Laura Veirs and Karl Blau

Not everything in Portland, Oregon as is as wacky, left-wing and generally out there as Carrie Brownstein’s hit comedy Portlandia makes it seem, and not all of the musicians are that way inclined either; some of them are just very, very good at what they do, in a stateless manner that rather suggests that they could achieve that level of excellence just about anywhere. Laura Veirs is one of those musicians; she’s very much made her own lane these past few years, making children’s albums and soundtracking films like Hello I Must Be Going, but last year, she reminded us all why she is one of the most underrated songwriters in America, with the brilliant Warp and Weft. Veirs is also well-known for her prodigious touring, and the fact that she never does it quite the same way each time. She’s never away from the UK either, and after touring her children’s record in a way that was faithful to the concept a few years back, she returned last year - newborn in tow - to play a slew of full band shows. In October, she’ll be back yet again, sans baby but guitar in hand, to play some solo gigs; I can’t recommend her highly enough, a brilliant songwriter at the peak of her powers.