The Tallest Man on Earth w/ Strand of Oaks

Over several releases as The Tallest Man on Earth, Swedish singer-songwriter Kristian Matsson has emerged as one of contemporary folk's leading wordsmiths. On his 2008 debut full-length, <i>Shallow Grave</i>, clever and dark lyrics blend with sunny rhythms and melodies. Matsson's voice was almost uncanny in its resemblance to Bob Dylan on his 2010 sophomore album, <i>The Wild Hunt</i>, and on his most recent full-length, this year's moving <i>There's No Leaving Now</i>, he features his most introspective songs yet. He offers a dose of hope in tracks like the stripped-down ballad “1904,” flaunts a vintage sound with subtly muffled microphone filters on the humble, finger-picked guitar track “Leading Me Now,” and nearly cries his way through the album's piano-laced title track. Matsson is well paired on this bill with Strand of Oaks, the haunting folk project of another songwriter with an indelible voice, Timothy Showalter.