Julie Byrne (USA)

American indie-folk singer-songwriter Julie Byrne is making the most powerful, life-affirming music of her career. Her magnificent new album The Greater Wings is a universally resonant testament to the power of love and friendship to transcend grief and loss. The follow-up to her stunning 2017 breakthrough album, Not Even Happiness, The Greater Wings became one of this year’s most rapturously reviewed albums. This deeply moving album is a celebration of friendship; Byrne’s longtime creative partner Eric Littmann died suddenly at age 31 before the album was finished. Her new label, Ghostly International, brought in Alex Somers (Sigur Rós) to complete the album, which The Guardian compared to Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie & Lowell. With her hushed vocals, sparse instrumentation and gently plucked guitar, Julie Byrne has a way of drawing you in close. Onstage with her musical companions, Julie Byrne is a spellbinding presence, able to transform any room into her front porch.