On Tuesday 9 May the Official Charts Company in partnership with English Folk Expo reveal the Top 40 best-selling and most streamed folk albums released in the April reporting period in the UK by UK and Irish artists. The chart is first announced to the public at 7pm GMT as part of the Official Folk Albums Chart Show presented by Folk on Foot via their YouTube channel.
There are 13 new releases in the April Chart, including a new number 1.
Straight in at No. 1 is Drop Cherries(Fiction) by Billie Marten. The album was recorded entirely on tape in Somerset and Wales late last summer, and marks the very first time that she has both written and co-produced (with Dom Monks) one of her records.
Taking its name from messages tied to the railings of a bridge in Sunderland, Tiny Notes (Hudson) by the Young’Uns takes No. 5. The album is a collection of songs that find hope and humanity in grief and despair.
Coming in at No. 7 is Brìghde Chaimbeul’s second album Carry Them With Us (Glitterbeat); an exhilarating weave of rich textural drones, trance atmospheres and instrumental folk traditions.
Spencer Cullum’s Coin Collection 2 (Full Time Hobby) comes in at No. 8. This new collection of tracks by Spencer Cullum is a kaleidoscopic collection of folk, jazz, and pop, cut though with immaculately-rendered songwriting.
The 25th Anniversary Edition of Shadow Of The Moon (Ear Music), originally released in 1997, by Blackmore’s Night is at No. 9. The album has been converted in HD audio from the initial recording, and it has been fully remixed, allowing the original performance to shine.
In at No. 10 comes a collection of traditional songs, Grief in the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall (Drag City) from Alasdair Roberts. Unpacking these old numbers anew, Alasdair finds a set of eternal melodies – and with them, surreal images that parallel our modern times.
Josienne Clarke’s Onliness (Corduroy Punk) comes in at No. 14. On her album, Clarke revisits songs from her back catalogue, a combination of fan favourites as well as hidden gems that have, until now, never had the spotlight she felt they deserved.
Folk/Americana artist Craig Gould’s long awaited debut album Songs from the Campfire (Craig Gould) is at No. 16. The album marks the culmination of his 3 year project raising funds and awareness in partnership with the mental health charity CALM.
In at No. 21 is Reg Meuross’ Stolen From God (Hatsongs). The album is a song cycle that turns an unflinching eye on the toxic legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, most particularly in Meuross’ own home in the South West of England.
O’Hooley & Tidow’s first full studio album in seven years, Cloudheads (No Masters Cooperative), comes in at No. 24. The album delves into the mindscapes, passions and inner worlds of two highly individual autistic women; Belinda and Heidi.
Emma Tricca’s fourth album Aspirin Sun (Bella Union), is an entirely new and experimental collection of songs, which lands in the charts at No. 26.
We are only Sound (Hudson) is the long-awaited debut album from Lucy Farrell, in at No. 36. Her voice is made elegant with sparse, careful accompaniment on tenor guitar and occasionally viola.
In at No. 40 is the anticipated second album of Westward the Light, Flow Country (Braw Sailin). The Scottish folk quartet’s powerful and dynamic music is reflective of upbringings immersed in the nature and landscapes of Scotland.
