Henry Luther
Live Vol VI
Self Release
Quirky 60’s Coffee Shop Drenched Insurgent Folk Music
We liked and reviewed Henry Luther’s last album; LIVE AT FRESH BREWED in 2023, as we (not including Mrs Magpie btw) really liked the rawness of it, as well as some well-written and thoughtful songs.
Perhaps I was too gushing in my praise as its follow-up seems to be unnaturally quick off the marks!
While he’s previously recorded studio albums; I certainly get the feeling that Luther ‘comes alive’ on stage and capturing that ‘magic’ in the studio is historically difficult, as the opening song Hallucinogenic possibly proves; as he stumbles over a couple of words and his phrasing is a bit ‘hit and miss’ …. but his charm and energy carries him through in a way that the studio can be unforgiving.
Henry Luther is one of those troubadours that never actually ‘tours’ but probably plays two or three gigs 52 weeks a year, growing a fan base by word of mouth rather than via full-page adverts in Rolling Stone.
I guess I should call his style as ‘quirky’ which it is, but don’t be put off …. because with songs like Denmark, Weary, I Can’t Sleep, and/or the magnificent Dystopia under his belt Luther will easily appeal to fans of Jonathan Richmond, Barenaked Ladies and maybe even Randy Newman too, given half a chance.
Back by The Blackouts again, the arrangements are ‘choppy’ but always thought-provoking in a way I’d associate with any or all of those acts I’ve just mentioned; but the sparky New National Anthem especially, is worthy of any of the great 60’s coffee house songwriters and with hindsight, the 90mph ode to Busch Beer is too … and I mean ANY of them; but especially Tom Paxton or Dave Van Ronk.
Don’t ever expect Henry Luther to headline Coachella or Glastonbury; but don’t be surprised to find him in a packed tent tucked away near the car park at some Folk or Bluegrass gathering, singing his heart out with his angry homage to modern Country Too Many Honkies and Not Enough Tonkin’ and the fast and furious Cocaine Fairies to a righteously fired up audience shouting the choruses back to him!
There’s a good bit of banter and audience participation in between songs, but not so much that they age too quickly, with his intro to High Again still making me smile an hour later as he describes watching a Jason Isbell documentary and thinking “I can write a song like that!” I’ll let you judge if he’s correct.
That only leaves me to choose a Favourite Song, and I’ve already mentioned a couple of contenders, but I think I’ve narrowed it down to 2am which needs to be listened to quite intensely to ‘get it’ whereas The Way It Goes Bad is as dark and cerebral as the title suggests; and the stop/start arrangement feels as if it’s designed that way for effect, rather than Luther stopping to catch his breath … but both could be true.
There’s a raw energy here that I’ve only rarely come across in Folk Music, regardless of how hard others have tried; possibly because Henry Luther (and band) genuinely seem to believe in their songs and inhabit them in a way that will touch the listeners’ consciousness in a way that they didn’t expect.
Released April 26th 2024
https://henryluther.com/
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https://henryluther.bandcamp.com/
The Rocking Magpie 