Folk Gothic and Folk Noir

We’ve mentioned the growing interest in folk Gothic a couple of times on this site, where the darkness of Gothic narrative roots itself in folk traditions (or invented replicas of such traditions). Folklore, too, interests us in the form of fairy tale and its transmutation by such writers as Angela Carter and in many paranormal romance novels. So, a related mode in folk music is bound to be of interest; this article discusses a wave of female folk singers who infuse their songs with a Gothic darkness. I don’t know these singers, but they’re surely descendants of such artists as Nick Cave and of the nameless composers of archaic murder ballads and songs of the restless dead. They sound fascinating and I’ll certainly be exploring them.