Ellie Gowers - Dwelling By the Weir 
Release Date: Out Now
When I started this blog the intention was always to write about any I loved music wherever it came from and, over the years, I've tried to stay true to that ethos. However, over recent years I've slipped in to the trap of just reviewing what gets sent to me via email and, although that has brought me a lot of joy, this album came to me by a recommendation from my dad and the simple, maybe even classic, move of handing over a CD. 'Dwelling By the Weir' is the most recent album by British folk artist Ellie Gowers and it is, honestly, an absolute joy from start to finish so let's dive in shall we?
The album opens up with a brief and brilliantly soothing 'Introduction' picked out on acoustic guitar with a running river in the background before leading in to title track 'Dwelling By the Weir' which couldn't be more tranquil if it tried as the rippling strings and soft vocals transport you far away from any troubles you might have. On 'Woman of the Waterways', Gowers takes a more direct and confident approach as she eases in to a storytelling style so familiar to fans of folk but with a more contemporary edge that will appeal to fans of Harbottle & Jonas. The dark and ethereal tale told on 'A Letter to the Dead Husband of Mary Ball' is one of the most arresting and atmospheric songs I have heard in a long time which feels at odds with the topic of telling the truth behind the last hanging of a woman in Coventry in 1849 - the lyricsc will, sadly, still chime with anyone who has sought to regain control of a domestic violence situation and been judged as the villain rather than the victim.
The mood is lifted significantly by 'Brightest Moon' as Gowers adopts a harvest dance vibe taking us by the hand to spin, reel and dance through the late summer evening with warmth and generosity. I think my favourite track on this collection is 'Poor Old Horse', a song that tells the life story of a noble but unassuming steed through its various uses and roles set to a folky melody that will have young and old singing along. An instrumental meander on the perfectly plucked guitar strings acts as an appetiser for 'Waking Up To Stone' which has an urgency and country inspired energy that allows Gowers' voice to swoop and soar like a murmuration of starlings in a sun streaked sky.
The simple and gentle folk storytelling of 'Ribbon Weaver' is as pure as musical pleasure gets while 'Last Warwickshire Miner' combines the words of Pete Grassby with the melody of 'Wayfaring Stranger' to create a bleak and dark slice of history served up like a time capsule drenched in desperation, despair and the sense of times lost to the ages. This superb album closes out with 'This Ground', a track full of purity and gentle affection woven together by the mournful clarinet of Ewan Cameron. Now, sure, I'm coming to this album a little late as it was released in the Autumn of 2022 but great music is great music whenever you hear it so I would be letting you, dear reader, down had I not shared it. Seek this one out and wrap yourself in it as you would a favourite old blanket while you watch the first sunset of summer.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/EllieGowersMusic/