Merry McCloud

It can be something of a cliché to describe a new album in the alt folk genre as ‘a breath of fresh air’, yet Merry McCloud’s rich and tender voice makes ‘The False Bride’ just that.

A singer, performer and songwriter who has toured Europe and the American Deep South, written and recorded with Malcolm McClaren, supported Nik Turner’s Space Ritual and made several appearances on Glastonbury’s Avalon Stage, she is accompanied on guitar and bass by psych legend Bruce Welch, who has worked with everyone from Hawkwind to Judie Tzuke and the late Bert Jansch. Superstar producer Youth gives her collection of traditional songs and self-penned compositions a lustrous spaciousness. Merry’s singing voice is redolent of Annie Haslam and Sandy Denny, mellifluous singers with progressive folk bands Renaissance and Fairport Convention respectively. Merry is the mysterious dark queen of alt folk.