Ryley Walker

Being on a record label's mailing list is not always productive, but Tompkins Square will seldom steer you wrong...

They have just drawn my attention to an imminent album from a young singer/songwriter/guitarist from Chicago called Ryley Walker. After one listen, I've placed my order.

His singing style is uncannily like that of the late, great Bert Jansch. He's a mean guitar picker. And the arrangements are great too, featuring some lovely viola (possibly the most underused instrument in rock) and a drummer who could be Pentangle's Terry Cox.

That all may sound artificial and knowingly retro, but the end product strikes me as organic and convincingly in the here and now. I'm going to enjoy getting to know it.

There's a nice video here and you can stream the whole album here.