There’s a new album out by queer folk singer Grace Petrie this week, called Build Something Better, and I think you should buy it.
Grace is someone who I’ve seen live a couple of times, mostly supporting Josie Long on tour. She’s always fantastic to see live; not just because her music is great, but because she can work a crowd between songs. I was not at all surprised when she did a stand-up comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2022 called Butch Ado About Nothing. Of her previous songs, Black Tie, from her 2018 album Queer as Folk is the one that probably resonates the most with me.
Her last album, Connectivity, reached #37 in the UK album charts without much promotion. Grace is not on a major label – hence the links to her music on Bandcamp – and I gather its appearance in the top 40 was a surprise for her. This time, for Build Something Better, Grace is aiming to get into the charts again. So, if you can, please buy the album today or tomorrow, to give it the best chance of charting.
You can stream Build Something Better on Spotify if you want, or I suppose you can buy it on Amazon (sponsored link). But if you buy it on Bandcamp, you can pay more and more of your money goes to Grace. And it’s available in a variety of music formats, including lossless audio, if that’s your thing, with no digital rights management. However, if you do buy it from Bandcamp, make sure you download it, as simply purchasing the music isn’t enough to count for charts.
I’ve had a listen to a few of the songs so far, having bought it at the weekend, and I’m enjoying them so far. It’s already at Number 17 in the midweek charts, so a few more sales could get it into the top 10.