Music to Chill To - Some Recommendations

Categories: music

Tags: Music

Date: 25 July 2009 09:29:54

The other day Ian commented about how do you find out about interesting music and new music. Well alot of it is trial and error, happening to see the right flyer or happening upon the right tent at a festival. Another element is word of mouth. On that basis I thought today I'd share some recommendations of some stuff worth exploring. Some of it will be familiar to UK and Greenbelt based regulars.....some won't. Some is explictly Christian, some is explicitly secular and some is a mix of the two. Anyway here are few artists you might want to explore. Please feel free to share other recommendations in the comments section.

Gareth Davies Jones is a bit of a Greenbelt regular act and not a bad. Certainly one worth seeking out if you are looking for something to chill to at the festival.

Rose Grigg is a new artist I have come across. Ignoring that she includes Graham Kendrick in her influences her work is really good and has a haunting celtic element to it. Listening to it and looking at the explicitly Christian way she was promoting herself I had to smile to myself. I remember first seeing Martyn Joseph back in 1986 when he was working the Christian curcuit. Rose's work is folk, some of which happens to reflect her faith. Listening to her reminded me though that not all music which markets itself as Christian should be immeadiately written off. Also interesting to follow the links for the CD through and see she appears to be linked to a small Cornish Christian indie company, Soteria, which has a worship music division aswell as doing a magazine and stuff. Any of you who are youth leaders and looking for stuff to link your young people to might find it useful.

I don't know if Transient Frog are still going, but their My Space site also contains some good new music which is more AOR than anything else and is worth exploring.

Brenda Freed is an American singer who has quite an impressive back catalouge and an amazing voice. Her music is sung with a passion that comes out really well in countryish stuff. If you like the Dixy Chicks or Indigo Girls I'd really advise you to listen to her stuff. (Whilst surfing around for links discovered that the Indigo Girls have a tour of the UK in the autumn).

What all the above have in common is that they have some amazing songwriting talent, some excellent guitar playing and some class vocal performances. Hope you enjoy at least some.

On a slightly different note a plug for the Park Cities Presbyterian Chruch Chancel Choir of Dallas, Texas who are playing a free gig (collection being taken up in aid of the Aquila Way charity) at Durham Cathedral next Friday, (31st July) at 7:00pm. If you're in the area sounds like an inspiring way to spend the evening.

I leave you with a You Tube video of Gareth Davies-Jones performing Princess Victoria
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfsvHmOo_84&feature=related[/youtube]