Posts by Shawn Donohue

Bounce legend Big Freedia has shifted gears, melding her Saturday night club sounds with her Sunday morning church influences. Pressing Onward, named after the Pressing Onward Baptist Church in her hometown of New Olreans, is a gospel-saturated offering that places huge choirs next to trap beats with interesting results.  Having joined a choir at the […]

The Los Angeles-based pop outfit Fitz and the Tantrums has been delivering their neon-laced tunes for sixteen years, and their sixth studio release, Man On The Moon, continues in the group’s style as it weaves various soul, dance, and funk elements into their party- and commercial-ready sounds.   The band is led by Michael “Fitz” Fitzpatrick, with co-lead […]

Following up on his GRAMMY-nominated debut For(e)ward, Mádé Kuti has dove deep into modern afrobeat sounds, raising the bar with the sizzling Chapter 1: Where Does Happiness Come From?  As a third-generation musician with the most famous family lineage in the genre, legendary pioneering Grandfather Fela and Father Femi, Mádé does not bend under the […]

Jade Bird’s newest album is titled Who Wants to Talk About Love, and the English-born, Los Angeles-based pop/Americana artist has a lot to say on the subject, especially the aftermath.  All the songs on this album explore the dissolution of relationships. While there may be multiple influences, the most significant and overarching theme is the recent breakup of […]

Sometimes the title of the album says it all. With Ain’t Rocked in a While, Brent Cobb & The Fixin’s decided to press pause on Cobb’s more singer/songwriter offerings, strap on the electric guitars, and turn the amps up.  Produced by Cobb and Oran Thornton, the players recorded live to tape at The Black Palace in Springfield, […]

The fourth studio album from Durand Jones & The Indications is titled Flowers, as the band is blooming with confidence and maturity. The neo-soul group is never in a hurry throughout the record as their smooth get-down jams are custom-made for hot, lazy summer nights. The self-produced album finds the core trio of Durand Jones […]

Leading up to the biggest show in the Wilton, CT band’s life, headlining Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, Goose made a rare club appearance on Monday at the 650-capacity Racket in Manhattan. The group was in mid-tour form, delivering a long set that showcased their style to some fans and a host of newcomers.  […]

Almost exactly a year ago, Lukas Nelson and his band, Promise of the Real, a 15-year-old collective, announced an indefinite hiatus to pursue different artistic endeavors. Now arrives Nelson’s first solo offering, American Romance, an album that looks to shift perspectives and recalibrate Nelson as a solo artist.  Nelson takes center stage as his understated […]

The newest offering from the Brooklyn-based rock outfit Hotline TNT is a throwback to the buzzy grunge era of 90s indie/alt heyday; however, things never stagnate as they sprinkle in exciting accents and pop-like appeal to keep the ear engaged throughout the dynamite Raspberry Moon.  For the first time in Hotline TNT’s history, lead singer/founder and […]

For their newest release Bo Dollis Jr. & The Wild Magnolias went upriver to inject some Memphis blues and soul into their New Orleans second line sound. Chip Off The Old Block finds Bo Dollis Jr. The Wild Magnolias continue cultural traditions passed down from Bo’s father, while also expanding in exciting ways.     The group […]

One of the most unlikely comebacks in recent music history was WITCH’s 2023 offering, the excellent Zango. The Zamrock legends returned after 40 years, blending new and old styles to deliver the goods for a new generation to discover. Now comes SOGOLO, a follow-up that is more relaxed, less vital, but still able to rock, groove, and […]

Following up on her acclaimed 2024 debut Image Issues, Brittany Davis‘ new release, Black Thunder, is a freewheeling, jazzy excursion that showcases her strong vocals, insightful lyrics, and the musical interplay of her trio.  On her debut, Davis used drum machines and programmed keys, but this time, things are more organic and flowing. Working with producer Josh […]

The Los Angeles-based rockers Frankie and the Witch Fingers ratchet up the nervous energy on their newest offering, Trash Classic. The ten spastic tracks shimmy, bang and slam forward as the band embraces new-wave and post-punk influences in a significant way. Recorded in Oakland, at Tiny Telephone Studio, with producer Maryam Qudus (La Luz, Spacemoth), Dylan […]

For his 80th birthday celebration, John Fogerty headed east to the gorgeous Beacon Theater on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, setting up shop for the first of two nights with his Travelin’ Band. On a soaking and bleak Wednesday (May 28th), he celebrated his actual birthday by opening the show with a prepared video […]

For this reissue of 7Seconds 1986 release New Wind, original producer Ian MacKaye and Inner Ear Studios’ Don Zientara ‘reimagined’ the album, delivering Change In My Head. The effort removes some songs, remixes the full record, plays with the track order and unearths a few unreleased gems from the original recording session.  New Wind, the […]

On an overcast, breezy Thursday evening at South Street Seaport, Amyl and the Sniffers brought their Cartoon Darkness world tour onto the glorious rooftop at Pier 17 in New York City on May 15th. With the best backdrop of any NYC outdoor venue, the stage was set for a rollicking night of punk-infused rock and […]

The debut full-length album Blest from Brooklyn-based artist Yuno finds him expanding the scope of his sound, embracing pop grandiosity and exploring vocal styles. Yuno’s musical journey finds him unrestricted by genre or style as he evolves.  His 2018 EP Moodie (also on Sub Pop) found him dealing with a traumatic breakup. On Blest, he is back exploring the world, moving […]

The San Antonio, TX based hardcore freak-punks, Butthole Surfers, were notorious for their live shows and the band’s newest archival release, Live at the Leather Fly, does a good job capturing their mid-career, chaotic noise sound.  The album is not dated or given a specific location where it was recorded, but it sounds like one […]

Every year, the options for events held during the days between New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival weekends grow larger. One event that has been happening for 20 years is the Threadhead Cultural Foundation “Patry” and this year’s lineup was one of the best the non-profit organization has ever offered up.  Held at Deutsches Haus, […]

The newest album from Afrobeat legend Femi Kuti, Journey Through Life, finds the 62-year-old examining his past while re-recording some of his older songs and delivering a few new jams with personal lyrics.   Kuti has lived a full life, fighting against political corruption, working with Global Citizen, running The New African Shrine in Lagos with […]