This month’s issue

fROOTS 40

Your free download album, details here.

THE EDITOR’S BOX

Ian Anderson’s comment column.

RANTING AND REELING

Tim Chipping's new monthly column.

THE ELUSIVE ETHNOMUSICOLOGIST

Elizabeth Kinder's new monthly column.

fROOTS PLAYLIST

Recent stuff we like.

CHARTS & LISTS

Specialist and general roots music album sales and airplay charts.

REVIEWS

Our key section reviewing all the latest CDs and more - loads bite the dust. No punches pulled!

ROOTING ABOUT

What's happening: packed pages of festivals, gigs, tours, radio, CDs and all kinds of roots-related stuff. The most you'll find anywhere…

ROOT SALAD

A cross-section of featurettes: Dervish singer Cathy Jordan’s solo project, Quebec’s Nicolas Pellerin & Les Grands Hurleurs, the Real World Gold series, West Country duo Phillip Henry & Hannah Martin, America’s Ryan McGiver and Fairport’s Simon Nicol answering the Rocket Launcher questionnaire.

HANGING OUT WITH OLD NIC

Nic Jones may be playing four festivals this summer but it’s definitely not a comeback. Oh no. Colin Irwin goes to visit Nic, his son Joe who’ll be accompanying him on the gigs, and Julia Jones who kept it all together down the years.

THE NIC OF TIME

Nic Jones was the cover interview for our second issue, published in autumn 1979, the year before he made the iconic Penguin Eggs album. You can read the full feature here.

GRAVE ROBERTS

It’s nearly a decade since we put Alasdair Roberts on our cover and yet, in spite of endorsements from well respected artists like Shirley Collins, he’s still often ignored by the folk establishment’s gatekeepers. Jeanette Leech doesn’t need convincing though…

SIX FROM THE FIELD

There are always new musical marvels to munch on at Womad. Elizabeth Kinder points you at half a dozen lively bands we think you should get your teeth into.

BUDAPEST BOUND

A celebration of cimbaloms with a dash of dance house. Judith Burrows took camera and notebook to Hungary.

THE ETHNO VIRUS

From Sweden to Australia, Croatia to Uganda, young musicians gather for the joy of learning and playing the folk music of their different cultures together. Andrew Cronshaw introduces the Ethno camps phenomenon.

HEADING NORTH

The UK’s multi-cultural music scene plays host to immigrants from all over the world. Jamie Renton checks out four representatives of North Africa - Hassan Erraji, El Andaluz, Amira Kheir and Danto Aya.

VILLAGE SYSTEM

Simon Emmerson is the brains behind Afro Celt Sound System, The Imagined Village and a considerable amount of other popular ethnobopping. Chris Nickson hears the word on the footpath…

DEPARTMENT STORY

La Réunion’s local music scene is thriving, and now promoting itself worldwide. Bastiaan Springer visited the annual IOMMA event for a bit of maloya therapy.

REMBETIKA ROOTS

Young Greek rembetika band Apsilies revive this great music in fabulous fashion, and are about to make their UK debut. Elisavet Sotiriadou gets on their trail…

SANDY FOR SURE

A show called The Lady: A Homage To Sandy Denny took to the road recently. Simon Jones was on hand for the preparations and the first night in Liverpool.

BIFF!

Our exclusive cartoon strip.