Rob St. John -‘Charcoal Black and the Bonny Grey’/’Shallow Grey.’ (Song, By Toad Records)

I’ve long been a supporter of Rob St. John and his album Weald in 2011 was a fine thing indeed.

This is his first release since that debut album (though he also performs as part of eagleowl, who are about to drop their utterly brilliant debut on Fence any day now). It’s two rather fine folk songs, both of them now over a hundred years old, on one slab of 7″ vinyl, and they are utterly beautiful. ‘Charcoal Black and the Bonny Grey’ is a Lancastrian song originally sung to Cecil Sharp (a man to whom English folk music owes more than possibly be imagined) in 1905. It’s described as being ‘a song of the Industrial Revolution: crumbling mill towns butting up against moorland and trees growing out of chimneys.’ Meanwhile, the b-side (or is that AA? It’s hard to know in the digital age, and I may be the only person left who still cares about such things), ‘Shallow Grey’ is a West Indian sea shanty collected by H.E. Piggott and Percy Grainger from the singing of John Perring in Dartmouth, Devon in 1908. Whether these songs are a century plus old or not, even at face value the package is a thing of beauty.

Limited to 250 copies (I have Rob St. John singles limited to 100!) track it down and check it out. You may not hear something so beautiful and heartbreaking this year.

*****

Rob St. John -‘Weald’ (Song, By Toad)

Having been very impressed by his two earlier EPs, it is a pleasure to have the debut album by Rob St. John. I would have been looking forward to hearing it in any case, though the fact that it is released on the painfully cool Song, By Toad label, features contributions from the likes of Neil Pennycook of Meursault and Malcolm Benzie of eagleowl (amongst others), and I have met him, briefly, all put several additional cherries on the top.

According to the press release, a ‘weald’ is an Old English word from which the concept of a ‘wild’, a ‘wooded’, and a ‘dark, dangerous’ place in the landscape has emerged. This sums up the mood of the record beautifully, though to describe it as an Olde Worlde Folkie record would be off the mark spectacularly. I do hear nods to the likes of Bert Jansch, but also to the likes of Australia’s Dirty Three, and of course, it almost certainly will appeal to those who like the aforementioned eagleowl and Meursault.

Thus far, ‘Sargasso Sea’ has been doing the rounds as a free mp3 and album opener ‘Your Phantom Limb’ (no, nothing to do with The Shins) was released as one side of a split 7″ earlier this year. These two tracks certainly lure you in, although for my money the album highlight is the devastingly beautiful ‘Domino’, the most amazing track on an album full of devastatingly beautiful (or should that be beautifully devastating) songs.

Each time I have played this album, it has showed more and more of its vcharms. Trust me, it will do the same for you.

****1/2

Weald is out now on Song, By Toad.

Rob St. John -‘Sargasso Sea.’ mp3

Rob St. John – Your Phantom Limb by Song, by Toad

For once, some music that is nothing to do with Christmas.

Rob St John is an edinburgh-based musician who has just released his debut EP and it’s gorgeous and sublime.

There are three songs on it, which can be heard at his MySpace site, along with other tracks. This is the title track, which is just beautiful. It can be bought at Avalanche records in Edinburgh and Glasgow and should soon be available at Rough Trade in London. It’s a limited edition of 100, so act quickly.

Don’t just take my word for it -check it out! Beautiful melodies to lose yourself in (and quite possibly find yourself, too).

Rob St. John ‘Tipping In.’ mp3