Posts by Neil Ferguson

On his previous album, 2018’s Gimme Some Light, singer-songwriter Ryan Martin tapped into the kind of 70s folk-rock and Americana sound of groups like The Band, with rich, heartfelt harmonies and lyrics that conveyed honest music from someone who has lived an at times rough life but aims to do right. The album was an impressive […]

As a songwriter, guitarist and producer, Reed Turchi never stops changing. Since his early days serving up raw and faithful interpretations of Hill Country blues to his more indie rock-inspired work to his psychedelic blues orchestra, the Nashville-based musician has continued to evolve and has done so at a remarkably productive pace for someone who […]

West London duo Babeheaven is made up of lifelong friends Nancy Andersen and Jamie Travis, who bring together indie, electronic and soul. Their new album Home For Now – a title that feels all too fitting for our current moment – finds the duo paying homage to the trip-hop sounds of groups like Portishead and […]

For their fifth studio album Lifetime of Comedy, Portland, Oregon folk-rock outfit The Parson Red Heads were faced with the kind of hurtles that many bands have experienced in this year from hell. The album recording was delayed due to the pandemic, which was preceded by the departure of founding guitarist Sam Fowles, who left […]

Perhaps one of the coolest yet low key collaborations to ever take place was that between Congolese vocalist/composer Bony Bikaye, French musician/producer Hector Zazou, and modular synth group CY1. First teaming up in 1983 for Noir et Blanc, this unlikely trio of talented acts created a sound that seamlessly merged Afrobeat, Afrofunk, bouncy synth-pop, and early electronic dance music […]

Cory Henry is trying to stay optimistic. You can hear it on the first half of his impressive new album Something to Say, which finds him once again teaming up with his talented band the Funk Apostles. With his “future soul” sound front and center, the keyboard master eases into a danceable groove with uplifting songs […]

Mexico City band Los Blenders recently dropped their new album, Mazunte 2016, via tastemaker label Devil In Woods. Since the release of their 2015 debut Chavos Bien, the band has been steadily building up a loyal following of their fans in Mexico and abroad. Though they sing in Spanish, their music and messages connect on a […]

Considering a prolific career that stretches back fifty years, it should come as little surprise that when folk singer-songwriter Chris Smither recorded his 2014 album ­­­­Still on the Levee, there was much more material than would make the final cut. Fast forward to 2020 and now Smither has released the rest of the material from […]

Polaris just may be the best band that never really existed. For those who aren’t hip to this fact, here is the backstory: way back in the 90s there was a television show called the Adventures of Pete and Pete. Balancing oddball humor and the heartfelt dynamic of two red-headed brothers growing up in suburban […]

Portland, Oregon has been dominating news headlines these days for reasons that many cities would like to avoid. Despite the doom and gloom of a pandemic, wild fires and constant protests, the city is, believe it or not, a pretty vibrant place. If you want proof, just look at the music scene, which is burning […]

In Suds & Sounds we turn the spotlight on breweries, focusing on the role of music in that brewery’s history, packaging, tastes, and in its city or town as a whole. The idea is to get beer and music lovers to connect with a side of the brewery that may often go overlooked, but one that we think […]

Experimental dream pop group Jupiter Sprites – driven by songwriters Max Keena and Alicia Capp – hail from misty Olympia, WA, where late night recording sessions make for a lush array of compositions produced by Keena’s artful ear in his home studio. In the wake of a series of traumatic events involving two hospitalizations and […]

In Suds & Sounds we turn the spotlight on breweries, focusing on the role of music in that brewery’s history, packaging, tastes, and in its city or town as a whole. The idea is to get beer and music lovers to connect with a side of the brewery that may often go overlooked, but one that we think […]

One of the great tragedies in the world of indie rock is the early passing of Jason Molina, who died at the age of 39 in 2013 of complications related to alcoholism. The posthumous new solo album Eight Gates is composed of songs recorded in 2009 a year before Molina would basically walk away from […]

Remember those glorious days when punk rock and country music collided to form a raucous new sound that would eventually be termed alt-country? The Country Westerns definitely do, as is evidenced by their self-titled debut. Consisting of singer-guitarist Joey Plunkett, drummer Brian Kotzur, and bassist Sabrina Rush, the trio have solid credentials between them ranging […]

Maita is the musical project of Portland, Oregon-based artist Maria Maita-Keppeler. Like many musicians, Maita-Keppeler and her band had big plans around the release of their debut album Best Wishes. With a pre-release buzz already circulating after the indie rockers grabbed the attention of respected label Kill Rock Stars, there were plans to play album […]

North Carolina native Jeremy Squires has spent the better part of two decades playing in bands and recording his own style of sparse and rootsy folk music. Since 2013 he has been staying especially productive, releasing a handful of albums and progressing his ability as a songwriter capable of crafting music filled with depth, emotion […]

Portland, Oregon has always been a groovy place and musicians like Ripley Johnson are the reason why. Best known as one half of droning psych funkers Moon Duo and the leader of spacey cult favorites Wooden Shjips, Johnson has called Portland home for years now. Fittingly, his aptly named side project the Rose City Band […]

Nashville-based artist Mark Fredson is hardly a household name, but he has racked up some notable credentials over the last decade. He spent 10 years as the front man of Washington by way of Nashville rock outfit the Lonely H before branching off as a songwriter, pianist and producer who has collaborated with the likes […]

For more than a decade John “Papa” Gros was known as one of the funkiest organ players in New Orleans. With his aptly named band Papa Grows Funk, Gros brought the joyful grooves of the Hammond B3 organ to the world and his name became synonymous with the instrument. That’s why it may have seemed […]