Just like her musical heroes and heroines Serge Gainsbourg, Scott Walker, Joni Mitchell, Neil Hannon, Rufus Wainwright, Liza Minelli and David Bowie, Amelia Coburn has a knack for making the unusual sound timeless.
Drawing inspiration from gothic literature and the shadowy allure of film noir, there is a darkness at the heart of many of her songs, populated by vivid characters and nocturnal creatures that inhabit the liminal space “between the moon and the milkman”.
Her Bill Ryder-Jones produced debut album gained a cult following, including praise from British music legends Paul Weller and Paul Heaton - as well as national radio play across BBC Radios 2, 3, 4, 5, 6music, Scotland, Ulster and Introducing in the North East.
Hailed as “one to watch in 2025” by Louder Than War, Seetickets and Drowned In Sound, Amelia hit the ground running with spellbinding sets at SXSW in Texas.
Audiences continued to grow thanks to enchanting support slots with the likes of The Levellers, Hamish Hawk, Stornoway and Katherine Priddy - not to mention her own headline UK tour. Furthermore, a feature on Paul Weller’s latest album ‘Find El Dorado’ solidified Coburn’s burgeoning reputation
Amelia’s honest, occasionally hilarious and quintessentially north-eastern persona disarms and beguiles in equal measure: this is art without artifice.
Previous praise:
"A great voice with great tunes" - Paul Weller in Mojo Magazine
"In a cynical, meta-obsessed world, her music is wide-eyed, guileless and fresh" - The Arts Desk (Album of the Year)
“A world full of darkness and light and soundtracked by magic and melancholy” - Louder Than War
“Songs that feel like centuries old fairy tales” - Shindig! Magazine
“The gloriously catchy tracks have been fleshed out to full arrangements that are at turns baroque, jazzy and oddly ornate” - Clash
“There’s a feel of the Beatlesque pop of ‘Eleanor Rigby‘, or Joni in her ‘Ladies of the Canyon‘ moments – ‘Sandra‘ exemplifies that feel although Coburn is a smaller – and yet so intimately intriguing – voice” - Americana UK
"An astonishing collection of songs and stories, all told with the unmistakable profile of Coburn’s North East homeland on the horizon." - Klof Mag
“A fabulous voice, beguiling stage presence” - Mark Radcliffe (BBC Radio 2)
“Absolutely genius” - Tom Robinson (BBC Radio 6 Music)
"Utterly unique" - Far Out Magazine
“Coburn is a literate folk-goth, her songs flicker in the moonlight, they look longingly through the mist” - B24/7
+ radio airplay across BBC Radios 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 including Loose Ends and The Verb.
Bill Ryder-Jones on Amelia Coburn:
“I’ve never in my life worked with someone quite like Amelia and I still can’t quite put my finger on what she is! That’s a compliment by the way - she came in with these incredibly clever, moving songs that just blew me away... It would’ve taken me a day to record just her and her uke but she wanted a bigger sound, so we had a lot of playing around with these arrangements. Honestly, the whole process was just very natural and came together without any fuss. I found the making of the record and Amelia herself so inspiring and I really hope people get the chance to see and hear this incredibly talented artist doing her thing… which is beautifully mad, funny, intelligent and earnest in the best possible sense.”
Accolades / Awards
Drowned In Sound - 15 Must See Acts 2025 shortlist.
TVCA Artist of the Year 24/25
PRS Foundation ‘Women Make Music’ 2025
”25 to watch in 2025“ Louder Than War
Top 30 albums of 2024 - Shindig! Magazine
”Album of the Year“ The artsdesk.com
Selected for English Folk Expo mentoring scheme 2022/23
UKE Magazine Breakthrough Artist 2022
BBC Folk Awards finalist 2017
Official UK Album Chart Positions:
Folk Albums Charts #15 (in the top 40 for 3 months)
Album Sales #55
Downloads #21
Physical Albums #73
Independent Albums #23
Independent Album Breakers #7