Folk Suggestions

I know a lot of mainstream folk music, but I'm looking for some suggestions of some really cool folk. (perhaps a bit more obscure than what I'm used to, but still modern, I really dig the modern folk)
What kind of folk genre do you listen to? and what artists are your fave?
I'm really into Ani Difranco and Nick Cave right now.
I'd like to get some songs that are either folk, or have folk elements to them.

 

Hiya BPD,
apologies for the shameless spamming I'm succombing to here but check out my Psychedelic Folk pages for some old and new suggestions
http://homepages.tesco.net/~beautiful.day/index2.htm

cheers
HD

 

alot of bright eyes has a real folk feel to it. that is if you can stand the depressing-ness of his music.

 

Pete Seeger is good folk

 

Try looking for some Vin Garbutt or Allan Taylor.

 

Bob Dylan, Neil Young, CSNY, Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Woody Guthrie, Leftover Salmon, Keller Williams...

 

Try out Michelle Shocked; Chris Williamson; Tracy Chapman; Sarah Hickman

Or for a bit of British folk try Billy Bragg.

 

The Incredible String Band (66-73) was a scottish folk-psychedelic-world music band who played a set in Woodstock... Paul Mac Cartney was a great fan of their album of 1967 "The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion".

 

JEsus man... I must've been really messed up earlier.. didn't see "mainstream"/ in the original post... I feel buzzed.

 

Matthew Good. His solo stuff from before the MGB is amazing, and very much folk-ish. Also, Ani Difranco is always fun .

 

Other folk artists that I enjoy but not really modern include:
Phil Ochs
Joan Baez
Peter, Paul & Mary
Fairport Convention
Donovan
Holly Near
Simon & Garfunkel
Jim Croce
Joni Mitchell
Fugs
The Weavers
Melanie
Tim Hardin
Janis Ian
Tom Paxton
Leonard Cohen
Kingston Trio
Tom Chapin
The Byrds
Judy Collins
Mamas and the Papas
Gordan Lightfoot
Kate and Anna McGarrigle
the Chieftains
John Prine
Odetta
the Pogues
Suzanne Vega
Jane Siberry
Shawn Colvin

 

check out Hober radio on www.hober.com .... A pretty kickass station, it's not just limited to folkish bluegrassish either... yes so check it out...

 

You won't get anything folker than this

Omnia play Celtic / Iron-age / Gallo-Roman folk music (with a Discordian twist), completely acoustic, on self-made replicas of real ancient instruments. They are a GREAT band. It doesn't fit your criteria (it certainly doesn't sound modern) but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Also there's Falkenbach, a great melancholic folk metal band, with the old-germanic folk elements obscuring the black metal part enough even for non-metal fans to like it, I think... it's certainly very obscure and non-mainstream. Worshipping pagan ancestry within black metal (like Falkenbach does) commonly conveys rather nationalist ideals - seeing as those of pagan heritage are supposedly superior to immigrants - but who gives a shyte.

Why are all the bands all of you mentioned called folk bands / artists anyway? They're not about the history of a people or country, they don't have old instruments or even a synthesiser on old instruments mode... apparently "folk" means something very different among classic rock / punk fans?

 

If you wanna see a real great underground folk group, check out Huzzah For the Shopkeep, they rock, ummm folk the house!

 

great tip Hailtotheking, will be checking out the Crone of War album as I'm very partial to pagan folk sounds (Prydwyn, Green Crown, Green Mistletoe, Stone Breath, for example, and more on my folk pages)

the mp3s of the live recordings this band do on that Live Religion sound superb,

cheers
HD

 

Why are all the bands all of you mentioned called folk bands / artists anyway? They're not about the history of a people or country, they don't have old instruments or even a synthesiser on old instruments mode... apparently "folk" means something very different among classic rock / punk fans?[/QUOTE]

Not all music made by the previous artists is folk, but some is. For more info on folk styles & artists, check out the following sites.

http://www.42explore.com/folkmusic.htm
http://www.folklib.net/index/home_pages.shtml
http://www.jg.org/folk/folkhome.html
http://www.folkmusic.org/

 

Only thing I can think to suggest is Flogging Molly. "Irish folk-punk" They're really good. ^^

 

Check out Amos Lee for some current folk music. Saw him live last week. Great show.