By Joshua Gutierrez

Hannah Frances’ song “Keeper of the Shepherd” was introduced to me as a snippet on Instagram Stories, which perhaps was a paid sponsorship targeting music enthusiasts like me who adore the folk genre.

Instantly, I was amazed by what I heard. This stunning folk rock balladry with a chugging boom bap sound which felt like this amazing blend of Johnny Cash, Florence + The Machine, Joan Shelley and Bill Callahan. Immediately, I rushed and added the song to my playlist.

A few weeks later, the album “Keeper of the Shepherd” became an AOTY contender in my Hidden gem category. As I was finalizing this category in the last few weeks, this remarkably tender and raw vision was a clear favorite.

As a constant admirer of forlorn soundscapes and the mystic element contained within folk music, Frances’ brilliance on songs like “Husk,” “Vacant Intimacies” and “Woolgathering” create a sense of drastic depth few albums possessed in 2024. This is a brilliant work that deserves the praise it has received from some of the industry’s largest publications.

I am so proud to share it as my Hidden Gem AOTY.

While there were some remarkable albums to come out of this category in 2024, this year’s collection was a lot smaller than in year’s past. Perhaps it’s because so much of my time was invested in the stunning amount of music released by the industry’s largest stars.

Regardless, from Myriam Gendron’s tender “Mayday,” BIG BRAVE’s torturously heavy “A Chaos of Flowers” to Astrid Sonne’s atmospheric “Great Doubt,” Hidden Gem albums this year added remarkable depth to what has already been a stunning 2024.

Bye!!!

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