A prolific troubadour, Simon Waldram has announced his latest release So It Goes for 4 June 2021.

When we asked Simon Waldram for his musical influences at the end of last year he gave us a long and diverse list, ranging from early punk (The Damned) to the ethereal Cocteau Twins. He clearly draws from a broad church in his music making.

That is also apparent from the fact he switches his time between making music on his own account and then thrash punk with Dynamite For Partisans.

He wears many hats, not always weather dependent.

This time we have So It Goes, released under his own name.

It’s a solo project, albeit the list of collaborators on just about every song is impressive and, of the nine tracks, only two feature Waldram on his own. Otherwise he is accompanied by cellos, violins, keyboards and the more usual bass, guitar and drums on some tracks.

The end result is a really rather beautiful and, at times, haunting piece of work. From the opener, You, it is apparent this album will draw you into Waldram’s world.

A lot of the songs take the natural world as an inspiration: Boats in the Sky, The Wild Wanderings of Wildebeest, Moonstone, Windswept.

It’s a short album – 34 minutes is all it takes, but it deserves to be consumed as a whole.

Waldram’s own website describes him as a singer – songwriter, a term we understand he doesn’t much care for. And on this album, we can see why. Waldram’s songs are enriched by the contributions of others. At times, it’s a convenient shorthand, but the end result is more complex than the moniker would suggest.

There are elements of psych, perhaps, some Leonard Cohen, perhaps. But most of all it’s Simon Waldram. And that’s fine, because this is well worth your time.

So It Goes will be out on 4 June and is available on Bandcamp as a CD or digital release for preorder with two tracks, Boats in the Sky and Moonstone available now.