All that said, latest single ‘summer’s scorch’ shows My sunny oath! is far from a one-dimensional release. More restrained and tender than the EP’s other tracks, the song utilises additional instrumentation from Farrar (drums, bass, guitar, keyboards) and Libby Rodenbough (strings) to reveal the record’s contrasting spirit. A blend of soft and heavy, dark and light tones to create something gritty yet still in possession of real heart.

Get induced with rolling sickness
When I feel my heart get bigger
Don’t watch movies but I’ll try
Feel the earth rest in my thighs

Watch the video by Harrison Shook below:

My sunny oath! is out on the 13th June via Winspear and you can pre-order it now from the Jahnah Camille Bandcamp page.

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With the album out now via Earth Libraries, it is clear this mood persists across the breadth of the songs. Eternity In The Lake Of Fire is a record set against the volatile rains peculiar to Birmingham. Shrouded in the shadow of an oncoming downpour, beset by a strange atmospheric pressure, always anticipating the next deluge. But also having learnt that such ferocious storms tend to burn themselves out quickly, leaving nothing but a dripping quiet. The Bitter Calm sound mirrors this climate, not only matching intensity and placidity, but capturing those interstitial periods—be they foreboding build-ups or shocked aftermaths. Take a song like ‘Sinner’, which blends the confessional weight of Greet Death or Pedro the Lion with almost orchestral detail, like a storm cloud leavened by a transcendent ray of light.

hey man,
i can take it
it’s my pain that keeps this world turning
how’ve you not considered?
i’m a sinner,
i should die for you

But it’s impossible to talk about Eternity In The Lake of Fire without considering the imagery of its title. Not just a descent into the underworld but a one-way ticket. In many ways, the album plays as an attempt by lead Michael Harp to accept the underworld as the default scenery. An effort to perhaps hurdle the worst of despair by coming to understand their lot. See how ‘Surrender’ emerges from the bleak ‘Convenient’, no more reassured against the oncoming black, but finding some solace in embracing it and relinquishing the fight to stay above ground. And if the album charts such a process, then opener ‘Nothin’ is something of a mission statement. There are no joyous epiphanies or arcs towards salvation. There is only the fact of life.

Eternity In The Lake of Fire is out now via Earth Libraries and available from the Bitter Calm Bandcamp page.

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With the release fast approaching on Winspear, Jahnah Camille has returned with new single, ‘roadkill’. Showing off yet another string to Camille’s bow, the song possesses near country sensibilities with its building rhythm, and boasts no small amount of rock swagger too. But again it is the lyrics which really see the artist stand apart. Because Camille has a knack for combining emotion and self-awareness, offering songs entirely committed to the feelings being explored but never lacking a wry wrinkle to add that extra layer of personality.

And now I can’t pretend
Like roadkill, untouched, out of it
We cried because we can’t forget

I’m marrying a florist
I’ll fall in love so slowly
I’ll make them more than boy of the year

Photo by Disney Bagwell

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Now Bitter Calm have returned with ‘Salt’, their first single since the release of Good Grief, which ushers in something of a sea change from the outfit. Because though the song is still concerned with the weighty themes of love and death, the shadowy slowcore sensibilities are replaced with something altogether brighter and more melodic. “When I grow into the light / could I be your little furnace?” Harp asks in the opening lines, hinting at the darkness behind the vibrant strings and guitar. “And if I go out in the night / would I see you in the morning?” Because make no mistake, the themes underpinning the track cut to the bone of human experience. “This song is about the pain of knowing who could be hurt by the irreversible decision to leave this world,” as Harp explains, “let alone who is already hurt by my current expressed desire to want to leave it in the first place.”

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This summer sees Rae Fitzgerald return with a brand new EP, and her first with the ever-impressive Keeled Scales. The Lonely Listener builds on what came before, again incorporating synth and drum machine into what are ostensibly folk songs, but the release also represents a real evolution of the Rae Fitzgerald sound. Together with Will Reeves (drum loop, bass) and Ian Vardell (electric guitar), Fitzgerald has honed her style and achieved a newfound confidence, the songs’ various elements pulling in harmony to conjure something intuitive.

Lead single ‘Smileland’ is the perfect example. Where Popular Songs… crafted transportive soundscapes, the mellotron pads and drum loops serve the opposite purpose, grounding the listener in the immediate experience, and moreover finding beauty there. The result is a track of reconnection, with one’s self and the world all around, and in doing so lifting what might at first appear ordinary into something ecstatic.

When the dawn breaks through it shakes you
like a messenger of light
but the flower beds still greet you
and the water eats the sky

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You can listen to some demos from the album on their Soundcloud page (my favourite is below), and their older material is available on Bandcamp. If you are a fan of alt-folk/Americana then you should gives these guys a listen.

You can back the album (and get yourself some rather cool prizes in return) via this Pledge page. I think this kind of project is where the funding schemes work best – this isn’t some fanciful attempt at getting some cash but rather an advanced pre-order that helps the band cover the costs via sales. It’s a win-win.

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The band plan to record a full-length this winter with the award-winning songwriter Arthur Alligood producing. If the accomplished EP is anything to go by, this record is definitely one to keep an eye on.

<a href=“http://firemountainband.bandcamp.com/track/no-ones-help” data-mce-href=“http://firemountainband.bandcamp.com/track/no-ones-help”>No One’s Help by Fire Mountain</a>

Of The Dust is available on a pay-what-you-want basis here, along with some lovely looking CDs. If the EP isn’t enough and you can’t wait for the album, a live recording is available free of charge here.

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