Amy Speace ★★★★ There Used To Be Horses Here PROPER. CD/DL/LP

Raw emotions hit the spot for Americana singer-songwriter. An album about losing your father is never going to be a chucklefest but, as Nashvillebased Amy Speace proves, neither does it have to be maudlin. After an ambivalent relationship, Speace and her emotionally distant father finally became close in his last years, and in his final weeks the memories poured out. Memories of being driven in a Pontiac convertible by his sister’s boyfriend, of a cabin in the woods, of dreaming his twin was about die: all this runs through Speace’s deeply personal songs, but in a code universal enough for everyone to relate to. When not reminiscing about dad, Speace delves into her own memories, often from the perspective of being a new mother – the circle of life never ending. Raw and heartbreaking in parts, yet always kind and gentle, this is an album of hope to get you through the hardest times.

Andy Fyfe