8/10
If being in your twenties feels like trying to laugh through a breakdown with your best friends, Folk Bitch Trio have written the soundtrack. 'Now Would Be a Good Time', the group’s long-awaited debut, is a sharply observed, deeply felt, and frequently hilarious portrait of modern malaise set to stripped-back arrangements and three voices that soar and snarl in equal measure.
At first glance, the album leans on the familiar, such as tight harmonies, acoustic instrumentation, and a clear reverence for the lo-fi glow of old-school Americana. But don’t let that fool you. This isn’t precious, pastoral folk music. This is folk with its mascara smudged, shouting into the void about physics as a metaphor for sex, sleeping through heartbreak in regional motels, and hallucinating moths in the corners of your bedroom.
Built around the distinct creative perspectives of Heide Peverelle, Jeanie Pilkington, and Gracie Sinclair, 'Now Would Be a Good Time' is a record that thrives in emotional whiplash. One moment you’re laughing at the deadpan irony of 'Hotel TV' and its woozy depiction of intimacy gone awry, the next you’re pierced by the raw ache of 'Moth Song', where violin lingers like smoke and reality feels elastic. But 'The Actor' might be the most cutting track of all, equal parts torch song and post-show trauma spiral.
But what makes the album truly hit is the way it balances its raw, diaristic songwriting with just the right amount of absurdity. These songs are dispatches from the chaos of early adulthood, filtered through a lens of dark wit and beautiful disarray. And when the trio lock into harmony, especially on the live-feel closer 'Mary’s Playing The Harp', it’s like a secret spell being cast.
Recorded to tape and free of digital gloss, 'Now Would Be a Good Time' feels handcrafted and alive, as if each song was stitched together from road stories, bad decisions, and deep friendship. It’s not always polished, but that’s the point. Folk Bitch Trio are here to live through the catharsis, together, and in real time.
