For The Country Record - February 2016

February 01, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Malcolm Holcombe, whose “heartfelt baritone” (NPR)  delivers “haunted country, acoustic blues and rugged folk” (Rolling Stone), will release his 14th studio album, Another Black Hole (Gypsy Eyes Music), February 12, 2016.

Produced by Grammy-winning producer and engineer Ray Kennedy and Brian Brinkerhoff, Another Black Hole features Holcombe’s rasping vocals and bright, percussive guitar accentuating his insightful lyrics. “It is Malcolm’s perception of the world that make his songs hit you like a gunpowder blast. His gruff and tough delivery is a primordial power full of grit, spit and anthropomorphic expression,” says Kennedy.

Recorded at Room & Board Studios in Nashville, TN, the 10-song set features longtime musical compatriots including Jared Tyler (dobro, baritone guitar, banjo, mandolin and harmony vocals), Dave Roe (upright and electric bass), Ken Coomer (drums and percussion), Tony Joe White (electric guitar), Future Man (percussion) and Drea Merritt (vocal harmony).

Born and raised in the Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina, Holcombe is highly regarded and recognized by contemporaries in Americana music including Emmylou Harris, Wilco, Steve Earle. An “emotionally captivating” (Isthmus), performer, Holcombe has shared the stage with Merle Haggard, Richard Thompson, John Hammond, Leon Russell, Wilco and Shelby Lynne.

MALCOLM HOLCOME TOUR DATES

January 16 – Red Dragon – Baton Rouge, LA
January 17 – Frog Pond at Blue Moon Farm – Fairhope, AL
February 12 – Great Aunt Stella Center – Charlotte, NC
February 17 – Douglas Corner – Nashville, TN
February 18 – Boone Saloon – Boone, NC
February 19 – The Grey Eagle – Asheville, NC
February 20 – Six String Presents – Durham, NC
February 21 – Red Light Café – Atlanta, GA
March 12 – Laurel Mountain Coffeehouse – Kingwood, WV
March 26 – Acoustic Brew – Lemont, PA
April 2 – Laurel Theater – Knoxville, TN
April 7 – Ray Lewis Presents – Jacksonville, FL
April 8 – Luna Star Cafe – North Miami, FL
April 9 – Our Kind Of Folk – Seminole, FL
April 18 – Meneer Frits – Eindhoven, Netherlands
April 19 – De Schalm – Westwoud, Netherlands
April 21 – Musemix at Engels – Den Haag, Netherlands
April 23 – Clubhouse KZG – Grimbergen, Belgium
April 24 – Take Five – Venlo, Netherlands
April 26 – Die Funzel – Worms, Germany
May 1 – Stones Café – Vignola, Italy
May 4 – Next Stop Olten – Olten, Switzerland
May 6 – Tea Room Sessions – Carrick On Suir, Ireland
May 10 – Green Note – London, United Kingdom
May 11 – The Globe – Topsham, United Kingdom
May 12 – B-Bar – Plymouth, United Kingdom
May 13 – St. George’s Hall – Bewdley, United Kingdom
May 14 – West End Club – Barry, United Kingdom
May 15 – The Live Room – Shipley, United Kingdom
May 17 – West by Northwest @ Walshaw Sports Club – Newscastle, United Kingdom
June 11 – Kathryn’s Space Concert Series – New York, NY

Get Malcolm Holcombe tickets here.

Flying Shoes Review - January 2016

February 01, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

 

MALCOLM HOLCOMBE —ANOTHER BLACK HOLE (Proper Records / Gypsy Eyes Music)

http://proper-records.com

It is always a thrill to receive a new Malcolm Holcombe album, the intensity of the music, the relentless rhythm, amazing lyrics coupled with a voice that’s as sharp as barbed-wired soaked in whiskey and only let loose on weekends.

Holcombe’s live shows have become legendary, sat with his acoustic guitar across his body, rocking back and forth with much energy and his head doing likewise. Intense hasn’t a look in when it comes to Malcolm Holcombe’s music. Here it is pretty much the same (though toned down in comparison), only he has taken the liberty of adding a little more pep to a couple of songs I would rather he didn’t. It isn’t I have anything against swamp fox Tony Joe White getting into the act, only he doesn’t need to be a bit of a rocker, his music is spicy enough. It only becomes a little cluttered to the detriment of his lyrics, and an acoustic base made up of his good friend Jared Tyler (Dobro, baritone guitar, banjo, mandolin, harmony vocals), Dave Roe (upright, electric bass), Ken Coomer (drums, percussion) plus Future Man (Roy Wooten), Drea Merritt (harmony vocals) percussion. Maybe he felt he needed to flex a few additional muscles on a couple of numbers. 

As for the songs, the album consists of ten self-penned compositions, and despite a reservation or two they are up to his usual high standard as he blends words of eclectic wisdom with everyday people’s happenings, and on coming down from a Holcombe high he comes up with such staggering pieces as “To Get By”, “Sweet Georgia” and to a lesser degree “Leavin’ Anna”; the easy rolling melodies greater than some things people have sacrificed their all.

Others of note include slow paced sombre, evocative offering “Heidelberg Blues” and with the above keener rocking beat “Don’t Play Around” comes across good. But not to the degree of the above or “Someone Missing” as Malcolm sets off on one of his exciting (and exhilarating) journeys with the aid of multi-picker Tyler, to strike gold.   

“Papermill Man” has a rockin soul tinged sound run through it as in the company of White, Futureman and fine voiced Merritt he takes a trip, music wise into the hustle of the city. Be sure to watch out for tour dates in the UK during May. 

- Maurice Hope  

Lonesome Highway - January 2016

January 21, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

Malcolm Holcombe ‘Another Black Hole’ - Proper

Following hot on the heels of his RCA sessions album comes this new one from Mr. Holcombe. He seems very prolific of late with a whole bunch of new songs delivered in that battered, gritty and distinctive voice that is uniquely his. It is a folk/blues Americana mix that brings together his usual crew of Ken Coomer, Jared Tyler and Dave Roe alongside Drea Merritt on some vocal harmonies and Tony Joe White on some swampy guitar.

Those who know (and love) Holcombe’s work will be happy to get to know these new songs. As in the past there are others who can’t get passed the voice. All has been brought together by Brian Brinkerhoff and Ray Kennedy’s sturdy production. The latter also engineered, mixed and mastered the album. The playing through is top notch and gives added depth and texture to these songs that look up to the sky and higher, from a position that is much closer to the street and those that live there. People who may just get by, who have few expectations but somehow manage to see some grace. This feeling may well be summed up in Siobhan Maher-Kennedy’s cover illustration.

The hard-scrabble blues on offer may not appeal to all but it has dignity and a purpose and the assembled players know how to bring the tales of woe to a sunnier side of the street even if Holcombe’s voice seems to sit on the grittier side of Tom Waits. He offers nothing here but his own truth and his hard held beliefs and some very credible music. Something that has always given Malcolm Holcombe his edge with his coterie of admirers and friends.

Stephen Rapid

FolkWords - January 2016

January 13, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

‘Another Black Hole’ from Malcolm Holcombe - songs that hold a ruthless honesty

There are certain constants in life, things happen and you can be sure of the outcome. A new album from Malcolm Holcombe delivers precisely that certainty… as always, there’s raunchy, gutsy percussive guitar together with unrefined, gruff vocals. Together, this union presents songs of meaning, songs driven from life built on experience. Songs with a sound from the rough side of the tracks, songs that hold a ruthless honesty.

‘Another Black Hole’, which releases in the UK in February 2016, follows up the acclaimed ‘The RCA Sessions’, which was a look back at 20 years music making. This one is a definite look forward, but as I said earlier, nothing changes except perhaps Holcombe’s perceptive lyrics cut ever deeper. From the narrative of ‘Sweet Georgia’ through the down and dirty title track ‘Another Black Hole’ and‘Heidelberg Blues’ to ‘September’ and ‘Leavin’ Anna’, Holcombe lyrics sweep you along with his poetry of life.

Alongside Malcolm Holcombe (vocals, acoustic guitar) on Another Black Hole’ are the familiar skills of Jared Tyler (dobro, baritone guitar, banjo, mandolin, harmony vocals) Dave Roe (upright and electric bass) Ken Coomer (drums, percussion) Tony Joe White (electric guitar) Future Man aka Roy Wotten (percussion) and Drea Merritt (vocal harmonies).

Website: www.malcolmholcombe.com

Review: Tom Franks

The Rocking Magpie - January 2016

January 07, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

Malcolm Holcombe
Another Black Hole
self-release

Blue Collar Songs to Soothe Your Soul and Warm Your Heart.

Malcolm Holcombe has a voice that’s not just ‘lived in;’ but bordering on being shot through but I for one love it to bits.

This is Malcolm’s fourteenth album release and right from opening track Sweet Georgia you just know that this is going to be something really special. There’s a snappy banjo/guitar beat accompanying him as he purrs the lyrics like a man on his deathbed.

The title track Another Black Hole, follows and just may be one of Holcombe’s finest songs. Always incredibly observant in his stories; this one has as much minutiae in each line as a Mark Twain novel and you can imagine the anger in his furrowed brow as he delivers lines like ‘radio plays for the happy-go-lucky/Drag me down a road to get even/for living in another black hole.’

I don’t really remember Malcolm delving too far back in his own history on previous albums; but on To Get By his tale of hardship has uncanny parallels with people living in Industrial towns all around the world in 2016. Try listening to ‘the power of youth runs by and by/stuck in a revolving door’ and ‘a dollar burns a hole in my pocket/for a magazine promising the American Dream’ and tell me I’m wrong.

I like the way Malcolm introduces jagged electric guitars on a few songs to highlight the darkly ragged stories. The best example would probably be on Don’t Play Around; when Tony Joe White guests. The song also includes some very effective ‘industrial language’ that shows the young Alt. Country upstarts that there is plenty of life left in this old dog.

Sometimes Malcolm gets so involved in his songs; you can’t always make out all of the words; but that’s not always the point as Someone Missing and Papermill Man actually prove; as what you can hear added to the passionate delivery leave you in no doubt these songs are honest and real to the max.’ On that latter song, we even get to hear soulful female backing singers; which is a first as far as I can remember and makes the song sound truly excellent.

While Bruce and Neil are hailed for writing ‘Blue Collar/Working Man’ songs; but you just know that Malcolm has actually stood side by side with the disenfranchised when he sings ‘A working man is a working Man/Makes the delicate flowers grow’ in Leavin’ Anna. There’s only ever been a handful of songwriters who can write words like this and make the listener ‘believe’ and Malcolm Holcombe is right up there with the best.

OK; he’s no Justin Bieber in looks or deeds; but if you love Americana or Folk songs written from the very bottom of a writers heart and sung with more passion than you will find in Clinton Cards on Valentine’s Day; then Malcolm Holcombe is the man for you.

Released February 12th 2016

Fatea Magazine - January 2016

January 07, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

Malcolm Holcombe
Album: Another Black Hole
Label: Gypsy Eyes
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.malcolmholcombe.com
To borrow the words from a Neil Young album title, there's a ragged glory about the music of Malcolm Holcombe.

The apparently shambolic sheen to Holcombe's recordings add sparkle to his stirring collection of albums, the latest of which is the magical, Another Black Hole. Here he stirringly serves up an alluring, unforced range of songs none of which lacks his distinctive, gruff tones pleasingly set against swampy rock or finely pitched acoustic backing, provided by ace mates in the studio.

Some tracks come over all rusty and dusty and care worn, but with eloquent, hard-hitting messages, dark and raw. On the other hand, there is a natural, gentle touch, highlighted by the gorgeous, mellow and heartfelt Guy Clark-like, Way Behind, which warms the listener as it closes this ten-track beauty of an album.

Adept, and minus any bluff or bluster, Holcombe is a master of carefully-crafted, delicate and fiery lyrics with an undercurrent that's deliciously matter of fact and caringly edgy via a spiky delivery.

Having spent the last few months rarely separated from his triumphant The RCA Sessions album that came out in April 2015 - a retrospective of his two decades of recordings - it was a real deal pleasure to get my hand on Another Black Hole.

Opener Sweet Georgia - bumps along with a mandolin lead on a blanket of goodness not far removed from McGuiness Flint while the title track has breathy lyrics with twanging guitar and mandolins shooting the breeze to allow Holcombe space to grunt and groan.

And the way the man from North Carolina sings, it's as if he's never quite ready to let go of the final word in a line - delayed slurring is a technique he's perfected.

John Prine springs to mind in To Get By while the intro to Don't Play Around sounds all John Mellencamp before Holcombe launches into his most menacing track of the album, complete with swear words. Brooding doesn't cover this delicious five-minute tirade: "California wanna bes and Midwest muscles / stick close to the ground / feedin' the famine in my backyard / non profit town."

Papermill Man must be played at a volume that will annoy your neighbours: superb Creedence Clearwater rollin' and bouncin' with added TJW, Tony Joe White, that is. Terrific, rambunctious, infectious.

Leavin' Anna - flows along like an instant classic, jaunty and informative with the Florida sunshine baking Malcolm's bones though all his life he'd been cold, while Way Behind amplifies the thought and effort Holcombe puts into every song: it's beautiful with a plea for help through life's struggles, common to many: "Lord have mercy now and then / when shadows follow clouds / too heavy with my tears / to hold back even now."

Another Black Hole will deserve a place in 2016's 'best of' lists, as it's truly glorious in its raggedness.

Mike Ritchie

Johnny's Garden - January 2016

January 05, 2016  /  Jimmy Miller

Review by Theo Volk (Lura) on http://www.musicmeter.nl/album/520228

posted on January 5, 2016, 10:38 pm 

It is often assumed that A Far Cry From Here in 1994 was Malcolm Holcombe’s first album. However, his first was a 1985 duet album with Sam Milner, titled Trademark. On this album both artists do five songs each.

I discovered  Holcombe only with the release of Gamblin 'House. After hearing the joyful opening track My Ol 'Radio, I was sold immediately. For a long time this CD was one of my faithful companions on my daily train ride from Den Bosch to Amsterdam.

‘Another Black Hole’ is Holcombe's twelfth regular solo album, but, unfortunately,  he is still not known to the average listener. I do not listen to the radio, but I do not think he will be played much in Hilversum. Even if he is an artist extremely suitable for radio play.

His voice is recognisable from among thousands. The same goes for his characteristic acoustic guitar playing. But his songs should appeal to a large audience. The songs are pretty conventional. And most have very strong choruses. Just listen to the title track on the new album, it will stay in your head after just a few listens.

His peers, however, value and admire him, as he already toured with artists like Merle Haggard, Wilco and Shelby Lynne. And heavyweights such as Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle and Darrell Scott all contributed to his albums.

What can we say about the new album? Obviously, once again the level is as high as we expect from Malcolm. I would like to know more about the backgrounds to the lyrics, but Malcolm prefers the listeners to interpret his songs for themselves. Musically,  the most significant, main new ingredients are Drea Merritt’s backing vocals and Tony Joe White’s electric guitar.

The importance of backing vocals is regularly underestimated. Wrongly so I think. Just imagine Gimme Shelter or Walk on the Wild Side without those backing vocals. Holcombe calls his repertoire folk music, but country is never far away. Paper Mill Man on the new album even goes towards rock and is a pleasant change within the usual song structures.

My favorite is Do not Play Around, a song with tension and great background vocals by Drea Merritt. And with intriguing lines as:

"She was only fourteen in '65,
Ye know a change is comin '
Twenty-six stitches in the back o 'her head,
On a bridge in Selma."

Loyal fans can confidently buy this album. Hopefully it will also appeal to new listeners, because he is one of the best songwriters in his genre.

The Messenger - January 2016

January 04, 2016  /  Malcolm Holcombe

Malcolm Holcombe, "Another Black Hole" (Gypsy Eyes Music)- Malcolm Holcombe's distinctive approach to music-making has found him variously compared to everyone from Townes van Zandt to Tom Waits, and the North Carolina native's fourteenth album represents an excellent addition to the impressive body of work that this gritty performer has assembled during the past three decades. Swamp rock legend Tony Joe White chips in on guitar on a couple of tracks but Holcombe is still very much the star of the show, delivering his compellingly grizzled Americana with honesty, perception and rough-hewn charm.

- by Kevin Bryan

The Blues Magazine - August 2015

August 10, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“MALCOLM HOLCOMBE ‘THE RCA SESSIONS’
Singular Records/Gypsy Eyes Music”

Timeless Music from a Gruff but Great Voice

If you're not familiar with Holcombe, it's time to get acquainted. This package of songs is a near-faultless showcare of country-tinged roots music.

Ranging from the delicate Down the River to the rattling Butcher in Town, swooning melodies, subtly varied rhythms and evocative lyrics abound. With Holcombe's grizzled voice and acoustic guitar at the core, his top-notch gang of collaborators round out every song exquisitely, though Jared Tyler's Dobro and lap steel and Tammy Rogers' fiddle deserve a special mention. The DVD is extra booty, underscoring the intensity of Holcombe's performance. A rare jewel, this should be treasured.

By Iain Cameron 

tags / reviews

Americana UK - June 2015

June 30, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“MALCOLM HOLCOMBE
’THE RCA SESSIONS’
Proper Records 2015”

A revitalised and essential retrospective

Over the past 20 years Malcolm Holcombe has steered his career through a sometimes rocky road. His debut album was recorded for Geffen and then shelved by them and he was reportedly a troubled man for several years. Indeed the filmed sessions on the DVD included here has a quote at the beginning from Steve Earle stating, "Malcolm Holcombe is the best songwriter I ever threw out of my recording studio." Happily he's been on the straight and narrow for many years now and his grizzled take on folk blues and country has graced a further nine albums with each one adding to his reputation as one of the finest exponents of the genre.

The RCA Sessions celebrates Holcombe's 20 years of recording being a selection of songs from his previous albums plus a live favourite, "Mouth Harp Man." However, it's not simply a "best of" as Holcombe and his crack band settled into Nashville's RCA Studios delivering brand new recordings of his selection with the sessions being filmed. While the end result would be a useful introduction for anyone not familiar with his music it's an essential buy for fans, even those who might have all of his records to date as the versions here are on fire with Holcombe exuding a rude vitality and the band whipcord tight. Ken Coomer on drums and Dave Roe on double bass are the solid rhythm section with Tammy Rogers adding fiddle and mandolin while Jared Tyler excels on Dobro, electric slide and lap steel. 

They can root around in deep delta blues, Appalachian country tunes and dip into tender laments seemingly without effort and it's a joy to listen to their playing. Holcombe growls and hollers, croons and mumbles, his voice stained with experience and seemingly dredged from the depths of his soul. His performance on "I Feel Like A Train" is astounding, almost shamanistic as he descends into primeval groans sounding like the oldest hobo in the world. On top of this we have Earle's testimony to Holcombe's song writing and listening to the songs here it's evident that he's up there with the likes of Guy Clark, Kris Kristofferson and John Prine, using simple words to paint large pictures. Songs like "Doncha Miss That Water" and "Pitiful Blues" might have been collected by Alan Lomax back in the first half of the last century. "Early Morning" and "Who Carried You" are superior examples of narrative folk song writing and "The Empty Jar" shows that Holcombe can wax poetic and pull at the heartstrings with the best of them. All in all pretty much essential listening (and watching if you get the Deluxe DVD/CD release).

By Paul Kerr 

Songwriting Magazine - 23 June 2015

June 23, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“The RCA Sessions by Malcolm Holcombe (Album+DVD)”

To honour his two decades in the music industry songwriter Malcolm Holcombe has re-recorded a number of his favourite compositions

Malcolm Holcombe has released a career spanning retrospective to celebrate his 20-year musical career. However, unlike similar anthologies he has re-recorded the tracks at Nashville's legendary RCA Studios giving them a raw edge which suits his rootsy tendencies.

As with all of his releases, the first thing that hits you is the sandpaper rough vocal. It's the sound of a thousand cigarettes, a chain smoker spending another night lamenting the rough hand he's been dealt in between each long drag. In the live studio, Holcombe is able to pack even more gravel into songs like Butcher In Town, I Call The Shots and Pitiful Blues.

Holcombe's homespun lyrics are the album's other driving force. Authentic and bordering on esoteric, they offer a unique glimpse into the songwriter's world. On I Feel Like A Train he sings "when I was a young 'un shovelled coal in the stoker / pulled out the clinkers with a claw in my hand" and *Early Mornin' sees him "riding on the back of Old Nellie, Daddy Pa setting tobacca / Leather reins in his big ol' hands, I hear I'm geeing and a hawing". 

The RCA Sessions comes with an accompanying DVD showing Holcombe and his band performing the tracks live in the studio and it's a setting which brings out the passion in all of them. Faithful fans and anyone looking to hear a true American voice would be wise to lend this grizzled veteran an ear.

Verdict: Rootsy and authentic Americana.

Duncan Haskell

 

Torquay Herald Express - 22 June 2015

June 22, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“Malcolm Holcombe, ‘The RCA Sessions’ (Singular Recordings)”

This impressive CD / DVD package traces the highlights of Malcolm Holcombe's career to date, showcasing recently re-recorded versions of tracks from each of the ten albums that this criminally underrated country balladeer has released during the past two decades. The decision to revisit these splendid creations live in RCA's Nashville Studios gives them a freshness and spontaneity which if anything improves on the much loved originals, with "To Drink The Rain," "Mouth Harp Man" and "Who Carried You" emerging as the best of a ruggedly beautiful bunch.

Kevin Bryan 

NEMM Blog (UK) - June 2015

June 21, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“The RCA Sessions by Malcolm Holcombe”

"There's songs about you and songs about me/At the end of the day they all sound the same" is the opening line on the third track, 'I Feel Like a Train', from this stirring retrospective album by Nashville resident, Malcolm Holcombe, and it serves well as a declaration of intent for the rest of the album (although I don't mean that in any way as a criticism).

This album, recorded in the legendary RCA studios in Nashville, is an overview of a career under the radar. The songs are taken from across a two decade career but have been re-recorded by his regular superb band of musicians that is: Jared Tyler (dobro, electric guitar, lap steel, vocals); David Roe Rorick (upright bass), Tammy Rogers (fiddle, mandolin, vocals), Ken Coomer (drums, percussion), Jellyroll Johnson (harmonica), and Siobhan Maher Kennedy (vocals). There's really nothing new here but the songs are well crafted, engaging, superbly played and Holcombe has a crunchy, gritty voice pitched firmly in the territory around Merle Haggard and John Prine with a touch of Tom Waits distinctive croak thrown in. For me that's a pretty attractive package. The album is available as an impressive CD/DVD package at all good record stores.

Although next year it will be twenty years since his debut album this is another new name for me but one which I'll certainly track through his back catalogue. It's a fairly lengthily album and the songs do have a tendency to be a bit samey but overall they are engaging and will hook you in over a couple of Whiskeys during the long summer nights. There's echoes of Michael Chapman in a majestic 'The Empty Jar' that drips with sadness with a mournful violin in the background. Holcombe sings of having dozens of burdens and "each one has its home" in a lazy slurred vocal that just sucks you in. His vocal is sometimes indistinct but this helps to add some mystery to the songs - 'Butcher in Town' is a good example of this method of working.

The album opens with a real beauty titled 'Who Carried You' with a laid back groove and a vocal that calls up the ghost of J.J.Cale and draws in the romance of the road with mentions of New Orleans, a Buick roadster and a group of Cajuns. The dobro, mandolin and violin gives the melody a feel of classic country-folk that runs on into the following track "Mister in Morgantown" that features some classy blues harp from Jellyroll Johnson (a respected Nashville session player in his own right who has credits with scores of artists including George Jones, The Judds, Etta James, Shania Twain and Nancy Griffith).

"Doncha Miss That Water" is a sprightly little tune with serious message that will probably ring some bells over in California where the population is currently suffering a serious drought. The mandolin and fiddle lock together and push Holcombe's cracked vocal smoothly along. 'Mouth Harp Man' follows and is a wonderful performance right from Holcombe's gritty voice through the terrific ensemble playing and into a virtuoso blues harp performance once again from Jellyroll Johnson that tells you all you need to know about how to deliver with this often over looked instrument - a truly great performance. 'I Call the Shots' is a cocky song about double crossing low-life's and the need to run things just right. The guitars flash and Holcombe's cracked voice has a particular menace here as he talks tough to the crooked judge.

'My Ol' Radio' calls up a long past youth with co-vocals from Siobhan Maher Kennedy giving the tune a slightly different edge but the guitars crack and Holcombe still sounds like he's 100 years old. The songs here are all firmly in the country-blues-folk vein but Holcombe and his fine band of musicians give them all a real timeless edge and they sure as hell bring that class to all the songs on this terrific album.

The album ends with three classics - 'Down The River', 'Pitiful Blues' and the truly wonderful 'A Far Cry From Here' (featuring a sterling performance from Maura O'Connell on co-vocals) that typify that approach and listening to them I'm struck with a feeling that they could have been recorded at any time in the last twenty years and they would sound like classic country-blues songs or wonderful contemporary songs and its Holcombe's rumble of a voice and his fine musicians that make this material so distinctive.

This is another great record recorded in those legendary RCA studios and perhaps the ghosts of the greats who went before such as Elvis,The Everly Brothers, Waylon Jennings and Roy Orbison, all of whom recoded there, can still permeate the music.

Reviewer: Greg Johnson

Folking.com - 20 June 2015

June 20, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“MALCOLM HOLCOMBE - The RCA Sessions (Proper/Gypsy Eyes Music)”

Gummy, cracked, rasping and often sounding catarrh heavy, the North Carolina folk-country singer's voice sounds pretty much how he looks, craggy, grizzled, straggle-haired, gap-toothed, wet-lipped and weathered. But it, like the man and his songs, certainly has character. Critically if not commercially acclaimed, his first recordings appeared on a joint album with Steve Milner back in 1985, releasing his solo debut, A Far Cry From Here, in 1994 at the age of 39, since which time he's released a further nine as well as an EP. To mark its 20th anniversary , this album offers a retrospective of his work between then and now, the 16 selections re-recorded in the RCA Studios in Nashville with a four piece band, featuring something from all of the past releases alongside a brand new number in the shape of live set highlight 'Mouth Harp Man', a jogging blues collaboration with legendary Nashville harmonica player Jelly Roll Johnson.

The set kicks off with 'Who Carried You', one of two songs from 1999's 'A Hundred Lies', a simple, fiddle backed acoustic American folk tale that name checks Agatha Christie and sounds vaguely reminiscent of Guy Clark. Since the intention of the album was to represent the diversity of Holcombe's styles, the second track, 'Mister In Morgantown', is a clanking junkyard blues that reminds why he's been likened to Tom Waits and which again features Johnson on harp before 'I Feel Like A Train', off the 2007 Wager EP, shifts to a sprightly waltzing fiddle backed dust country tune. The same feel informs a stripped back version of 2009's eco-tinged love song 'Doncha Miss That Water' before talking acoustic folk blues take hold on the grief-stained, contemplative 'The Empty Jar'. That's taken from 2012's Down The River, as is the far more uptempo, fiddle and Dobro bouncing social injustice-themed 'Butcher In Town'; then it's back to 2011 and the title track off To Drink The Rain, given a growling, raw, blues rock treatment with another lurching percussive rhythm. 

Striking a contrast once more, 'Early Mornin'' heads back to 2005 for a warm, laid back country ballad that again evokes vintage Clark, the same album offering the similarly styled regret-streaked ballad 'I Never Heard You Knockin'', Tammy Rogers fiddle underscoring Holcombe's world weary talked vocal.

'I Call The Shots', another abuse of power song from Down The River, is again a gutsy growled number with Waitsian undertones, then comes the first of the album's two duets, 'My Ol' Radio', the only song from 2007's Gamblin' House, a jaunty Dobro and fiddle accompanied country tune on which he's joined by one of the UK's great lost country voices, Siobhan Maher-Kennedy of River City People fame, who just happens to be married to Holcombe's go to producer, Ray Kennedy.

Moving into the final stretch, 'Goin' Home', the sole pick off 2006's Not Forgotten, is another Clark-like spoken dust country number with a steady strummed guitar backing and almost minor key anthemic feel, then its back toDown The River again for the laid back, slow shuffling title track about the hard-pressed pulling together in the face of those who "make the laws to suit themselves." The most recent number, 'Pitiful Blues', the five minute title track from last year's release, delivers another gutsy, electric guitar driven, growled vocal turn with a fearsome lyric about the oppressed seeking an eye for an eye as he sings "all I wanna see, all I wanna hear is people dyin' screamin' full o' fear."

Cleansing the palate, the album ends on a calmer, more wistful note, Mara O'Connell joining to duet on 'A Far Cry From Here', a song about love and the miles between that previously appeared on both his solo debut and A Hundred Lies. A solid retrospective for the faithful and an enticing introduction to newcomers.

Note: The release comes as a double disc, the second being a DVD recording of the sessions (Holcombe's first ever DVD release) intercut with interviews with the musicians.

Mike Davies

Oor - May 2015

May 30, 2015  /  Jimmy Miller

“MALCOLM HOLCOMBE
THE RCA SESSIONS (PROPER/BERMS)”

De stemontwikkeling van Malcolm Holcombe ging hoogstwaarschijnlijk gepaard met een continu alcoholinfuus en een ketting aan tabak. Of de singer-songwriter slikte per ongeluk een stuk schuurpapier in, dat aan zijn stembanden is blijven plakken. Hoe dan oak, lets maakte zijn stem gruizig en doorleefd. En toch schuilt er oak verregaande weemoed in door.

Het maakt de albums van de Amerikaan - een kruising tussen Tom Waits en John Prine - open, intrigerend en troostrijk. Met zijn bekende onvervaiste passie, authentieke countryinstrumenten en een keur aan (gast) muzikanten lanceert Holcombe met The RCA Sessions alweer zijn veertiende album. Hij noemt zijn rnuziek zelf het Heist folk en ach, wie zijn wij, fijnproevers van 's mans muziek, om dat tegen to spreken? De zestien nummers, ouderwets wear voor je geld, trotseren iedere mogelijke weerstand. De melancholie in bijvoorbeeld The Empty Jar en A Far Cry (met Mauro O'Connell) snijdt je door de ziel en bij het uptempo Butcher In Town heupwieg je blij naar de volumeknop. Holcombe zou wel wat vaker in de schijnwerpers magen staan.

HANS VAN DER MAAS