If K T Tunstall's success heralds a "new folk explosion" then I'm Woodie Guthrie. Folk doesn't explode. That's rather the point: it's the ever-smouldering embers of traditional, barebones music that never really goes away. That it is capable of finding much more to say that is relevant than many "newer" genres is its saving grace. If you like your folk music to be more than just sonic tryptophan, however, you're going to have to put your K T Tunstall down, slowly, kick it across the floor, and keep your hands where I can see them.
One modern folk singer free from the taint of mediocrity is the New Yorker Jeffrey Lewis, who emerged from the fleeting "anti-folk" movement of a few years ago. Anti-folk was a ludicrous name, applied because its proponents swore and told confessional, naturalistic tales of modern life, rather than raising hymnals to their favourite zither or penning bland nothings about relationships a la Tunstall. To anyone even vaguely familiar with the 1960s folk scene this puts them clearly in the line of succession; anti-folk is really just folk.
Lewis's material is hit-and-miss, but when it hits, it strikes hard: witty, emotive, hummable, inspiring. "Darling, I said, I'll be 27 soon/I've only got rejection letters and a sense of impending doom," he drawls on "Don't Be Upset", then adds an inspired Dave Eggers-like self-reflexive twist to the tale. "Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror" is another essential listen - a startling six-minute parable that is totally absorbing, such is its lyrical density. Both of these are on iTunes, as is "The Chelsea Hotel Oral Sex Song", another life-changing Lewis narrative about art, life and love (though not oral sex).
Another more than adequate replacement
for K T Tunstall is Cat Power (real name Chan Marshall), whose captivating, haunting voice has been justifiably turning heads for years now. Get a free MP3 of the beautiful title track from her new album, The Greatest, at www.matadorrecords.com/cat_power.
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