Brian Palmer, Author at Glide Magazine

Sugar + the Hi-Lows: Sugar + the Hi-Lows

Brian Palmer January 20, 2012 No Comments

The debut release from two of Nashville’s better singer-songwriters, Amy Stroup and Trent Dabbs, is meant to be something of an odd bird. From the sometimes coy lyrics to the jangly rhythms and grooves, the album’s eight tracks are straight out of the 50s and 60s, and in a time when it would be easy to write commentaries on the woes of the world 2012-style, they choose instead to give things a more upbeat perspective. It’s something of a departure from their solo material, but it works pretty well when all is said and done.

Bill Frisell: All We Are Saying…..

Brian Palmer December 9, 2011 No Comments

Beatles and or John Lennon covers can be horrifying to behold. From the band who plays a song note for note with all the imagination of an accountant, to the performer who absolutely wrecks a classic by making it sound kitschy, the world is littered with songs that have been given something less than the royal treatment. But when placed in the hands of legendary maverick guitarist Bill Frisell, an album full of such John Lennon songs is engaging because the tracks become lyric-less re-imaginings rather than bland retreads or ridiculous send-ups.

Heatherlyn: Storydwelling

Brian Palmer November 14, 2011 No Comments

One of the most notable artists to come out of the 2010 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest was Minneapolis-based soul roots rocker Heatherlyn. Although she didn’t win the contest, she was voted into the Midwest Regional finals by popular vote so that has to count for something. And after taking a listen to her debut full-length release, Storydwelling, it is easy to understand why people like her so much.

Mimi Page: Breathe Me In

Brian Palmer October 21, 2011 No Comments

Encompassing the genres of trip-hop, dance, poptronica, piano pop and down tempo, Breathe Me In is quite the calling card for anyone who is just learning about this promising singer-songwriter.

Andy Hunter – On Automatic

Brian Palmer July 29, 2011 No Comments

After releasing three successful electronica albums, having his tracks featured in a number of popular movies and TV shows, developing a worldwide audience and even helping to score a film, you might think that Andy Hunter would have no trouble getting enough support to make another album. This was not the case, however, and the creation of his latest EP, Collide, took a much different path than he expected.

Mimi Page: Love Will Tear Us Apart EP

Brian Palmer July 11, 2011 No Comments

Fans of down-tempo piano electronica, trip-hop and dream pop will dig this, and if you want to get hip to an unsigned artist who is about to blow up on the dance scene, then you owe it to yourself to check out Mimi Page’s work.

Rootdown: Tidal Wave

Brian Palmer June 27, 2011 No Comments

Rootdown’s latest CD is a bit of a departure from their previous releases—but only slightly—as the sound is more mature as is some of the content. This is after all the band who has sung about the beach, flip flops and their love of the Oregon Mexican food chain Burrito Boy on previous releases.

Rootdown

Brian Palmer June 23, 2011 No Comments

Some people say that variety is the spice of life – doing the same thing over and over can get pretty boring after all. Maybe that’s why Paul Wright, lead singer of the reggae dance rock band Rootdown and someone who has had a lot of success in the Pacific Northwest with his solo work over the years, likes to run the gamut when searching for lyrical content for the band’s songs.

Brandi Carlile: Live at Benaroya Hall With The Seattle Symphony

Brian Palmer May 9, 2011 No Comments

The beauty of live performances is you take everything as it comes. If an artist flubs a line, misses a chord or hits the wrong key vocally, there’s no going back. A lot of “live” albums, however, fall short because they use a number of production tricks to cover over mistakes, or to make the audience sound louder than they really are, so they end up sounding disingenuous and in a way are a waste of time. Brandi Carlile’s new live album, thankfully, does not use these tricks and the performances are pretty damn great as a result.

Brooke Annibale – Silence Worth Breaking

Brian Palmer March 28, 2011 No Comments

Pittsburgh-based singer-songwriter Brooke Annibale certainly knows a thing or two about getting help from her friends. Her fourth and latest release, the phenomenal Silence Worth Breaking, might not even exist were it not for the support she received from a Kickstarter.com campaign last fall.

Brian Palmer

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