Cut from, somewhat poetically, Same Cloth Records, 'Over Again' is shaped by resilience and hope – the result of several years spent navigating visas and shedding old cycles before finally putting down roots in North Carolina.
A Different Thread seamlessly blends the voices of Alicia Best (US) and Robert Jackson (UK). The pair met while busking on the coddled streets of this fair land – and it was here in Ireland that they discovered a musical and personal harmony that was somewhat serendipitous.
However with an ocean between them, they spent the next decade touring across a dozen countries simply to be able to stay together, although most of the songs on ‘Over Again’ were written when visas and closed borders kept them apart.
This eleven track album is an intimate celebration and a call to action – blending autobiographical storytelling with social commentary.
‘Over Again’ confronts the struggles of addiction loneliness, intergenerational trauma, and systemic abuse of power – all while illuminating mythology, community and self-healing.
Recording began at Betty’s on Chapel Hill, continued in the band’s tiny home studio in North Carolina, before being completed and mixed in Bristol.
It features previously released singles ‘Always Leaving’, ‘Amaranth’ and ‘Sweet and the Burn’ with the addition of new tracks like ‘The Prophet’ and ‘Goodbye Muddy Waters’.
‘The Prophet’ in particular is a stand out track – drawing on Alicia’s upbringing in the American South – drawing a firm line in the sand between the intersection of religion, profit ad power – a critique of late stage capitalism and a plea for environmental stewardship.
A Different Thread bridges old world folk traditions with songs that belong firmly in the third century of the twenty first century – they certainly have plenty to say and much of value to listen to.