfortable not meeting those expectations.” On the meaning of the song, she adds, “It’s about the healing process after loss. Emotional healing is a journey. True healing takes time and there should be no shame or urgency in any step of the process.”
Deer Fellow – The Culprit
Deer Fellow, an indie folk-pop duo hailing from Austin, boasts exceptional songwriting abilities. Matt Salois, who handles guitar and vocals, and Alyssa Kelly, a multi-talented member who contributes to the band with her violin, vocals, and piano skills, first met at an open mic event where they quickly bonded and started working together. As time progressed, they evolved into a couple and continued to develop their cross-genre sound, with music evoking feelings of both love and heartbreak.
“The Culprit” is an indie folk-pop track that delves into the regrets of the past, a song that takes the listener on a guilt trip. We often find ourselves playing mind games and blaming others for our misfortunes, when the actual cause may lie within us. The lively guitar rhythms and playful percussion bring this track to life, while the lyrics depict a web of self-deprecating thoughts. This song is the third single from the upcoming sophomore EP, “Unraveling“.
DM Stith – Doomed!
DM Stith is a Brooklyn-based singer, composer, and visual artist whose work explores memory and introspection through a unique combination of acoustic arrangements with electronic beats and flourishes, carried by a dense layering of emotive vocals. In 2018, Stith mined his extensive catalog of work and brought to light cast-off album directions, covers, and collaborations, presenting them as expressions that tell both the story of the past and of the future, gleaming with a little extra sweetness as they exist between worlds.
DM Stith, who has previously released music on Asthmatic Kitty and Octave Recordings, is set to release a new LP titled “Fata Morgana” on April 14th via Historical Fiction Records. The first single from the album, “Doomed!“, showcases a transformed Stith, who recently moved to Rochester, New York, from Brooklyn, where he spent the last decade. The relocation offered him a fresh perspective, which is reflected in the new track’s playful yet insightful tone. The single was mostly recorded in his new studio, co-produced by Thomas Bartlett (Yoko Ono, Florence + the Machine, St. Vincent), and hints at a new chapter for the artist.
Grandfather Machine – Hear It Running (Old Bones)
Grandfather Machine is the solo endeavour of Producer/Songwriter Farin Hite. For this release, the project trully encapsulates the spirit of indie folk, with ambient and cinematic songwriting, wrapping it together with 80s synth production ala Peter Gabriel “So” era. “Hear It Running (Old Bones)” instrumentation is truly unique, including Mandolin, Pedal Steel, Saxophone, and various vintage synthesizers. Lyrically, the track explores the feeling of being young, but feeling old…. and conversely, being old, and feeling young (depending on how to interpret the lyrics). Grandfather Machine plans to release an album in 2023, with featured artists Andrew Bayer, Alex Siegel, Jeff Fettig, Benny Gebert and more.
Joy Autumn – All Apologies
After a successful run releasing her last record, “Midnight” where Joy found herself on the 2019 first-round GRAMMY ballot, selling out shows at the iconic Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, and featured in renowned publications such as LA Weekly, Autumn eventually packed her bags and moved home to Olympia, WA during the pandemic, leaving her the space to rediscover herself and revisit her sound. Joy leans into a communion with nature and her Pacific Northwest roots on her new projects–a moody, ethereal Nirvana cover album, honouring her local songwriting hero, the late Kurt Cobain. Autumn picked songs Cobain wrote during his Olympia years at 114 Pear street, just 2 miles from her childhood home. Her first single from the project, “All Apologies“, was released on February 20th, in honour of Kurt Cobain’s birthday.
Sylvan Weekends – Young and Freewheeling
Sylvan Weekends brings together Matthew (folk), Freya (instrumental-electro) & Daniel (rock). Unified vocals from co-writers Matthew & Freya lend a nostalgic feel – one octave up resonates at twice the frequency and both voices together cut through with emotional resonance. The addition of synths and clever percussion drive the songs and make you move.
“Young and Freewheeling“, their latest single was out on 15th February 2023. It’s a trip down memory lane, an invitation to remember the joy of pelting down the road full tilt, in a world before adult worries became real. It’s an invitation to return to that carefree way of being. In the music video, the trio returned to… well, being children. Freya, Matthew & Daniel spent a chilly January day in freezing Dungeness, messing about with bicycle trailers, double-speed singing, and working out who was light enough to ride in the kid’s trailer filming and who was strong enough to pull the others along.
Will the Whale – Blue and Pink
Will the Whale is the solo project of Will Boesl (they/them), a child of a child of the sixties. Their sound is gentle and kind, with songs born from their meditation practice and filtered through their love of sixties folk rock and psychedelia.
“Blue and Pink“ is Will the Whale‘s “coming out” song as Will publicly announces their perfectly-weird nonbinary self to the world for the first time. The song aligns with their recent mantra of being self-unapologetically as it is a direct copy/paste from a journal. “Originally part of therapy homework, the lyrics are a conversation between my younger self and me. Music has been and forever will be my primary mode of self-discovery. This song was a central part of processing, naming, and expressing my preferred pronouns (they/them). It’s gifted me so much clarity and I hope it helps at least one other person be comfortable in who they are“. “Blue and Pink” is a part of “Only Things of the Heart Remain” a 10-song album produced by Bennett Littlejohn (Hovvdy, Katy Kirby) which was out February 24th.
All these songs (and all previous songs featured in TIFU) are also featured on our folk playlist. Follow it on Spotify: