Posts by Chad Berndtson

Jason Isbell is untethered and seems to be enjoying his new direction away from the Drive by Truckers. A solo album we've been hearing about for a while,Sirens of the Ditch, finally drops from New West on July 10, and he will also kick off a tour with a new group, the 400 Unit, the day before. The group, which includes Isbell's Muscle Shoals pals Jimbo Hart, Ryan Tillery, and Browan Lollar, will hit major U.S. markets through the end of August, wrapping up in Chattanooga on August 31.

For its new studio album Roses & Clover, ALO decided to shake things up. For most bands, that might mean a lineup change, a new genre direction, or even a complete songwriting overhaul.   For ALO, it meant changing none of those internal workings, but instead focusing on the powers of the studio album–and surprise.

Listen to enough Bobby Bare Jr., and you start craving the stuff whenever you're in need of a little peace of mind. It's not that he makes music that's necessarily peaceful, just that he's arrived at a cross section of pie-eyed quirk, country musicianship, rocker dynamics and loveably dirty, unburnished romance that's particularly agreeable on any kind of day.

Warren Haynes' Christmas Jam has been around for 18 years, but was a strictly provincial affair up until the late 90’s. WarrenBase, the side project section of the indispensable MuleBase, reveals that it was still a loose gathering of acoustic and electric sets, local bands, and the appearance of only one or two major acts before it began to mushroom. Later it moved to the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, and finally the main arena in the Asheville Civic Center, where it'll presumably stay.

The New Deal remains the sophisticate's choice in livetronica almost in spite of the genre's popularity spike. As much as some newer, greener crews oversaturate the markets in hopes of rising above the pack, the Canadian trio has scaled back its operation since returning from a touring hiatus in 2004.

There's been a windfall of Pixies DVDs in the past year or two, but Acoustic: Live In Newport takes the cake for odd and wonderful resonance. What's even more fascinating than this concert document of the Pixies at the 2005 Newport Folk Festival is the behind-the-scenes material, where we quickly see that the the reconstituted band not so much eases into the idea of an acoustic set as it gets ready to shoehorn itself in.

It’s easy to enjoy Colorblind, but in the end, it will have you searching for a copy of his stellar debut Live at the Wetlands. That's the rub with Robert Randolph, as years ago, the more his sets grew repetitive and his jams predictable, the more we craved stronger, more varied songs. But does the quest for songs mean no more goofy, sloppy fun?

Twenty-two years into their career, Yo La Tengo are still at the top of their game. Their genre spanning latest – I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass might be the best "mix" CD of the year

Fireside Live is loads of fun, as if Joey DeFrancesco or Jimmy Scott traded in the more academic jazz aesthetic (but retained same chops and improvisational proclivities) to front a boozy gospel-rock outfit Ginty’s taken to calling “outlaw gospel.”

Transformations is the first release by the new Particle, or was, until RANA vet Scott Metzger announced his joining the band as a co-lead-guitarist would in fact be only temporary. These things happen, though, and Metzger’s departure doesn’t really lose ground for the transitional Particle, per se. With only eight months under their belt as fulltime members, Metzger and Ben Combe were/are only in the break-in phase of the band.

A few songs into Gov

You can’t fault The Pnuma Trio for its nerve: another keyboard-plus-rhythm-section jamtronica live album? Does the amorphous genre have room for one more, especially one that at first listen bears so much resemblance to the New Deal, Lotus, and the rest?

John Vanderslice has notched a hot streak of gems, including 2005’s Pixel Revolt. And then there is his techie jones: a tireless and self-professed production geek, as much enamored of a well-kept studio as he is of guitar strums and performance.

Filmmaker Lawrence Shapiro has shot Jam Cruise, Jazzfest, Hydra, Los Lobos, Bonnaroo and Phish’s IT and Coventry. His latest efforts were capturing the essence of Amsterdam’s Jam In The Dam.

At the Jammy Awards, the musical reach is broad and a sense of history is cherished. Not only that, but it's done so in an organic way that, despite similarities in intent, manages to pull off the type of shaggy genuineness that the museum-enshrinement theatrics of the Grammys and the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame just can't seem to nail.

Ten Silver Drops is a leaner effort than Nowhere, with an evidence of staying power, which none of us Machines freaks ever doubted. More importantly, Ten Silver Dropsis just frayed enough to suggest the trio is still just warming up, and their magnum opus may still await.

Black Wire posted a statement online that it doesn’t need a drummer

The Hidden Land drops in advance of a major year of touring for our beloved Flecktones, who didn’t perform together in 2005 but certainly found ways to occupy themselves, with all four members mounting successful side project jaunts. Hidden isn’t so much a comeback, as some observers have oddly termed it, but rather just picking up where they left off, possibly with a renewed sense of purpose and a sensibility that seems a bit more earthbound.

As far the Mule Year's Eve run went, this opening night was the meat-and-potatoes end of it: unglamorous and not entirely surprising in setlist, guest list and general delivery.

David Dodd’s initial work with the annotation of Grateful Dead lyrics first involved name checking certain references in “Ramble On Rose” and posting his findings on the Web. Ten years later, his remarkable scholarship has led to an absolutely essential book of the same name, “The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics.”