“vibrant emotional empathy” Songlines 2008
“takes the heart to places few singers even know exist” WORD 2008
“a passionate, perceptive songwriter” Uncut 2008
“exceptionally subtle and melodic” Q 2008

Scottish songwriter Karine Polwart combines the economy and universality of the folk storytelling tradition with a probing intellect and compassionate lyricism. Four times winner at the UK’s prestigious BBC Folk Awards, including twice for “Best Original Song”, the former philosophy teacher and children’s rights activist, continues to wonder at the homes her many poignant songs find for themselves:

“The most beautiful thing about songs is how they can take on a life and a meaning of their own. I’m constantly moved and inspired by the deeply personal experiences people let me in on to me as a result of hearing them”.

Whether it’s the dilemmas of modern parenthood, the unsettling kindness of lies, or the political significance of cosmetic dentistry, she tries never to say too much, allowing stories, images and comic asides to do her work for her. All of which is precisely the kind of sideways, allegorical approach to contemporary living that you might expect from someone with a Masters degree in philosophy.

Karine quit her job with national domestic abuse charity Scottish Women’s Aid in 2000, only to discover, she says wryly, that “singing folk songs isn’t that different from social work”. And certainly it’s the humanity at the heart of the folk song tradition that above all else informs her subtle and intelligent writing and warm, wise and witty stage presence.

In the ensuing decade, Karine has released four solo albums, including her most recent collection “This Earthly Spell”, as well as notching up a string of eclectic musical collaborations, most recently with Canadian writers, James Keelaghan and Dave Gunning. She’s a former member of Battlefield Band and trad quintet Malinky, and has worked also with Scottish troubadours Dick Gaughan and Brian McNeill, the intellectual maverick of English folk song Chris Wood, UK alt-folk favourite King Creosote, the wildly inventive Scots-English trio Lau, and even the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

Accompanying herself on acoustic and tenor guitar, Karine tours regularly as a trio with her brother Steven Polwart on guitar, ukelele and vocals and Shetland’s Inge Thomson on accordion, percussion and vocals.

With four solo albums under her belt, the restlessly creative Polwart still finds time to collaborate with friends Annie Grace (vocals, whistle) and Corrina Hewat (vocals, harp) in an innovative and cheeky female vocal harmony project (Grace, Hewat, Polwart) combining traditional and original songs and, also, with Scots-Canadian indie-folk-pop collective The Burns Unit, which features erstwhile collaborator King Creosote, as well as dub artist MC Soom T, ex-Delgados front woman Emma Pollock, her Cape Breton husband Mattie Foulds and Toronto-based Skydiggers member Michael Johnston.

Also see Karine's MySpace page.