Posts by Jeff Strowe

[rating=6.00] In a few short years, alt-J have grown from college dorm hall buddies messing around with GarageBand to full-blown rock stars working with some of music’s heavyweights. Their debut release An Awesome Wave captured Britain’s prestigious Mercury Prize in 2012, and immediately catapulted the band into larger venues and bigger headlining slots, while also […]

Each year more music festivals are popping up in cities, both large and small, across the country. For every Bonnaroo, Coachella, and Lollapalooza, there is a two or three day affair that takes over a couple neighborhood blocks and offers its’ citizens the opportunity to support local business enterprises, sample eclectic foodie creations, and most […]

Dallas’ Deep Ellum district serves as the centerpiece of the city’s arts and entertainment happenings. This weekend, Sept. 26-28, the neighborhood hosts the third annual installment of the Index Festival, which will feature over 100 bands and artists spread across three outdoor stages and six surrounding indoor concert venues. Boasting an eclectic lineup, with acts […]

[rating=5.00] Boy, how the mighty have fallen. Once one of the world’s biggest and mightiest bands, U2 have stumbled upon hard times lately. Not financially nor commercially, of course, as their latest release will certainly attest, but definitely from a critical perspective. The first two decades of the band’s career saw them expertly walk the […]

[rating=6.00] Often peppy, never dull, and at times ambitiously prolific, Bishop Allen are back after a long (for them, at least) five year hiatus. In that interim, the band members worked on film and television scores, copiously demoed tracks, and left behind their longtime Brooklyn surroundings for a fresh start amongst the lush greenery of […]

[rating=7.00] As the banjo picker in his dad Del’s legendary Del McCoury Band, there’s hardly any need for introduction; Rob McCoury is undoubtedly bluegrass royalty. With decades worth of shows under his belt and countless recordings mastered to tape, both with the family band and his own offshoot, The Travelin’ McCoury’s, Rob has perfected both […]

[rating=6.00] It’s been nearly a decade since Conor Oberst followed up a few preceding years of solid work with his masterpiece, I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning. That album, released under his Bright Eyes moniker, has stood up nicely over the ensuing years, and continues to be cited time and again by critics and fans alike, […]

[rating=8.00] I saved Latin! What did you ever do?” utters Rushmore’s quirky protagonist Max Fischer during a climactic moment of the excellent 1998 film. And, while the question was exclaimed rhetorically at the time, the folks at American Laundromat Records, can actually come back with a retort. In a move that surprisingly hasn’t previously been […]

Before Megafaun and before Bon Iver, there was DeYarmond Edison; four good friends banging out rustic Americana and folk rock deep in the heart of Wisconsin. A little less than a decade ago, these friends moved south to North Carolina and musically began to splinter off. Brothers Brad and Phil Cook, along with drummer Joe […]

Touring behind his new self-titled solo album, longtime New Yorker Dean Wareham returned to The Bowery Ballroom Saturday night to face an eagerly awaiting packed house. With a career now entering its’ fourth decade, Wareham is no stranger to these parts or the road for that matter, having toured hard and heavy with his previous […]