Folk award nominee Anais Mitchell and Jefferson Hamer are two songwriters from across the Atlantic who co-arranged a selection of epic old folk songs from our shores for the upcoming release Child Ballads.

For Mitchell, this recording comes on the heels of 2010’s Hadestown and 2012’s Young Man in America. Both albums are big on story; the first is a folk opera, while the second has been described by the Independent on Sunday as “an epic tale of American becoming”. Hamer began his career with the Colorado roots rock band Great American Taxi, but moved to New York in 2008 to pursue songwriting and a passion for Irish traditional music. In 2010 he began touring with Mitchell, playing guitar and singing harmony.

The two quickly discovered their shared love of Celtic and British Isles ballads and made a plan to arrange and record some of their favourites together. But what began as a whimsical side project evolved into a serious collaborative endeavour spanning several years, three separate recording attempts, and a whole lot of cutting room floor. “We just had no idea what we were getting ourselves into” laughs Mitchell. A special record, a special show.